Mindfulness

[PartTimeBrewer]

              I am starting a new thread here mainly for purposes of my own catharsis. It is my intention, at least at this point, to make regular contributions. Of course, if anyone else has anything to add, they are more than welcome. If you have any input, please contribute.

              Over a year ago I decided to deal head-on with my self-diagnosed adult attention disorder, (ADD). The inability to stay focused was becoming too stressful. I found myself sitting around watching the clock tick, yet I couldn’t keep “on task” with any project I started. Nothing was getting done and just starting something was becoming depressing.

              The smart thing to do was probably to get professional help, so instead I decided to try to heal myself, at least as a first try. Cognitive therapy and pharmaceuticals (UGH) might be the approved way to go but I decided to try meditation first.

              18 months and countless self-help books later, I still can’t bring myself to a regular, formal meditation program. But, along the way, I discovered informal mindfulness. Yes, I know it is the “Fad” right now. It is hard to navigate modern social trends without “tripping over” somebody extolling the benefits of mindfulness.

              Let me add my voice to the chorus.

[PartTimeBrewer]

[PartTimeBrewer]

Photo by Josh Bulriss

No deep message here. I just resonated with the picture.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"True happiness is not dependent on external circumstances but on the mind's ability to cultivate gratitude, embrace impermanence, and find peace in the midst of change."

~ Josh Bulriss

[PartTimeBrewer]

"When you see that you are not separate from your thoughts or your emotions you have a whole palette of different ways to be in relation to those thoughts or emotions, and this can break the vicious cycle of depressive rumination."
~ Deborah Schoeberlein David

[PartTimeBrewer]

"When we confuse thoughts and feelings we end up clinging to our stories. Having separated the two, we can drop the story and turn compassionately toward the pain."
~ Bodhipaksa

[PartTimeBrewer]

"How much mental energy do we waste rehashing arguments in our head, or preparing for conflicts that may happen? Why do we do this? And how de we stop?"

~ Tiny Buddha

[PartTimeBrewer]

“Until we transform ourselves, we are like mobs of angry people screaming for peace. In order to move the world, we must be able to stand still in it.” ~Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

[PartTimeBrewer]

"I believe that listening is not a passive activity at all. Listening openly, patiently, and attentively is one of the most significant expressions of love."
~ Haemin Sunim

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Love is the state of not knowing and of wanting to know more. Consider whether you think you already know your loved ones. If you do, you are failing to see them as they are right now and seeing them instead through the prism of previously held opinions." ~ Haemin Sunim

[PartTimeBrewer]

“True happiness is not dependent on external circumstances but on the mind's ability to cultivate gratitude, embrace impermanence, and find peace in the midst of change.”

~ Josh Bulriss

[PartTimeBrewer]

While we cannot control everything that happens around us, we can control how we live in those circumstances. Perhaps happiness is overvalued or overemphasized in today's culture, whereas as state of peacefullness or normalcy might actually be a more realistic goal.
~ Deborah Schoeberlein David

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Don’t personalize or internalize other people’s behavior. What they do is not a reflection of you. Their actions represent them and where they are in their growth. Just observe instead of getting caught up and overreacting emotionally.” ~Idil Ahmed