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]

"Happiness in comfort is not real happiness. Happiness in the midst of hardship, one sees the true potential of the mind."  ~  Hong Zicheng

[PartTimeBrewer]

This is an example of the 'loose' use of the word happiness that I pointed out last week (March 8.)  By the definitions I used then, the term 'real happiness' in this quote should be called contentment, which is felt even in times of hardship. The author of the quote is hardly to blame, you can't expect a Ming dynasty philosopher to know the nuances of modern English. As is so often the case, problems arise out of translation.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"A student asked, "When times of great difficulty visit us, how should we meet them?"

The teacher said "Welcome."

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Welcome is to see, to feel, to know the flavor of connection. To sing with others, your voice coming out of my mouth?"  ~  John Tarrant

[PartTimeBrewer]

We are all separated together.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy."  ~  Rabindranath Tagore

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Indeed, the world is not unlike a vast, shapeless Rorschach blot which we read according to our inner disposition in such a way that interpretations say far more about ourselves than about the blot."  ~  Alan Watts l

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Your assumptions are your window on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in."  ~  Isaac Asimov

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Be an observer of life without labeling, it helps to see more clearly. To label a thing attaches a preconceived notion to a thing."  ~  David Bennett

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Most of the problems in life are because of two reasons, we act without thinking, or we keep thinking without acting." Zig Zigler

[PartTimeBrewer]

“Life has no meaning. Each of us has meaning and we bring it to life. It is a waste to be asking the question when you are the answer.”

― Joseph Campbell

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Doing is never enough if you neglect Being." ~  Eckhart Tolle