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.

[Aggie]

Advice from María Sabina a Mexican healer and poet.
“Heal yourself with the light of the sun and the rays of the moon. With the sound of the river and the waterfall. With the swaying of the sea and the fluttering of birds. Heal yourself with mint, neem, and eucalyptus. Sweeten with lavender, rosemary, and chamomile. Hug yourself with the cocoa bean and a hint of cinnamon. Put love in tea instead of sugar and drink it looking at the stars. Heal yourself with the kisses that the wind gives you and the hugs of the rain. Stand strong with your bare feet on the ground and with everything that comes from it. Be smarter every day by listening to your intuition, looking at the world with your forehead. Jump, dance, sing, so that you live happier. Heal yourself, with beautiful love, and always remember ... you are the medicine.”

[PartTimeBrewer]

Beautifully stated.

[Jozee]

Yes, beautiful!

[PartTimeBrewer]

"May we have the strength to face what holds our hearts hostage.
May we have the courage to feel our way through the letting go.
May grace support us in forgiving when and where we meet walls within ourselves."

- Octavia Raheem

[PartTimeBrewer]

“Practice the pause. Pause before judging. Pause before assuming. Pause before accusing. Pause whenever you're about to react harshly & you'll avoid doing & saying things you'll later regret.” ~Lori Deschene

[Jozee]

I agree.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me?

If I am not for others, what am I?

And if not now, when?"

~  Hillel the Elder

[PartTimeBrewer]

While today may not exactly be the day that I had envisioned it to be ten years ago, it is the day that has come around to me. And that's alright. It is as it should be.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Take it easy, take it easy
Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy
Lighten up while you still can
Don't even try to understand
Just find a place to make your stand
And take it easy"

Jackson Browne & Glenn Frey

[PartTimeBrewer]

“Anything you’re doing that tells you that your ”real“ life is in the future — and not right now — is depleting your energy. Everyone’s obsessed with magical before and afters, but the *process* is part of real life and maybe the best part of it.” ~ Heidi N. Moore

[PartTimeBrewer]

“Appreciation softens us. It soothes our turbulent minds by connecting us with the wonderfully ordinary things, great and small, that we might otherwise take for granted.” ~  Elaine Smookler

[PartTimeBrewer]

Actually, armed with appreciation:

"There are no ordinary moments."  ~  Daniel Millman