Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Day 1562 - Mindfulness

Perfecting the art of mindfulness ....

On Saturday I decided to have a go at living in the here and now.  No ponderings of yesterday or this morning, no planning for this afternoon or tomorrow, but simply living in the present time with awareness of all my senses and an appreciation for the world as it is at this very second in time.

I pretty much failed.

As I sat there sifting the sand through my fingers concentrating on the texture, colour and dampness my mind started to shift to the beaches we had visited previously and I marveled at how different sand can be across the globe.  I thought back to previous holidays, thought back to the day before, and thought forward to the beaches we would visit in Queensland in April and the possible trip to Thailand later in the year.

As I watched the seagulls and focused on their movements, the sound they made and the colour of their feathers I thought of Maggalags the Magpie back at home, thought about the "pet" Maggie we had in the backyard when I was a kid and wondered how anyone could cage a bird.

As I looked at the waves rolling in, listening to the sound they made as they crashed on the beach, I thought of the world of nature that lived underneath, reflected back to snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef and thought ahead to the Sharknado party we were hosting that night and the cupcakes I needed to decorate that afternoon.

As I stared at the blue sky with the white fluffy clouds, feeling the heat on my skin and the breeze against my cheek, I wondered if I should reapply the kids sunscreen and whether or not I should buy the kids new rashies as their old ones were quite threadbare.

As I sat there trying incredibly hard to practise the art of mindfulness I thought back to a time when I could actually do it and how finding the "power of now" had led me to writing one of my children's books.  I thought back to that day sitting on the rocks overlooking the ocean where I became one with the water, the sky and the sand and felt completely 100% free which then inspired me to go home and write "A pocket full of happy thanks" which now lays in a box waiting for its chance in the spotlight.  Which of course made me think of how my "Yes I Can" children's book series never got off the ground due (in large part) to the arseholes at Raider Publishing International and the scam that consumed so much of my emotion for two long years.

Then I thought, gee this mindfulness stuff would make a great blog post and I started to take pictures.

You could say my little foray into mindfulness on Saturday was a it of a bust.  But after studying it a few years ago and recognising the benefits, I will continue to practise.

I am definitely keen to become more mindful of the here and now.

Who else finds it hard to stick to the present time? 


  1. I am hopeless at mindfulness and meditating. If you have any tips from your study a few years ago, I would love them!

  2. I get this, some days I can do it but not for long. It is relaxing when you focus on the now but so hard in this busy life we live.


  4. I really do find it super hard to stay in the present. I am always trying to plan ahead and like to have everything organised. I too am trying to be more mindful! xx Lucy from Bake Play Smile #TeamIBOT

  5. It is tricky isn't it leanne? But look what it produced :)
    I also can't imagine why anyone would keep birds in cages, especially when I see them so happy out in the open x

  6. It's so hard not to let your mind wander when it's so full of ideas and things to do - Oh and I get mad as hell when I think back to that post you wrote about how you got dicked around by that publishing agency - GRR x

  7. Sometimes even just trying to be mindful brings it's own rewards - happy past memories sound pretty good to me!

    Visiting today from #teamIBOT xxx

  8. It is so hard to do, but like you I'm going to keep trying. I manage it in bursts, but I think that's a good start :)

  9. I don't know if you failed...it sounds a lot like you let the thoughts flow freely over you which is also a component of mindfulness. I think meditation and mindfulness only works if we make it ours. We have to do the things that work and realise that not all things are one size fits all. If thinking on the what the different parts of your surroundings helps you to relax, then I say it's a win!

  10. I am trying hard to live more in the moment. I'm finding taking a few minutes each day to pause is working well. I figure practice will make perfect.

  11. Mindfulness is my word for 2014. There are some cool apps you can download to help with it. We can't live in the moment all the time :) Have a great week!


I love hearing your thoughts! Keep them rolling in :)

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