Being Mindful

Mindful: (adjective) attentive, always heedful

It's been a buzz word for a while now, mindfulness. I first came across the concept of 'mindfulness' a few years ago when I was looking for a way to relax and switch off; in the course of that search I took a meditation class with a wonderful Buddhist monk.  Amongst other things, he taught me to look at the moment; to stop looking ahead, or indeed behind and back, and to be completely focused on the moment; to pay attention to the now.  Sometimes easier said than done, but it's a practice that enhances the joy of the here and now.  I've been reminded of the need to be mindful in this past week as my family received some fairly devastating news and as I process and digest this news I'm trying not to race ahead, catastrophising and pre-empting a situation that may not arise.  Again easier said than done.  However, in the face of a situation that cannot be erased and with the future of someone I love so open to uncertainty, I find myself needing to be mindful.  Wanting to be mindful. Needing to remind myself that the only moment that counts is the now.  Not my fears for the future, but the pleasures of the present;  for each moment is just that - a gift, a present, and we should not dare to waste it. 

So, with this thought in mind, during the last few days I've been taking care to be present in the moment and to find happiness in the small things, the small moments;  sharing laughter and meals with close friends; the beauty of flowers growing in my garden; warm comforting baths.  For every moment that brings sadness, there is the equivalent moment of joy and pleasure.    These are some of the things that have given me pleasure in my more heedful moments this week:

{hydrangeas, a gift from a friend; sweet smelling roses from my garden}

{aromatherapy candle, just lighting it each night feels like a mindful moment}

"The truth is my love
that days of sadness will come,
but I’ll come through them."  

Haiku, Tyler Knott Gregson

What do you do when life hits you with a curve-ball?  How do you stay in the moment?  I'd love to hear...