For nearly any, or every, topic one can Google there is an immense amount of information that comes up in the results of a search. Today, I began a search by typing “living mindf…”. Now, at this point Google is already racing to give me 10,000 results in 0.56 seconds. Among the most commonly searched queries on the topic of living mindfully, is “benefits of living mindfully”. The top result, found on helpguide.org, says, “Mindfulness improves physical health. Mindfulness can: help relieve stress, treat heart disease, lower blood pressure, reduce chronic pain, improve sleep, and alleviate gastrointestinal difficulties.” The article goes on to talk about how mindfulness also improves well being and mental health, followed by ways to get started.
While I found the article to be interesting and helpful, it, like many others, seemed very general. I understand. Every person’s life, and the experiences within each life, are infinitely varied. For this reason, it took me years to understand what the actual action of living mindfully or even being mindful meant. It is synonymous, in great part, to being present. Again, what does that MEAN?
Right now you may be wondering why there is a picture of the seed heads of a wildflower in this post. How does that photograph relate in any way to being mindful? I took this picture on a walk in a state wildlife preserve. After a brief stroll through a section of woods, the trail becomes a boardwalk that winds through a bog. I have always enjoyed this place. For me, there is great pleasure in noticing everything around me. What I always found puzzling is the amount of people that go there to walk and talk on their cell phones while doing so. Hint: that is the opposite of being mindful. I feel that so many people are missing what is there, right in front of them.
I listen to all the birds calling and singing. And not just as a whole, but I try to identify as many as I can. I pay attention to all the plants that are growing along the path. But I also take notice of what stage the plants are in. What drew my attention to the seed heads above was that they reminded me of the wisps in Disney/Pixar’s Brave. I notice the muddy footprints of the local animals that step up onto the boardwalk and use it briefly on their way to whatever it is that they are headed to do. I take in the scents of the flowers in the summer or that unmistakable autumn smell of dried grasses, overripe fallen apples and of the leaves becoming rich soil on the forest floor. I even found this little guy one day. He never moved.
If I had been cruising down the boardwalk, talking on my phone- my mind in some other place, I never would have seen him. I feel so privileged to witness so much of nature’s beauty and synergy.
My new pastime, when I have time to pass, is geocaching. But to break it down in the context of today’s subject, geocaching is really an excuse to take a break from the routine of everyday life that can numb us and make our days run together. And let’s face it, my ego enjoys the challenge and loves it even more that my successful hunts are rewarded with little treasures, traded with ones I make to leave in exchange.
But it’s the change in focus from the “have to get things done” to the “go out and have some fun” that is the functional part of geocaching. And while I am out there, following my compass or estimating how many feet are left between myself and a cache, I am being mindful. I am looking at plants, watching animals…listening to the summer song of the many insects buzzing and singing around me, or the trickle of the stream below me as I stand on a foot bridge. I am present. My mind is nowhere else but where I am standing or walking, allowing myself to just exist in that moment.
Taking a moment to appreciate where we are, right now, absent of judgement, is what mindfulness is about. Not figuring out what to cook for dinner, while remembering to drop off our oldest at soccer practice and stopping to fill up the gas tank after picking up the youngest from a play date.
But you don’t need hours to spend in a state park, gawking at wildlife or hunting for caches. Take a few steps from your deck or porch out into your lawn. Look down, what do you see? Ants foraging? A four leaf clover? The blue shell of a hatched robin’s egg? Or if you are on lunch break, head out to the parking lot or garage. Close your eyes and listen. How many birds do you hear? Are there bees buzzing in the flowers around the entrance to your building? Look up. Are there clouds? Are they moving swiftly or lazily? Can you smell the delicious aroma of the food being served from the food truck on the street? Just take a few moments, anywhere you are, to stop and observe your present place in time. Only observe. Do not analyze, do not make a judgement about this present moment. Just be.
It is this intentional pause from the constant stresses we put on ourselves on a daily basis that is the true treasure.
pajama wisdom 