Thursday, March 3, 2011

Mindfulness

The main theme of my current Flight School course is mindfulness. The idea is to pay attention ~ to what I say to myself, to the thoughts I have, to my emotions, and to how I respond to these words, thoughts, and feelings. I have the choice to speak to myself kindly. I can dismiss the thoughts that do not serve me well, just let them go. The key here is to remember that I am not my thoughts, in the same way that I am not my emotions. I may be feeling one way or another, but that feeling does not define who I am. Feelings can move through me if I choose to let them go.

I have been introduced to the work of Sylvia Boorstein through the Buddha Chick courses with Jan Lundy. Sylvia says that every moment of mindfulness is a prayer for peace, an act of compassion for myself and others.

An assignment for one of our Flight School modules was to listen to a talk recorded by Sylvia on the topic of mindfulness. The ideas she shared have been helpful in recent days. I feel like there is little I can do to make the world a better place. I want peace and justice for all. I want people to be able to live their lives with equality and fairness. Any action I might take seems inadequate....

Then I review Sylvia's words:

I cannot stop wars; I can't do much more than control the habits of my mind.

I can't finish the job, but I can't not start.

What is happening is the only thing that could be.

It's a lawful world. There is no blame or fault; there are causes and conditions. Things happen.

When I ask what should I do, the answer is mindfulness.

Every moment of mindfulness is a prayer for peace.

I am reminded that I can control only myself. I make a difference when I am mindful about what I say to myself and others, what I think, and what I feel.

Those feel like small things, but they are things I can do. They are ways to be that make a difference in my life, which in turn impact how I am with others.

Each moment I am mindful I am saying a prayer for peace.

7 comments:

mermaid said...

Thank you for sharing your path to mindfulness.

I used to feel selfish spending most of my non-working time reflecting on my thoughts, emotions, body sensations, etc. I realized that awareness and compassion for that awareness help me to connect with myself, my family, my patients, my friends, and even perfect strangers with more depth than I could have ever deemed possible.

I'm not ending world hunger or volunteering all of my free time, but perhaps I am close to satiating my own appetite for love. Perhaps my practice is slowly rippling out in small concentric circles to help others awaken to their own beauty.

I'm so glad you are flying my friend. You'll crash and burn many times. Each time you will learn a little more to help you kiss the sky again.

One Woman's Journey - a journal being written from Woodhaven - her cottage in the woods. said...

Sharon, another thank you for sharing this path.
I join you on this path and daily continue on this journey.
Have a day filled with happiness, health, safety and peace.

Laura said...

I was just sending a message to a friend that included text from a Jewish prayer:

Let love and justice flow like a mighty stream....may peace fill the earth like water fills the sea.

When we live mindfully, how could it be any other way?

Thank you for your loving message at my blog.
xoxoxo
Laura

Anonymous said...

The AA Serenity prayer is great. It sounds like you are on a great path. Think about the upcoming green trees and flowers, not so long now!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful stuff here, Sharon! Lately I've had a lot of trouble training myself to be mindful, and trouble controlling my emotions. A lot of grief and loss lately, which is healthy in some ways, but too much is keeping me from moving on. Thanks for the mindful reminder.

Cynthia said...

I have been trying lately to become more mindful of the little things, the minutes that slip by on auto-pilot. I' amazed at how many times a day I simply tune out. Lately I've been noticing every clean piece of silverware as I place it in the drawer. I want every moment of my life to count. And like you, I often meditate on peace. It's a small thing, but it is a start.

Cindy's Coffeehouse said...

Sharon, I like your reminders about mindfulness. Thank you.

By the way, I just had to say that I love your newer picture! It actually reminds my of an impressionist painting, for some reason!