I love it when something so simple turns out to be so exquisite.
One evening last week I went for a walk in my neighbourhood, and it started to rain gently. I could feel the warm raindrops touching my head and my face. It was so refreshing.
I could hear the birds singing. They sounded delighted that rain had come again. Breathing in the air was so fresh. There was peaceful, quiet energy.
I was fully present, noticing my surroundings, my legs as I walked, and how my body felt. My senses were alive.
Something as simple as going for a walk felt so enriching.
I entered a small wooded area where I love to visit. It started to rain a bit harder, and I could hear the raindrops as they touched the leaves. I love that sound. The trees created a canopy for me.
I saw a woman standing before me, and I said hello. She whispered and pointed to my right, where a deer was grazing on the grass in the playground. We both stood silently for several minutes in awe of this beautiful, gentle creature before us. My body softened, and my heart opened.
When I got home, the whole experience felt surreal. It felt like I was on a magical journey. I was so grateful.
This is the gift of mindfulness practice.
We are present. We are aware. And in this present-moment awareness, the simple things in our daily life become so much more.
People often say they don’t have time to practice mindfulness; it feels like another task on their ‘to-do’ list.
Mindfulness doesn’t take more time. It simply means we are present as we do what we usually do.
For instance:
We feel our feet touch the ground as we walk.
We bite into a strawberry and really taste it.
We appreciate the beauty of a flower.
We are present to hear the birds sing.
We say hello to someone and are fully present.
We notice the colours, smells, sensations and feelings as we go about our day.
The more we observe, the more there is to observe. It deepens and deepens.
“The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.”
― Jon Kabat-Zinn
If life feels mundane, it is because we aren’t there. We aren’t in our bodies, so we are disconnected from ourselves. We aren’t in our life.
When life gets busy, and our mind is busy, we can sometimes go a day or week caught up in the busyness. We aren’t present. We are on autopilot. We aren’t there to notice the beauty life shares with us.
The ego at play is the desire to think about the past or fast forward our attention to the future. It resists being present and is all about changing this or that. It’s how the ego operates, but it isn’t how we have to lead our life.
Life is precious. If we cannot be present for it, we’re missing out on the beauty and wonder that makes it all worthwhile and meaningful.
The key is simplicity.
Start by noticing your breath. Tune into your senses to help anchor you to this moment. Open up and allow yourself the simple pleasures offered throughout your day.
The mundane will begin to feel like magic.
With love,
Diane