This short mindfulness practice uses sounds and the sense of hearing as an object of focus.
The goal of any mindfulness practice is simply to experience life as it unfolds.
To stay present and calm and not slip back into thinking,
Worrying mode,
We choose an anchor of awareness,
A point of focus we direct our mind to.
Here,
You connect to sound so that you can truly experience the moment and a whole lot of other moments with childlike curiosity and without judgment.
Start with 5 minutes and extend to longer sittings if that feels right for you.
Find a special spot in a quiet part of your home or garden.
Take a seat.
Now gently close your eyes or keep them in a soft focus,
Half closed.
Allow sounds to enter your awareness and to let them pass.
Sounds from near and far,
Coming and going.
Let go of labeling sounds,
A car,
A bird,
And so on,
Because as soon as we label,
We tend to get involved in stories which trigger our left thinking brain rather than our right feeling brain.
All you need to do is be present to sound.
You may notice here the sounds of birds all around you,
The quiet hum of electricity as it passes through your house,
A noisy refrigerator might be running.
You may notice that your hearing becomes more focused and that other brain activities seem to move into the background of your awareness.
At other times,
You may notice thoughts arising.
This is the nature of the mind.
It tends to get busy even when we don't want it to.
So whenever you notice the mind wandering gently and without judgment,
Return your awareness,
Your mindfulness to simply listening.
This action is your anchor.
You may notice after a while that time seems not to matter any longer.
Your breathing may get longer and deeper too.
But even if nothing happens and you think you are just sitting here,
That is okay.
Each practice will unfold differently and each person is unique.
There is no right way or wrong way to practice mindfulness.
Now it's time to end our mindfulness practice.
The next three breaths that you take make them long and purposeful,
Relaxing the tension away from your shoulders.
And when you're ready,
You can open your eyes,
Shake out your fingers and toes and come back to the room.
