Dear friends,
This is the second in a planned series of short morning reflections designed to help us enter each new day mindfully and with purpose.
In this meditation we will consider the importance of making time to stop and pause in the course of our daily activities.
We begin our meditation by taking a little time right now to stop and pause.
So make sure you are sitting comfortably in a place where you are less likely to be disturbed.
We want to bring body and mind together in one place.
We need this because very often we find our bodies are in one place and our minds are somewhere else.
So relax,
Bring yourself into an awareness of this present moment and for these few moments enjoy the feeling of being instead of doing.
We'll give ourselves one minute before moving on.
Welcome back.
In the hustle and bustle of modern life we can find that demands of work,
Family and social commitments are constantly tugging for our attention.
We can find ourselves caught in a never-ending cycle of doing,
Too busy even to stop to ask ourselves where are we headed.
This pace of life can lead to burnout,
Stress and anxiety.
Taking a break,
A mindful pause,
Is not a luxury that we could have or not have.
Taking time to pause is essential for our well-being.
We need these intentional breaks in the day,
Times when we step off the treadmill of activity.
Every so often we need to take a moment to come back to the present moment.
You might ask,
Are we not already too busy as it is?
We may be very busy,
But the pauses required can be as brief and as simple as taking a few deep mindful breaths.
A stop like this takes no time at all,
We all have to breathe.
Our pauses can of course extend to a few minutes or longer if we wish,
But they don't have to.
Mindful pauses provide us with an opportunity to simply slow down,
A moment to centre ourselves.
They provide an opportunity to stop the constant doing and to reconnect with our inner world of being.
When we take mindful pauses,
We allow ourselves to be present,
Fully present,
Even if only for a brief moment,
And each of these brief moments can make all the difference.
The Buddhist monk and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh offers the following words as a breathing exercise.
Breathing in,
I calm my body.
Breathing out,
I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment,
I know this is a wonderful moment.
This simple practice of stopping for a few moments of mindful breathing can transport us back into the present.
It can help ground us in the here and the now.
Maybe it's time now to practice what we are preaching,
By taking another minute to come back to ourselves.
Let's have a 60 second pause.
Welcome back.
So the question is,
How can we incorporate these mindful pauses into our daily lives?
The activities of the day itself can provide opportunities for a mindful pause.
All we have to do is to use the natural gaps to pause for a moment between one task and the next.
Take a mindful moment before jumping to answer the phone.
There are opportunities for mindful stopping while computers do what computers do.
The mindful moment between sending something to the printer and the document coming out.
We can pause briefly before taking a drink,
Waiting for a kettle to boil,
Watching for the coffee to be ready.
Take a moment of reflection as we visit the bathroom,
As we wash our hands,
Clean our teeth.
We can pause momentarily before starting the car.
Take a mindful breath when we are held up by traffic.
We can,
For a change,
Practice walking with full attention to all around us,
Instead of routinely zoning out as we listen on our headphones.
If we take time to notice,
We will find our days filled with people and circumstances that are reasons for gratitude.
In a moment of mindful reflection,
When you stop to consider these benefits,
You can pause to add a silent thank you.
Before eating,
Pay real attention to the food and stop to appreciate it as if you are tasting it for the first time.
We can fall back on the wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh by using his well-known words as a grace before meals.
This food is the gift of the whole universe,
The earth,
The sky,
And much loving work.
May we live and eat in mindfulness so that we are worthy to receive this food.
The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu once said,
Nature does not hurry,
Yet everything is accomplished.
This wisdom reminds us that there is value in slowing down,
In taking time to pause and reflect.
How many times when people are asked how they are doing,
The response is that they are busy,
They are run off their feet.
In a world that glorifies busyness and constant activity,
Mindful pauses offer us a counterbalance.
They remind us that our worth is not determined by how busy we are,
But by how much love and concern we can offer in each passing present moment.
May we all find time to pause to breathe,
May we find a little time every day for this.
May we find time to reconnect with the sacredness of the present moment,
The wonderful present moment in which everything that happens,
Happens.
Namaste.
