I stuck mindfulness reminders up throughout the house this week. Little notes imploring me to 'Be Here, Now'; prompts to make me consider 'Where's Your Head At?'; subtle suggestions of 'Now, Now, Now'.
My theory was that these visual cues would help keep me on track on a general level, being more mindful as I moved throughout my day. They worked, at least as much as they could. I was reminded in the kitchen to be present, reminded in the bathroom as I brushed my teeth. As I played with my son, these words looked down on us, urging us to be in the moment.
Then there was this one day, when everything seemed hard. I was feeling overwhelmed, tired, uncomfortable. I was letting myself get away from myself.
My little mindfulness reminders mocked me. I was getting carried away.
A phone call with my husband pulled me back a little closer to reality, reminded me that everything was temporary.
My lesson here? That even with the best intentions, even when we try, sometimes our minds still wreak havoc on us. Sometimes we need the gentle (or not so gentle) words of perspective from another person. Sometimes we have to accept that we aren't or won't be present all of the time... We have to be kind with ourselves, gently easing back into the moment, recognising that we haven't failed - we're just learning.
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