As I contemplated a suitable
'challenge' for this week, I caught myself in a minor state of
panic. Another challenge?! But I haven't mastered the last five!
The first five challenges I set have
been very significant for me: I've drastically changed my internet
browsing habits; brought a whole new level of awareness to the way I
eat; put my interrupting habit into a headlock (gosh, how it wriggles
to be free!); gotten back to nature; and, made a serious effort to
get stuff out of my head and into some kind of mindful order. Phew!
I think I need some consolidation time.
They (who's 'they'? You know, those guys, who say stuff...) say it
takes three months to create/break a habit. If that's the case I've
only got my toe in the water of change. So, this week is going to be
a little simpler, but in no way insignificant.
This week is about the breath.
For my birthday, I received two books
about mindfulness from a couple of my gorgeous friends. One of them
is The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh.
This simple little book has reminded me
of the importance of being with the breath: “You should know how
to breathe to maintain mindfulness, as breathing is a natural and
extremely effective tool which can prevent dispersion. Breath is the
bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body
to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your
breath as the means to take hold of your mind again.”
Every day this
week, I'm going to sit and just be with my breath for a few minutes.
As I breathe in, I will say to myself “I'm breathing in”; as I
breathe out, “I'm breathing out”. Nothing but the breath.
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