In social settings when I talk about my work, people often say to me, “Oh, I am so bad at meditating! I could never do that!” I never know how to respond. But I do know that when I tell myself I am “bad” at something, I am much less motivated to do it. Few of us enjoy doing something when we think we are “bad” at it.
A good friend of mine says, “If you fire it, you wire it.” In other words, what we tell ourselves, our brains will believe, and act accordingly. Our messages to ourselves are powerful.
Mindful eating allows us to slow down and appreciate the food in front of us, and also thank the many forms of life that came together to provide us nourishment.
Feeling grateful can be difficult, especially since gratitude is often hyped up as the “thing” to do. How can we learn to accept ourselves as we are instead of being ashamed for feeling ungrateful?
Now that the year is ending, most people are trying to plan out their New Year’s Resolutions. Before we start that rush, let’s take a moment and appreciate and reflect on how this past year has gone for us personally.
Ask yourself:
1. What would you consider to be a failure that offered the greatest takeaway? What was it you learned?
2. What do you consider to be this year’s proudest achievement? Why?
3. What’s something new you discovered that you loved?
To an introvert, holiday parties sound amazing in theory, but not so much in practice. Does this scene sound familiar? You agree to attend a myriad of parties (ok, just two!) thinking it will be fun. The day of the party arrives and you’re getting ready at a snail’s pace. You wonder how long you’ll have to stay before you can politely leave to go home, get in your pajamas, and snuggle your pets.
Or maybe that’s just us.
Below are some of our secret weapons for getting through the holiday party craze with our energy intact.
Self-care and the holidays don’t seem to go together. Rather than trying to add a new activity to our schedules this month, let’s try to improve an already existing habit – sleep! One of the best things we can do for ourselves is get some good sleep. For most of us that is extra challenging during the holidays. Schedules are often packed with festivities, family time, and more socializing than usual. Sometimes family time and socializing can be restorative and energizing, but that isn’t always the case.
I love the lightbulb moments at retreats. Ya’ know that moment where everyone nods together and starts writing down what the teacher said? If you’ve been to a Namchak retreat, or probably any type of class, you know that moment. The simultaneous group smile like, “That is exactly what we needed to hear!”
When the busyness of the holiday season comes around, it can be easy to get pulled into the “hurry up!” that it brings. From checking things off our to-do lists, prepping for the holidays and attending parties, we can lose sight of what’s important: spending time and creating memories with those closest to us.
A meaningful way to create memories with those we love is by volunteering together in our community. Here are three reasons to volunteer in community this holiday season.
We’ve covered the first three Foundations of Mindfulness: body, feelings, and mind. That leaves Mindfulness of Phenomena, the fourth and final Foundation of Mindfulness. The first three involve investigating within ourselves. Investigating phenomena asks us to shift our focus to the world around us.
Lama Tsomo helps us understand what to do with our wandering “puppy” minds while meditating, but what about the mind-wandering that occurs in our everyday lives?
