Mindfulness, are you present.

SRC

Before I begin I feel that I must preface this by saying I am in no way a qualified mindfulness coach, dharma instructor, Buddhist monk or anything near that. I am only sharing what I find and what works for me.

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Almost everyday I try to practice mindfulness. I do this to help focus my mind on being present. Being a busy working dad, looking after family, Preparing meals, Studying, Keeping fit, Maintaining my online presence, Pet care and commuting take up about 3/4 of my day, the other 1/4 is sleep. This can lead to scatter brain. Scatter brain is where I have so many thoughts going through my head that I don't actually focus on what I need to at any given time. It can effect sleep too, sometimes I can lay awake for ages thinking about all the things that I did during the day, how could I have changed my reactions or actions in any given situation. What do I have to do the following day, week, month or even year! I want to give my full attention to my family, study and all the important things in my life so I need a way to focus my mind on being present.

I exercise regularly, I eat clean, drink very little and dont take any real medication. The last time I was at the doctor was for routine screening as there is a history of cancer in my family. None of these things really help me in focus, in being present. Weight training forces me to be present, if I am not present, heavy weights + unfocused mind = something broken. But even when I am at the gym, typically near the end of my session I will pop online to say hi, to check in on the seemingly endless list of discord servers I am on. This too must come to an end, my time in the gym is limited by the amount of other items on my daily lists. If only I could add in maybe 4 more hours per day. Mrs Moon is also studying, she is doing her CIMA qualification and this takes a good deal of study time. All this is in the aim that someday we will be earning enough that we will be able to get the bank off our back and own our own home! This will take careful planning, military style execution and dedication not seen since Galvarino. In order to complete all of these items I need to have a focused mind.

SRC

Where you not paying attention? I have just said I don't have any spare time give! I need to be able to do something that fits in with my minimal time. Certainly I do not have time to climb a mountain to meditate. This is where mindfulness fits in. Mindfulness can be practised pretty much anywhere. Typically I practice my mindfulness when I am sitting in traffic or when driving. It is totally ok to do it here. It is not an ideal situation or location but doable. Ideally I would like to have a quiet space with no distraction. I like most people do not have such a space freely available to me at my whim. During my mindfulness practice I use a guided meditation. Again this can be done while you are fully aware. I will also try to, if I manage to steal 10 minutes for myself, practice in a quiet space, a space with no distraction. Somewhere comfortable, warm and safe to fully immerser myself into a meditation.

To aid me on my meditation I listen to a podcast called mindfulness +, I would highly recommend, should you want to go down that road to check them out. The guide is Thomas Mc Conkie, he has a wonderfully calming tone and is very relatable.

Thomas found his way into the world of meditation as a dishevelled and emotionally bruised teenager. Back in the late 90’s in Salt Lake City, where teachers were fewer and far between, he happened to move into a neighborhood where a booming Zen community was just forming. Thus he entered the wormhole.

It was love at first sit. Though he found the practice to be challenging, even excruciating at times, he sensed that something deep within him was transforming even from the beginning. By the time he turned 20, he felt called to make a pilgrimage back to the Motherland of Zen, mainland China, where he spent 4 years as a lay practitioner.

Over the last 20 years, Thomas has studied broadly across the traditions: from Hindu mantra meditation, Zen and Vipassana in the Buddhist Wisdom stream, to the school of Integral, Developmental Psychology, and his native tradition, Mormonism.

He founded Lower Lights School of Wisdom, a nonprofit organization and community dedicated to reimagining faith and human transformation in the 21st century. He is an author, public speaker, developmental coach and meditation teacher.

In Mindfulness+, Thomas offers dew drops of wisdom, lyrical teachings, and guided meditations with a trademark voice that can soothe a savage beast. He offers this podcast as a support to those listeners looking to express boundless freedom through loving service to the world.

SRC

You can check out their podcasts and read a whole lot more about this practice from Thomas at their own site here.

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