be MINDFUL in MAY. . . the POWER of the PRACTICE
be MINDFUL in MAY. . . the power of the practice
Every May I look forward to celebrating mindfulness and what my practice has provided me.
I decided 7 years ago when I started Mala and Mantra that I would dedicate the month of May to sharing meaningful content about mindfulness with our audience. Since May begins with the letter ‘M’ and so does mindfulness I felt ‘Mindful May’ was the perfect theme for Mala and Mantra to publish content with the intention to M-power individuals with mindfulness tips and tools to assist in their practice.
May is also a month of transformation as we see the beauty around us come into full bloom, experience the days getting longer, the sun shining brighter, and the weather feeling warmer. It is a month of motivation so I am excited to share all kinds of tools and tips from stories, to interviews, guided meditations, ideas, recommendations, and more to inspire you to either start a mindfulness practice or nurture, develop, and maintain one.
Ever since I started my mindfulness practice over a decade ago I have found my practice to be a source of reflection, renewal, resilience, and refuge. It has helped provide me with more peace in my life by calming my inner voice down when my mind starts wandering in many directions and bouncing all over the place creating fear, anxiety and stress.
One of the most important lessons my mindfulness practice has taught me is how to practice the pause. Ever since I can remember I have always had an overactive mind, lots of energy, and an inability to pay attention and stay focused. I have struggled for years with becoming easily frustrated or angry then responding in a very reactive manner and not liking how that makes me feel.
My mind has a tendency to fear the worst, some of which has been hard-wired from my upbringing so it has been and continues to be a work in progress to retrain myself to let go of feelings which do not serve me or anyone else positively.
Pausing in these moments of fear, anxiety, frustration and anger helps me to just 'be' with those feelings and let myself feel them and eventually release them to the universe before taking any action which could have a potential negative effect. This also provides me with the wisdom to not immediately react to something. It opens up my mental space to receive, accept, and sit with my feelings.
Mindfulness has taught me how to observe my feelings without judgment. It has also taught me how to pay deeper attention to my thoughts, feelings, and emotions and acknowledge them without attachment. Becoming self aware has been a huge part of my mindfulness journey. I have struggled with my thoughts for years and am still learning how to let them pass me by and come back to the breath and the present moment. Being grateful for the present moment and not clinging to the past or future is at the root of mindfulness. This takes a lot of practice and intentionality. I have kept a gratitude journal for years which I found has tremendously helped me stay grounded with my mindfulness practice.
The reason my practice has become so important to me is because I have experienced the positive results of how I feel when I practice regularly. I feel better, I am better, I treat others and myself better and overall I feel I am a better person, which I strive to be. I see my mindfulness practice as part of my journey to my enlightened self which I am constantly striving to become. I see and feel the difference when I don’t practice for a day or a few days and I don’t like how it feels. It is that feeling of discomfort which I have become highly attuned to acknowledging which motivates me to get back to my practice. Practicing the pause is truly a vital part of my existence. I invite you to join me during MINDFUL MAY to start a practice, or develop, nurture and maintain one. The beauty of practicing mindfulness is actually applying the ideas, theories, and beliefs behind it to your daily life and seeing how it benefits you. It is those benefits that keep me practicing.
Join my in practicing the pause,
JPC
