It's a quiet day today. My husband is away on business and the dog is asleep at my feet. Outside a spring snowstorm is brushing by the windows as the afternoon wanes. I've built a fire and the logs are glowing red. This why I love living where there are four seasons.
What am I celebrating today? What little moment caught my attention and pulled me away from the computer and business and the million little details of life that I distract myself with?
Up until this moment I would have had to say nothing. I got busy. I had clients and phone calls to return and emails to write and oh yes, a blog posting to get done. Up to this moment I hadn't stopped to pay attention today.
I'm sharing this because a funny thing can happen. You may start comparing your experience to mine and you need to know that I forget or get too busy just like all the rest of the world. Here's why.
When I first started teaching writing workshops I discovered there was a myth attaching itself to me. A majority of my students assumed I faithfully wrote every day and it was discouraging to some who had lives that intruded on their creative time. (Which was most of them.)
When I realised what was going on, I 'fessed up that I had my own rough patches and Inner Editor to deal with and there were days when I just didn't sit down to write. Relief flowed into the room. My students had permission to be human.
The practice of mindfulness is just that - a practice. Because we miss a day or two doesn't make us wrong or mean that we should throw out the whole idea. We just return to practicing.
Take a deep breath and look around at THIS moment.
That's the brilliance of waking up to your life and the small miracles that inhabit the space surrounding you. You can't do it wrong. As soon as you pay attention, you're back in the moment and it's absolutely perfect.
So I'm enjoying the glow of the fire and the quiet. That's my moment for today. What's yours?
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