With much gratitude for everyone and everything that have brought me to this place and time, I am sitting looking out over the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of Hawai’i (the Big Island). I hear the sound of small waves breaking against the relatively fresh Earth of lava rock pools between me and the deep blue sea. I feel a warm breeze on my sun baked skin. I see a good sized Honu (green sea turtle) is basking on the rocks. I saw some small, young ones swimming in the small protected pool earlier as well. Will they also come out to bask? Who knows? We must wait and see, and be with what is happening right now, right?
Except, I am at this very moment also writing a blog post, so perhaps I should be mindfully attending to that! I recently listened to a talk on dharmaseeds.org by Michelle McDonald and she points out that if we were completely mindful of everything every moment, our heads would basically explode. Though she may have put it more eloquently than that.
I was watching the waves come and go on the beach the first day we arrived here. I tried to mindfully watch one wave arrive, crest, ripple up the beach and recede. But there was always another wave right behind, capturing my attention. It proved verrrry tricky to focus on one wave at a time. Just like my thoughts and experiences. They come so quickly, that I feel lucky to be able to notice one at all. I try to slow down and notice, but not be harsh or judgmental towards myself if I cannot. After all, I certainly do not want my brain to explode.
What are you seeing/hearing/smelling/feeling/tasting at this very moment?
Disclaimer:
It's not like I'm some kind of mindfulness expert, but I have been attempting to be more mindful since beginning my yoga teacher training with Yoga Calm about 5 years ago. Mindfulness certainly doesn't always make life more pleasant, but it definitely makes it more interesting, and I enjoy weaving it into my yoga teaching and daily life. My starter book was Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn.
Visit my website shadygroveendeavors.com for information on my yoga classes in Eugene, Oregon.
