I’m sat at my desk at work
Cup of tea in hand ( no coffee...I treated myself to a large one from McDonalds )
I’m early ...I don’t start work for another half hour.
But it’s Sunday and the roads were clear.
The talk radio subject on the way to work today was
What has lockdown taught you?
I thought of when I met Chic Eleanor for a walk on Friday
We each had a trendy sandwich wrapped in pristine green bread proof paper and a takeaway cup of tea and we sat on opposite ends of a wooden bench taking in the view and the smells and the feelings of where we were.
Without talking
She’s teaching me mindfulness .
And it seems to be working
The view from our bench
Peace and contentment..the search is difficult sometimes but maybe the journey nourishes us x
ReplyDeleteThe sandwich did certainly
DeleteI wish mine would sit still long enough to allow me to try this, or any focus, for that matter. Some day.
ReplyDeleteLol ..it’s hard
DeleteShe has her work cut out! x
ReplyDeleteCheeky cow!
DeleteMellow mindful moments meaningfully mend muddled minds...
ReplyDeleteErrrrr
DeleteI love that, Andrew! It is a mm-mm-mm good response!
DeleteThanks Marcia. John seems not so sure, but then he is only a trainee.
DeleteLol ..I’m working hard x
DeleteIt works..even at five minutes a day
ReplyDeleteThat may be more useful on my working days
DeleteEven taking moments of only 60 seconds or so work. Some of my friends and colleagues dismiss it as nonsense; but that's fine. For me I first truly discovered it one day on a one minute walk away from a stressful situation. Without trying to sound too pseudy, a whole new realm of experience and approach to the moment suddenly opened up for me, and a good one. An epiphany, no less.
DeleteTime to just be x
ReplyDeletethat's the leveling thing about the pandemic. never have so many people at the same time worldwide faced the possibility of death. i've always been aware of how easy it is to die but especially now.
ReplyDeleteThe silence for those of us who live alone John has maybe taught many of us something about mindfulness.
ReplyDeleteThe headstone in the photograph on Thelma's post today is also great food for thought.
For years I'd never heard of mindfulness but now it's a 'thing'. There are books and classes to teach mindfulness (and people like Chic Eleanor). But I think I've been practising it for many years, as I sat on a rock, looking at the sea, listening and emptying my mind of all the trash and tensions. At last! I'm 'with it'!
ReplyDelete;)
DeleteWalking does this for me-today I stopped for just a while and saw a great lesser spotted woodpecker x
ReplyDeleteTime to just slow down and see, feel, hear, smell, taste and touch. Time to realise what really matters.xx
ReplyDeleteI have found that I have a lot more patience. No need to rush any more and always plenty of time so no longer mind having to wait in a queue.
ReplyDeleteThe role that routine has in my daily life, developing new routines, ending old ones. The absolute joy of solitude, long walks alone, noticing the details, learning to see, hear, smell again.
ReplyDeleteLockdown has taught many of us to be more mindful, without 'practising'...savour the daily coffee made with frothy milk, really look forward to a walk with a friend, sit on a log and enjoy the view (distanced, of course!)
ReplyDeleteWhat a blissful experience you and chic Eleanor shared!
ReplyDeleteI enjoy sitting in a rocking chair on my front porch and listening to all the flurry of birds and squirrels around me. I think the Amish call it "centering" yourself.
Hope you have a pleasant day at work.
Hugs!
21st century CBT for the masses.
ReplyDeleteI've had various therapies would you believe Mavis-but being outside somewhere quiet is the only thing that helps me now x
DeleteThe madness of solitude. I'm with you Flis x
Deletetoday is a FABU day here; sunny blue skies, 60F temps, birdies singing. gonna go out for a drive and run some errands in an hour. LIVE & BREATHE!
ReplyDeleteI used to go on Buddhist retreats when I lived in the states where much of the day was spent in silence. I loved it! There's something to be said for feeling no social pressure to talk.
ReplyDeleteA friend has just been silent for the day l she loved it
DeleteI'm often totally silent for days on end, but in my case it's due to painful jaw joints!
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ReplyDeleteWas God as mindful when he put you down for prize cunt status? Crawl back under your rock slimy troll.
DeleteSteady mave x
DeleteProbably best just to ignore, while deleting without comment, such unpleasant things as now deleted, because a response is what is desired.
DeleteUtterly vile these trolls.
ReplyDeleteI meditated a lot years ago and it worked for me.....calming down my mind's thoughts and need to 'move'/talk. Then I found something even better for me.....walking meditation, since I love to walk. You have to find, John, what would work for you. There are so many different ways to 'meditate'.
ReplyDeleteWe just sat there together in silence
DeleteIt was lovely
Now awful it must be to gain pleasure from spouting venom! They seem to think that they're important in some way and their vile comments actually matter. When are they going to realise that they are worthless, pointless, poisonous wastes of blood and oxygen?
ReplyDeleteDon’t worry col x
DeleteThe thing that it has taught me is that what matters is within me, and around me. I have what I need. What I don't have, I don't really need. It's there. I need to learn to recognize it in gratitude.
ReplyDeleteNicely put
DeleteThere's something in the way! -Kate
ReplyDeleteIsn’t the hilllovely x
DeleteI try to be mindful but I usually fail and start thinking about things, like is that a natural hill or some sort of burial ground or ancient ceremonial site ... or something else?
ReplyDeleteSee below it’s the site of a castle keep
DeleteI don't think mindfulness is about not thinking Tom, at least not for me, but on just noticing only the present moment, and appreciating that nothing but the moment is ever actually real; at least that is how I see it. The past is gone, the future can be dealt with when it enters the moment, the moment is all we have and all we must deal with. [With apologies for wittering on too much in your moment, perhaps :) ]
DeleteI find myself thinking about if that hill is a burial mound or ceremonial site, also. St Louis, Missouri used to (many years ago) be referred to as Mound City there were so many burial and ceremonial mounds near the Mississippi River. Most of the mounds on the St Louis side of the river have been excavated and ruined, but there is a huge Native American mound on the Illinois side, in Cahokia, Illinois.
ReplyDeleteWhen I used to fish and hike along the Mississippi river I often found arrowheads on the ground, different styles, and sizes. They had washed down from the bluffs along the river. I would never, ever dig into any area I thought was a ceremonial or burial mound.
What a pleasant place for you and chic Eleanor to enjoy your sandwiches on a lovely early spring day.
It’s a site of a medieval castle keep
DeletePracticing mindfulness with guidance from Eleanor should be enjoyable. Feeling centered and balanced is very beneficial. Eleanor is a wonderful friend.
ReplyDeleteYears ago, when I was deep in the throes of mothering primary schoolers, I was a machine operator and the slow mechanical arm moving around was the thing that kept me in the moment. It's a strange way to meditate but it was very effective. I kinda miss it
ReplyDeleteA lovely view to inspire gratitude for the beauty around you!
ReplyDeleteI've been watching a series on meditation on Netflix. I think it helps when I'm reminded to use the lessons.
ReplyDeleteHave there been any recent excavations on The Gop? It reminds me of Silbury.
ReplyDeletehttps://howardwilliamsblog.wordpress.com/2015/11/14/the-largest-ancient-mound-in-wales-the-gop-cairn/
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ReplyDeleteWhat lockdown has taught me is that "normal" is a very fluid concept and that what we all thought of as normal a year ago is now totally abnormal and will be for some time to come.
ReplyDeleteIf I were in your hospice I’d love a big print of this where I could see it.
ReplyDeleteIn fact if you were to put it up onRedbubble I’d be buying postcards of it to invite friends to share moments of such calm
What a gorgeous photo!!! Looks like an Old Master's painting. I would buy a print if you decided to do that!
ReplyDeleteI love anyone I can sit in peaceable silence with. Some people just think they need to fill every waking moment with chatter.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a perfect picnic on a bench .... but I bet you thought of lots you wanted to say while you were trying to be mindful ;-)