Mindfulness For The Non Meditator

Yesterday I tried out a new place to get some waxing done. It’s a lovely place, beautifully decorated very much like a Balinese day spa. When I entered the treatment room it was set up as if I was about to experience a deluxe spa treatment. Candles were lit, the bed had a towel rolled up with a frangipani on top and there was a sarong for me to change into. The therapist then asked me to sit so she could scrub my feet. As I plunged my feet into the gorgeous bowl and she began washing them with the peppermint scrub, my first thought was “all this pampering just for waxing?” But then again why not?

One of the things I love about travel and the places I choose to go is the way everything is presented. Every meal is a work of art, as are drinks, resort rooms, even the beds and especially the day spas. A lot of thought, care and attention goes into making every experience beautiful and memorable. I always promise myself that when my holiday is over I will try and maintain some of the lovely rituals that I treat myself to while I am away. Unfortunately the busyness of everyday life takes over and these are soon pushed aside in favour of other priorities. Yesterday afternoon after answering why not, I vowed to myself that I would bring daily rituals and add beauty to the regular activities of my life.

What does any of this have to do with mindfulness? While many people think mindfulness means meditation, this is not the case. Mindfulness is a mental state of openness, awareness and focus, and meditation is just one way amongst hundreds of learning to cultivate this state. Mindfulness is about waking up, connecting with ourselves, and appreciating the fullness of each moment of life. Jon Kabat-Zinn calls it, “The art of conscious living.” It is a profound way to enhance psychological and emotional resilience, and increase life satisfaction. While a regular meditation practice is a great thing for all of the reasons that are well documented, the reality is that not everybody can manage to do it. I believe that we can cultivate mindfulness in very simple ways every day. One way to bring us into the present moment is by creating special rituals and bringing beauty to our lives.

Here are some simple suggestions to begin with:

1. Food: No matter what the meal, and what is consists of; present it on your nicest plates and eat with the best cutlery that you have. How many of us save the “good” dinner set and the “silverware” for special occasions? Make every meal a special occasion.Set the table as if you were expecting an very important guest – you are! Use lovely linen if you have it or buy nice napkins, there are many cheap paper ones that are just gorgeous. Turn off the TV, ignore the phone, shut down the computer, light a candle or two if it’s evening or even just because you feel like it, put on some nice music and enjoy. Focus on every bite, savour every mouthful. It will taste better and you may even find you eat less.

2. Drinks: Use your nicest glasses, add a slice of lemon or another garnish. I like to buy the best mineral water I can find and drink it like a fine wine from a gorgeous glass. Sip slowly and enjoy. When my waxing was finished at the spa mentioned above, they brought me a glass of water with lemon and a straw on a bamboo tray with a beautiful napkin and a flower, I swear that water tasted better than usual!

3. One thing at a time: In this frenetic world, multitasking has become a skill we must master. Last week I found myself Tweeting, Facebooking, talking on the phone and to my colleagues, doing my work and checking work and personal emails all at the same time. The trouble was I wasn’t really doing any of them effectively. I wasn’t present to anybody, least of all to myself. Now I know it’s not always possible to do just one thing at at time, but let’s try doing it for an hour, and see how it feels, and take it from there.

4. Patience: I have recently returned from living in Africa where time really has no meaning. After the initial adjustment I found myself enjoying the luxury of living this way and really learnt how to be rather than do. Now I am back in the “real world” I find I am constantly trying to fit so much in and don’t want to waste a minute. The other night while waiting for my husband to finish work I found myself getting impatient because he was 7 minutes late! Just imagine! I was so busy thinking of all the other things I should be doing. If I was present, I would not have become impatient because I would have remembered that this moment is all that we have. From now I am going to take these minutes as a bonus. Why not do a short meditation, practice a bit of reiki on myself, or just relax and be?

So, this week I will try these and see how I go. Why don’t you give it a try too?

About Me

Recovery Coach Rea-Anne

Hi, my name is Rae-Anne. I am a facilitator, manager, counsellor, NDIS support coordinator, psychosocial recovery coach and published author with over 25 years experience in leadership development, change management and developing and delivering training within government, social and community services.

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