​Jon Kabat-Zinn, a key guru of the mindfulness movement in America, wrote in his book Full Catastrophe Living (referring to a group of highly stressed individuals), “We invite them to do something radically new for themselves, namely, to experiment with living intentionally from moment to moment” (Kabat-Zinn, 1990, p. 19). Living from moment to moment may sound simple but it takes some discipline and the structure and practice of a mindfulness technique to show us how. The mind is a time traveler. Our mind can travel from an incident in kindergarten to what is for dinner tonight in a nanosecond. Our minds often live in the past or project into the future. Eastern philosophy tells us that this can cause suffering. Mindfulness or an insight practice helps us stay present in the here and now. It comes from ancient Buddhist traditions and has been Westernized by Jon Kabat-Zinn and Thich Nhat Hanh.
Mindfulness is an important practice to learn as it can be surprisingly effective for managing stress, for regulating our nervous system. When we can regulate our nervous system, we can reduce high levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, reducing inflammation in the body, and thereby protecting our immune system. Cortisol under normal conditions is helpful and necessary but “the problem arises when chronic stress keeps cortisol levels high for the long haul. High cortisol levels over weeks or months can lead to inflammation and a host of mental and physical health problems, from anxiety to weight gain to heart disease” (How to reduce, 2020).  
Using a technique as simple as breathing and “tuning into” our breathing, mindfulness can be a portable practice and when we can have a portable tool for managing stress, we can take it anywhere - everywhere we go. Mindfulness helps us develop important awareness about what actually stresses us, how stress impacts our breathing, where and how it creates sensations in our body, and how can we “head stress off at the pass” to prevent overload. Mindfulness is focused breathing which links the mind to the body. The best way to use mindfulness is regularly, preferably every day, to generate a sense of control and calm in our lives. With a regular practice we will be prepared should chaos happen to show up. In fact, our perspective will be more relaxed with a regular practice. There will be fewer “knee jerk” reactions. Should stressors pile up we will be able to bring ourselves back into balance/homeostasis. The stress doesn’t disappear; instead, our management of it becomes optimal. Mindfulness is empowering. Thoughts don’t stop, we just learn to be the observer of our thoughts and to pick and choose where we focus. As all contemplative practices are, mindfulness is experiential. We can discuss it from every angle, but the practice of it makes it real and potentially profound in our lives. This is not woo woo or “a panacea for all of our woes” (Bush & Price, 2021, p. 57). It is based on a clear intention that we want to be present. It takes commitment.
Mindfulness Activity:
At the foundation of mindfulness is breathing.

• Close your eyes, or if you aren’t comfortable closing your eyes, soften your gaze to reduce peripheral vision. We don’t have to close our eyes, but it may enhance the experience. Turning within turns down peripheral noise. Caution: don’t use this technique in the car if you are driving! If you are a passenger and the driver’s style is stressing you out, it should be helpful!
• There is just this moment, followed by the next. We let go of doing and enter the realm of being.
• Notice yourself where you are. Sense the space in front of you, behind you, above you and below you. Sense the ground beneath you.
• Begin to simply notice your breath going out through your nostrils and then in through your nostrils. Sense the cool air at the base of your nostrils as you inhale and the difference in the temperature as you exhale.
• Notice if your breath seems smooth, choppy, full, shallow, if there are natural pauses on inhalation or exhalation, any nuances in the way you breathe naturally. Notice the sounds of your breath. “Use the breath as an anchor to tether your attention to the present moment… Bring your attention back to the breath, in all its vividness, every time it wanders” (Kabat-Zinn, 1994, p. 109).

Keep things simple. Start with five minutes of breathing, maybe even just three minutes. Don’t worry about “doing it right”. Your way is the right way. Just Start. Don’t judge. Repeat…
References
Bush, K. R., & Price, C. A. (2021). Families & change: Coping with stressful events and transitions (6th ed.). Sage Publications.
How to reduce cortisol and turn down the dial on stress. (2020, November 9). Cleveland Clinic. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-reduce-cortisol-and-turn-down-the-dial-on-stress/
Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: Using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness (15th ed.). Delta Health Psychology.
Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go there you are: Mindfulness meditation for everyday life (10th ed.). Hyperion.

Listen Deeply. As spiritual practice reading, or writing, a poem can illuminate a hidden yearning, a forgotten blessing, awaken the imagination, spark creativity. It can become a lyrical tool of prayer and to support sankulpa.

"Be a gift and a benediction."  ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

In this gift-giving season of Hanukkah and Christmas turn within and visualize. See yourself receiving your heart's desire. What lies beyond surface consumerism? What does gift giving mean to your spirit? A gift of patience? of acceptance? humor, imagination, creativity? A gift of gratitude, peace? Take time this season for self-care. Acknowledge the beauty of the winter season, music, good books, a cozy home. Open your heart of hearts to receive.

I hope you will join me this week on Thursday morning for mat class and Friday morning for Chair Yoga for Strength and Vitality.  Look for my schedule page.

We must move to the laboratory where all radical change can occur inside of our very mind, heart, and the cells of our body. I call it the laboratory of contemplative practice, which rewires our inner life and confirms in the soul a kind of “emotional sobriety.” Richard Rohr 
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​As media bombards us with confusion, take time to unplug and reset with outdoor activities like walking in nature, exercise, yoga, meditation, calls to friends. Set a "no politics" guideline for your conversations to give yourself a break. You need relief! Limit news time on the radio, TV and the internet. Journaling can be a very effective way to release. Putting your thoughts down could even turn into a blog, podcast, short stories, a book, or poetry. I hope you are recording your personal views about 2020 in some way for posterity. There won't be another year like it. Don't let your brilliance be obscured by confusion. Click below to read what the National Institutes of Health recommends to manage stress. Remember you can contribute to your healthiest self by managing your stress. Chronic stress leads to and contributes to reduced immunity.  
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/stress/index.shtml

ahimsa, (Sanskrit: “noninjury”)

“Ahimsa, rightly understood, is the ultimate weapon; it turns one’s enemy into a friend, thereby banishing the possibility of further conflict. In the practice of yoga, it is important to understand that the same life flows in the veins of all creatures.” – Swami Kriyananda.
“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.” - Mark Twain
There is the potential that we might mistakenly consider Ahimsa in the abstract, or possibly in a “doesn’t apply to me” perspective.  If we do no harm, are we living in peace?  If we think no harm, are we free from anger’s acid?  Choosing reverence for all living beings is a radical sometimes very difficult process.  Far from staying neutral, far from hypocritical non-attachment, intending and then choosing peace, compassion, thoughtfulness and respect requires diligence, first in thoughts and then in actions.  Developing a cache of relaxation tools, quality rest, stress reducers, humor enhancers, spiritual connections and community supports our efforts in Ahimsa to manage daily challenges.  As we slow down, listen, stay open to others perspectives, we can find peace and as we each become peaceful, so our world heals.

Impulsive March, tempting, flirting, biting, dodging.  60 degrees to snow this week.  Winter, throw off your blanket! Searching for green as spring slowly unfolds, I’m rewarded with patience.

It’s not a surprise anymore when I get “caught by a train;” not the Metra that takes 2 minutes, but those freighters just moseying by.  There was a time when I would throw up my arms with frustration.  Now, I just say "thanks for the break".  A chance to unplug.  Why not? If you get "caught," take a break and a minute to enjoy the art.