In my weekly blog, Heather’s Musings, I write about what has been happening in my life and how I am applying my mindfulness, compassion and insight practice to it. The process of writing the blog is often an opportunity for me to gain more clarity and recognise what is happening and I find it highly beneficial. My wish is that it is also helps other meditation practitioners who are on a similar journey.
The opinions and beliefs that I express in this blog are my own and do not represent the opinion of the Mindfulness Association.
At Christmas time, with the night’s drawing in, we can find ourself cooped up in the house. This can feel quite claustrophobic, especially if we are guests or if we have guests staying over the Christmas period. Also, with all the over-eating, alcohol and Christmas telly a good walk in the fresh air can blow…
Many of us struggle with the coming together of old friends and family that happens at Christmas. So how do we bring ourself fully into these occasions? I think first it is important to acknowledge that some relationships are difficult, due to clashes (or more likely similarities) in personality. This is part of the rich…
I did my Christmas shopping yesterday, with my husband and daughter. We had a fun day out, spent enough but not too much money and hopefully bought some nice gifts that will be enjoyed by our friends and family. In general, Christmas troubles me: the unrealistic expectations, the excess, the over-spending, especially in an economy…
I enjoy this Coldplay lyric from 2011’s ‘Every Teardrop is a Waterfall’ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyMhvkC3A84) and so apparently do they, as it has been used again in the recent ‘Miracles’ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7atDQreame4). Our mind state inside effects everything. We know this from the difference between the days when we get out of the wrong side or the right…
I am on my way to Manchester to for our weekly MAHQ meeting. I travel down from Lockerbie nowadays and I have to change at Preston. Today my train onwards from Preston was cancelled amid a wonderful array of conflicting announcements – that it was on time, that it was delayed and that it was…
I had an interesting insight in my practice, quite devastating. It was that I have been living in my threat system my whole life. My mind and body have been wired accordingly so that every change, every uncertainty is a potential threat. Most thoughts that are engaged set me into spirals of planning for future…
I have been working with Choden and Rob Nairn on a book, which is an experiential journey through the Mindfulness Association’s Insight Training, called Level 3: Seeing Deeply (click here for more information). We expect it to be published some time next year. Rob designed this training, and then others of us on the MA…
I had the good fortune to see my teacher Lama Yeshe Rinpoche this week and he emphasised the importance of forgiveness. There was a forgiveness exercise in the early Mindfulness courses we delivered, but it never made it to the current courses. I think it was quite a profound exercise, but painful to engage in…
I had a lovely retreat last week by the seaside, with mindfulness, yoga and some lovely walks along the beach. I always forget the calming power of yoga, which I do moving and breathing in time to Tibetan Buddhist chanting. The chatter of my mind falls away and there is just moving, breathing and hearing.…