Last week I led a five day compassion retreat as part of our Level 2: Responding with compassion course. It was intense, in a good way, and for many participants transformative. At the end of the course we had a sharing, which conveyed the significant switches of perspective that people had experienced, in particular a…
As I reflect on how scary and difficult being human can be, Rumi’s words come into my mind. “This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they’re a crowd of…
Happiness cannot be found through great effort and willpower, but is already here, right now, in relaxation and letting go. Don’t strain yourself, there is nothing to do. Whatever arises in the mind has no importance at all, because it has no reality whatsoever. Don’t become attached to it. Don’t pass judgement. Let the game…
As we face another few months of restrictions I have been reflecting on life since Covid began affecting our lives – some 6 months ago back in March. I became aware that the news of tighter restrictions as cases of Covid soar again, was causing me some angst and this was manifesting as a tiredness…
One day this week I was looking at the news on my Guardian app. Relentless awful news: Covid rising again, young students confined to their rooms, new policy in schools to not teach anything anti-capitalist and a further undermining of the BBC and free journalism in the UK. I have friends who are facing the…
This morning in my practice I noticed a lot of thoughts about all I had to do and a lack of time in which to do it. It has been a busy time at the Mindfulness Association this September. We had a validation event last week and our new collaboration with the University of the…
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This week has been a week of emotional extremes for me and I have watched myself surf and sink and resurface, at times mindfully aware, at times getting sucked into thinking, worrying, ruminating, celebrating – and the whole time I can honestly say I kept a mindful watch on myself as I navigated the highs…
I have been questioned by some colleagues and criticised by some readers of my blog about promoting a vegan diet on the retreat I am leading this week and in my blog. When I was discussing this with colleagues last week, the view I arrived at was that within the Mindfulness Association ‘Compassion is at…