“How well we have lived How well we have loved How well we have learned to let go” ― Jack Kornfield So why might we want to begin to consider death in our lives? Unfortunately, like it or not, we are going to see loved ones die and come face to face with the…
Patient: Doctor! I feel like a pair of curtains Doctor: Pull yourself together! This week a blog appeared out of an insight I had after I sat mindfully unstitching and then stitching some curtains. I saw how the mind tried to steal my bliss by making up a story to make me feel bad. But…
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few” ― Shunryu Suzuki My mind is full, and not always mindful. And I’ve been doing this a while. It’s not getting easier, but it is geting deeper, messier. What a joy! The deep path of mindfulness training as opposed to the…
Today it feels like the whole world is conspiring against me! Today I’m having a day! It’s such a shock to feel something not very nice stirring deep down somewhere, a surprise. I don’t like it. And yes, I do want it to go away. Everything. I want everything and everyone to go away. Well…
There is a ruined old farmhouse in Northumberland called Blawearie. The name, apparently, means “tired of the wind”. Living on the North Yorkshire coast, I understand the sentiment behind this name and use if frequently, when day after day there is a relentless wind that rattles my bones, frazzles my energy and is a real…
Once when the lawn was golden green And the marbled moonlit trees rose like fresh memorials In the scented air, and the whole countryside pulsed With the chirr and murmer of insects, I lay in the grass Feeling the great distances open above me, and wondered What I would become and where I would find…
Don’t recall / Let go of what has passed Don’t imagine / Let go of what may come Don’t think / Let go of what is happening now Don’t examine / Don’t try to figure anything out Don’t control / Don’t try to make anything happen Rest / Relax right now and rest “Six…
I have been pondering on all that is invisible. Having recently considered and reflected on the concept of space whilst taking part in the Wisdom course, it has triggered many insights which are just popping up of their own accord. At the moment, every day I am hearing that someone I know has…
Taking Down the Decorations after Christmas, I found to be a ritual. Perhaps Part 2 of the whole midwinter ritual of Christmas Decorations – Part one being Putting Up the decorations. We like marking occasions with decorations and elaboration, don’t we? And the action of placing carefully is a beautiful time for mindfulness practice. Where…