Mindfulness of head, heart and body

Pam Weiss, a trainer in mindfulness, helped to turn around a technology group from being a undesirable place to work into a most favorable environment.  She did this by teaching the employees to develop a culture that took time to pay attention to not only the ideas in their heads, but also their hearts and bodies.  She helps people to bridge the busy world of doing with the calm world of being.

You can view her 28 minute "Presence" video on Do Lectures: Ideas + Energy = Change.

She also tells an interesting story about listening to the sycamore trees while spending time in a Zen Buddhist monastery.  

Slow down, we're movin' too fast

Animal tracks in the snow

An editorial by Lisa Valentine in the StarTribune recommended slowing down, avoiding multitasking and taking time to focus and communicate, face to face, with people we care about.  This is easier said than done in our frantically paced society.  She referenced a quote from Sue Atchley Ebaugh "The greatest gift we can give one another is rapt attention to one another's existence."

Snow on tall grass

I enjoyed a low level of multitasking this morning; listening to Pipe Dreams on public radio, drinking coffee and watching the fire. 

I raise my coffee cup hoping we can all be more focused and attuned, both to ourselves and those around us, in the days ahead.  For those in the Christian tradition, advent is a time that encourages such focus and reflection.

Joy and calm instead of depression and anxiety

I was delighted to read an article, "Capturing Calm", about Dr. Henry Emmons' holistic psychiatry practice in today’s StarTribune. I was impressed with  the approach he took to dealing with pain and suffering at a workshop he did a few years back for Social Workers. He noted how pain and suffering was universal, but when we learn to accept it and not battle things outside of our control we can live a balanced and joyful life.  It is also vital to have a reserve, from which to draw, during challenging times.  He stressed the importance of resilience and utilizes Buddhist traditions in his practice and teaching. 

Some common sense disciplines Henry recommends include:

1. Eating healthy foods
2. Exercising regularly
3. Getting quality sleep
4. Reducing anxiety by calming the mind

Dr Emmon's has two books out, "The Chemistry of Joy", and "The Chemistry of Calm".

Morning sun reflection on ice

Mind-wandering related to unhappiness

Winter willows in reflection

Frozen cherries by pond

A recent study indicated that being focused on the here and now is more likely to bring happiness than letting one's mind wander.  This was reported in a New York Times article, When the Mind Wanders, Happiness Also Strays, by John Tierney.  One of the primary researchers, Dr. Daniel Gilbert noted, "The heart goes where the head takes it, and neither cares much about the whereabouts of the feet.”

Perhaps not too surprisingly, they discoved that people's minds were wandering abut 50% of the time.

They found evidence that mind-wandering caused unhappiness, but not that unhappiness caused mind-wandering.

One word of caution about this study.  It was conducted using subjects with IPhones.  This might not be representative of the general population.

Suffering from monkey mind?

Canada Geese in flight

I chuckled when I read an article this morning on a seminar held last August here in the Twin Cities on Mindful Leadership.  One of the presenters, Yongey Mingur Rinpoche, spoke about "monkey mind", which originates from the Chinese term xinyuan.  This caught my attention as I've often felt more distracted than I would care to admit.  I've had my own western definition of this restless state of attention, "puppy mind".  In a world filled with more distractions than ever before the idea of taking regular time out for prayer, meditation or "mindfulness" makes a lot of sense.

"More than those who hate you, more than all your enemies, an undisciplined mind does greater harm." Buddha

Picured above are a few Canada Geese.  They are gathering in large numbers overnight in he pond.  During the day they fly off for feeding elsewhere.

Pictured below is a Great Blue Heron.  I was surprised to see what a different looking bird it was when it tucked its neck in, seems a bit like an average blue herron.  I guess it helps to stick your neck out if you want to be great.