The Potential of Mindfulness
You’ve never seen anything like it. It really was awful. I’d been putting off dealing with it but there’s only so long you can let your four year old get around with an enormous clump of knotty hair engulfing her head.
I had no idea where to start. So I simply sat and started. Fortunately I’ve recently devised a pain free approach to getting the knots out. It involves painstakingly and gently teasing the hair apart quite literally a strand at a time.
It took almost an hour. Surprisingly, instead of it being a dreadful ordeal, I found myself completely present and entirely focused on this single banal task. Working through one strand at a time, each strand in turn took my full attention.
This is what people call Mindfulness. To be fully present with whatever you are doing and experiencing it in a state of non-judgement. Strangely enough it is the banal tasks that can lead us to this state.
Try it. Pay close and purposeful attention to what you’re doing, one step at a time, and each step in turn – whether you’re stepping into the shower, brushing your teeth, washing the dishes, hanging the washing, putting the rubbish out, or walking to the bus stop.
It might seem a bit mad to honour the banalities of life, but you might just find a little more balance if you do.
Enjoy.
Katherine Mair
M.A.D. Creator