During the day many of us are moving so fast, sometimes physically, but almost always mentally. Our neurons are firing in hyper speed with so much to do and so much to pay attention to. I’ll often catch myself walking so fast to my car, head tilted forward, and eyes darting to the handle of the door where my next action will be. Sometimes, when I remember my practice, I notice that I’m “rushing home to relax.” In that moment I become present and realize that I don’t have to rush home to relax, I have arrived in the present moment and can choose to “be” different. Here is a way we can apply this to something many of us do every day…walking.
You can do this while walking to work, running errands, or walking from the car to the door on the way home. Keep in mind this is a practice. So whenever you remember that you are rushing home to relax, or really rushing anywhere, you are now present and can engage in any of these ways of mindful walking. As always, don’t ever take my word for it, try it for yourself!
As always, please share your thought, insights and questions below. Your interactions here provide a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.
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From Psych Central's Dr. Elisha Goldstein:
You Want Mental Health? Get into the Body | Mindfulness and Psychotherapy (June 22, 2009)
how can i change the negative perceptions other vengeful people create about me due to jealosy or to hide their incompetence and insecurities as this does create some problems for me sometimes.
Flower Child, the first sentence of of your post has your answer! You link yourself to other vengeful, jealous people. What we don’t like in others is really what we don’t like about ourselves. You cannot change anything outside of your body, but you can change yourself and how you deal with difficult situations. Work on yourself, build strength in mind, body, & soul, and you will find that when dealing with difficult people, you no longer feel negative, but maybe sadness for them!
4 ways of mindful walking is very effective in staying in the present moment. Mantra chanting while walking helps a great deal in preventing negative thoughts from creeping into the mind.