Little Niece D was five yesterday. Five years since I saw my baby niece and Goddaughter come into the world. Five years since I first held her in my arms before her Mummy had the strength to. Five years since I bought her first dolly. I instantly fell in love with that baby girl, her dark eyes looking about her and her little lips searching for milk. That love has grown with each day and year I’ve been blessed to have such a special little person in my life. Read More
“Waking up this morning, I smile.
Twenty-four brand new hours are before me.
I vow to live fully each moment
and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.”
(‘Peace is Every Breath’ – Thich Nhat Hanh)
In mindfulness training we often talk about formal and informal practice. Formal practice involves sitting for an allotted time, using an audio or self-guiding your way through a meditation, for example a breathing anchor or body scan exercise. It is when key techniques and concepts are learnt and experienced as a mindful way of being is nurtured. Informal practice takes place in ‘real life’. It involves bringing mindful awareness, developed in the formal practice, into the activities of everyday living. It is no less essential than the formal practice and is often where the magic happens. I frequently experience ‘a-ha’ moments at this time, perhaps when a seed I planted in my formal training comes to fruition in my day to day life.Read More
The air has turned chilly. Golden leaves are starting to flutter down. Autumn is here. I wrote in Spring about how I like to reflect the seasons in my life. It helps me embrace change whilst feeling grounded in my environment. Spring is a time of hope and fresh starts, but autumn is a time of settling down and letting go. Read More
“There’s going to be some controlled chaos,” announced Matthew as the class began. There was, but the energy in the room noticeably shifted as he spoke thoughtful words of wisdom and guided us through our practice. “My story is your story,” he said, as he explained how the inner sensations, or prana, he’d discovered whilst practising yoga as a paraplegic, were relevant to us all. People often focus on the outer shapes of yoga, but what happens on the inside? That’s what we were about to discover. Read More