Monday Mindfulness

Cultivating Strength, Joy, Calm & Resilience

Tag Archives: quality of life


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Eyes open, heart full

There is such magic in this world.

In the way my body carries me.

The movement of the wind as it caresses my cheek.

The coolness of the tears that release my tension and heaviness and fall as readily with joy as sorrow.

In the songs of the birds and insects busy with their work.

The smile of a loved one.

The deep knowing in the eyes of a child.

The way the earth holds onto me.

The playful dance of the ocean under the moon.

The squish of sand…mud…and grass between my toes.

The twinkle of the sun peeking through the forest leaves.

The wiggle and prance of unconditional love in a dog’s greeting.

The soul connection of a cat’s purr.

The goodness in the food I eat.

The nourishment and brain power in a sip of water.

The laughter of my children.

The echoes of love that I feel as unborn babies prepare to create more magic in this world.

The gifts are endless, seamless, and there for me even when I forget, become distracted, or look away.

The magic remains and returns again and again.

All I have to do is be still and it appears so clearly before and within me.

It’s really not magic at all.

What a beautiful thing to let love guide me and choose to see the good in the world today.


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Bare Roots

The rest of the trees in the woods seem to stand so confident, so steady.

The storms have not hindered their ability to carry on.

And there I lay right next to them…toppled to the ground,

Root exposed.

So vulnerable and feeling like such a failure.

No longer am I the source of shade, fresh air, and refuge for the birds.

How could I be so weak?

How could I let so many down?

As I lay across the forest floor I feel the earth not just at my base but nestling in all along my spine, roots to branches.

I feel the soft mud, leaves of seasons past, and creatures that inhabit the ground delighting in my arrival.

New spaces to be cradled, to play in, and explore.

I am no longer giving nourishment through my leaves and breath but I am feeding the forest now with my whole being.

I am no longer drawing from the source of nourishment at my roots but I am the source itself.

With roots exposed, like bearing the deepest corners of my heart, I have nothing to protect and everything to give.

Fallen and seemingly over my prime, I am just now realizing that my purpose was not to stand tall but to fall into an even more grand state of being.


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Indelible

Step softly, so that the heart of the earth feels the massage of your gentle touch and yet you leave no visible marks on her outer edges.

Speak confidently with love so that your words are heard clearly without hurting.

Experience wide open spaces without taking up residency or ownership.

Follow the rising sun as the rippling wake of warmth washing over the landscape.

Offer cool crevices like the moon without swallowing up the light.

Be your most wild, magnificent, vibrant self, touching the world lightly and leaving an indelible mark.


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Am I?

Am I’m the only one dancing?

The only one smiling for no particular reason at all?

Am I the only one pausing to catch the sparkle of light dodging in and out of the branches of the trees?

Is it my ears alone that hear the ripples and gurgling of the creek

And the silence of the snow?

Does only my heart jump and my belly jiggle with laughter as the squirrel tries to carry the nut too big for its mouth

And the duck rolls over in the pond with its rather ungraceful landing?

Am I the only in awe of the fullness of the warmth of the sun as it caresses my face?

Am I the only one that delights as raindrops dance across my head and body?

Am I the only one who feels the love of all creation wrap around me and hold me tight every time I pause to be still and rest?

Am I the only one brought to tears of joy in the beauty of it all?


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Self-Care Plan

Ease in movement

Confidence in heart

Peace in spirit

Clarity in thought

Patience in receiving

Kindness in expression

Assurance in being

Joy in doing

Stillness in action

Flourishing intuition

Thriving in grace

Abundant in gratitude

Living in love


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Dearest One

Don’t wait for them to see the richness and uniqueness – see it yourself…

Unwind your tangled perception of you…

Enjoy the where you are and the where you will be, each full of challenges and delights…

Please love yourself just a little more…you are harder on yourself than anyone else ever could be…

Do all things because they feel good and nurture you not because they are “right” or provide a shield from the deep dark thoughts and feelings that face you…

Fearlessly take the hands of hurt and pain and walk with them for a bit, let them guide you out of the darkness until together you find the space to release each other…

Take your time in the process of caring for you above all else…slow down and tend to each and every element of you as if massaging a baby tenderly with the balm of divine love…

Feel grateful for the ease and healing in every breathe…

Move your body with the joy and freedom it was designed for…

You, my friend, are made of love and all those with truest loving eyes will see that and that is all that matters…

Turn your truest loving eyes towards your own heart and hold it sweetly, love it dearly, and this will be enough.

Photo compliments of Pauline Campbell.


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Fearless Living

Once there was an old belief that said,

“I am afraid…afraid of hurting others because I feel their hurt as if my own…hurting others jeopardizes my relationships and in that I run the risk of feeling their anger or worse, their scorn and disappointment. It is better to deny my joy than risk upsetting theirs.”

For a long, long time that belief walked confidently along its path unhindered. One day, it stumbled on that well worn path upon a rock of joy. It tripped over pebbles of power, and fell upon a bolder of truthfulness. As the belief lost its balance, it fell into a net of beautiful jewels all connected by a golden thread of love, of creativity, kindness, and great joy.

The belief grasped at the edges of the path, grappled with the sensation of free falling, longing for the predictable order of its existence. In the blinding beauty of the sparkling jewels, the belief had no choice but to release its fear, to drop into the wide and open net, to be held by a greater force in the space of free will and joy.

Gradually, the belief allowed itself to let go of the path and discovered its power to attract truthfulness and joy. It found that in that vibration there was no room for fear, hurt, or loneliness…only love.


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Free Will, Free Me

When I am afraid, I just need to pause.

When I am tired, I just need to soften.

When in doubt, I open my hands and stretch my fingers to let go of the burdens I am carrying.

It’s time to release the bags full of insecurity, judgment, and uncertainty,

to relieve that heavy weight off my shoulders,

unlock my hips, knees and feet

and walk confidently into the less than clear,

the less than perfect,

the unknown.

I will be patient with myself and with others.

In that patience I will grow confidence.

I will seek compassionate words that promote truth to foster ease, healing, and happiness in myself and others.

I will not need approval,

and in fact,

I will revel in my stumbling.

I will cultivate pauses to inquire,

and to see the unknown

not as daunting,

but as freeing.

The only thing I will hold onto

is the hand of the little child within me.

Seeking love and assurance from within,

I will open my hands, spread my fingers and let everything else go.

I will no longer grasp limitations that hinder my ability to see and be grateful,

that mask the abundance before me,

the joy within me,

my capacity for unconditional peace and love,

and my ability to know in the unknown.


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Divine Wisdom

I’m not waiting.

I’m allowing.

I’m unlimited creative genius,

Divine!

I am not waiting to be rescued or for my destiny to find me.

I am getting out of the way!

Waiting means I’ve got it all planned out and everything is going to be step by step as I envision.

I know that I don’t make it happen.

I allow it to happen.

So many other forces are at work. Why would I think it’s just me marking my path.

It’s me counting on you and everyone and everything around us.

In that way I cannot control the direction I go in.

All I can do is know that I am headed that way.

I know what it feels like to have the future I am destined for.

The how is irrelevant.


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Finesse

Why is it when I step out of my suffering, I am uncomfortable with the suffering of others?

Guilt arises at the feeling that I am free of pain somehow at their expense.

It is difficult to exercise compassion for the suffering of another when I hold no compassion for myself and the value of feeling pain free.

Compassion wrapped in guilt results in creating a false story in order to take on someone else’s.

True empathy is understanding suffering, holding a space of great strength and courage – enough for both of us – rising from my own pain and rising even higher from my own joy and knowing that by maintaining my balance, finesse, and freedom I offer more room for healing than by falsely taking on the suffering of others.

Compassion without guilt provides a clear path to alleviate suffering.

Compassion filled with joy brings independence, hope and healing.

Compassion is powerful.

Guilt smothering.

Empathy delicately empowering.