Tag Archives: #bemindful

Mindful Activities, Mindful Meditation, poetry

Ego Weeps

Ego weeps

I stand before you
My knees are weak

I kneel before you
My shoulders are steep

I bow before you
My head is heavy with grief

I rest and breathe 

Breathing in and out
I feel the relief
of my heart
as it anchors to the shore
of steady

My ego flows off of me
along with my grief 
A drip, then a river’s story

A lightness comes
awakens within
saves me from the ego’s pull
before it begins again

As I stand before you
in strength and light
let the ego weep
-ego weeps by Alexis Cress

When we are in the present moment and let the thoughts of yesterday and tomorrow behind, we feel the light and strength within. This is where our lives truly shine. Don’t let ego’s stories take away your peace. Let your ego rest so you can fully feel peace and calm.

Blessings❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🤍

Alexis Cress 

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education, health benefits, Mindful Activities, Mindful Eating, Mindful Living, Mindful Meditation

Let me introduce myself to ME! – Part 3 of a three-part series.

Did you know that being mindful, specifically the practice of mindfulness meditation, can help you learn more about yourself? And, what better person to learn more about!

Sitting with our breath, our mind, for just a few minutes a day, can help shine a spotlight on our habitual responses, our self-talk. Sometimes our self-talk is reassuring and helpful, but other times it can be negative, cause turmoil, and lead us to make wrong choices or decisions. We can be our own worst enemy. But, when we take the time to learn more about ourselves, our thought patterns, we can become more accepting and compassionate towards ourselves and towards others.

In my three-part series on Mindful Living, I have discussed two ways of living mindfully – Mindful Eating and Mindful Wakeups. Today’s blog post is about mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation is a seated meditation practice where you focus on your breath, your thoughts, your emotions, but let them pass without judgment. I have practiced and taught this form of meditation for many years. As someone who has dealt with anxiety and stress over the years, this form of meditation has helped me learn about my habitual thought patterns and as a result learn how to become more calm and more relaxed. In addition to potentially relieving stress and anxiety, mindfulness meditation can help improve sleep, improve health, and even improve brain function! The Harvard Gazette says “Doing mindfulness is like a fitness routine for your brain,” she said. “It keeps your brain healthy.”

Before I give a few suggestions on how you can start your very own mindfulness meditation practice, I first would like to tell you what mindfulness meditation is NOT:

  • It is NOT a religion.
  • It is NOT a relaxation exercise, rather it is a way of understanding (through practice) of how our mind behaves and how our mind and body work together as a whole.
  • It is NOT going into a trance.
  • It is NOT escaping from reality.
  • It is NOT for only monks.

Rather, Mindfulness Meditation is a study of ourselves and an exploration of our life experience. It reminds us of what we are supposed to be doing and who we are. It helps us truly live!

Let’s get started in Mindfulness Meditation:

  • Find a quiet place to sit without being disturbed.
  • Decide on a specific time for the meditation session. If you are a beginner to mindfulness meditation, I would suggest you start with 5 minutes. The Insight Timer is a great app you can download onto your phone. This app also has guided meditations!
  • Wear loose, comfortable clothing. A meditation cushion helps in both comfort and posture. Find a seated position that works best for you and your degree of flexibility. Sit up tall. Place your hands palm-up on your knees. Or, if you prefer, rest your hands (palms-up) in your lap, or another hand gesture you are comfortable with. Heathline.com gives some additional options on seated meditation positions.
  • Relax your shoulders. Tilt your head slightly forward so your gaze is naturally directed to the floor in front of you. 
  • Relax your jaw and mouth, with your teeth slightly apart. Do not clench your jaw. Your lips are slightly touching. Tip of tongue touching back of upper teeth, or rest behind your lower teeth.
  • Close your eyes: Breathe naturally. Sit for about one minute before you begin – allow your heart and breathing to slow.
  • Gently bring your attention to your breath and begin the meditation session: There is no particular goal. Just sit and breathe. Allow yourself to be absorbed in the practice.
  • Allow your thoughts and feelings to come and go without attachment: Don’t try to control your thoughts in any way. Don’t follow them. Just note them and return to your awareness of the breath.
  • How to handle distractions:  There are quite a few ways to handle distractions, and I will note a few here, but in time you will find techniques that work the best for you. Deep Breaths – take a few deep, quick breaths when you realize you have become distracted.  Counting – on your inhale count “one, one, one” until the lungs are full of air, then on your exhale count “two, two, two” until your lungs are out of air; continue this until you reach ten and repeat if needed.
  • Meditate in this way for 5 – 20 minutes (beginners for less time). It is more important and beneficial to meditate for 5 minutes each day, rather than an hour every two weeks. Daily practice is an essential element of effective meditation.

Are you ready to meet YOU? Are you ready to explore and learn more about your beautiful, divine self?

I hope this blog gives you the gentle nudge you need to try this profound meditation practice. Please contact me if you want to learn more about mindfulness meditation. As a practitioner and teacher of this mindful practice, I would love to help you along your mindful living exploration.

Blessings to you,

Alexis

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health benefits, Mindful Activities, Mindful Living

Daily Mindful Living – part 2 of a three-part series

When you think of mindfulness, do you visualize a person sitting on a rock with a picturesque background with sounds of water trickling nearby? While this is a nice visualization of one form of mindfulness, it is a tiny part of a huge world of mindful activities. Or maybe you think mindful living can only be done by a monk, or someone who practices buddhism or another form of spiritual practice? Everyone, no matter what spiritual practice, religion, or no religious affiliation at all, can (and should) practice mindful living. It is a way of life. A way of living consciously. Or in even simpler terms, a way of truly living.

To summarize from part 1 of my three-part series on mindful living Are you living mindfully? to live mindfully, is to live with intention, with conscious awareness, and the understanding that every action (or inaction) has a response, a consequence. Every activity in your day can be done mindfully. It is the simple act of being present and aware of what you are doing at that exact moment. The more you practice mindfulness, the easier it becomes, and the more benefits you will reap in your daily life.

Mindful.org lists five mindfulness practices for your daily life. I encourage you to check them out. Here is one that I highly recommend to start practicing today.

  1. Mindful Wakeup: Start with a Purpose. When we set an intention, our underlying motivation is aligned more with our actions and reactions throughout our day. Scientifically, “from the brain’s perspective, when we act in unintended ways, there’s a disconnect between the faster, unconscious impulses of the lower brain centers and the slower, conscious, wiser abilities of the higher centers like the pre-frontal cortex.” Therefore, when we set an intention we strengthen the connection between our higher and lower brain centers. In doing so, our actions, our responses, will be more mindful, more compassionate, and align more with our purpose and our core values. Sounds amazing, right? Here are steps to start with your intention every day.
    • On waking in the morning, take the time to breathe and notice how you feel.
    • Take three long, deep, breaths. Notice how the breath feels. Notice where your breath is settling in your body.
    • Ask yourself – “What is my intention today?” or “How might I help myself or others today?” “What do I want to improve on today?” (Mindful.org has many great prompts and suggestions for you.)
    • Set your intention for the day. Some examples, “Today I will take good care of myself.” “Today I will eat healthy.” “Today I will help others.”
    • Throughout the day, check on your intention. Take moments throughout the day to pause and breathe. Review your day and notice if you are following the intention you set for the day.

The more we practice living with intention, the more we will be truly living in the present moment. We will live less on autopilot (our fast brain) and more mindfully (with our slow brain). Let’s get our brain centers working together! There is so much beauty in this world. Let’s not miss it!!

Blessings,

Alexis

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