Be present

This morning I found myself to be quite irritable and stressed. I don’t like it when I get like that but I guess we are all liable to be so at times. I intentionally took myself to my room and did some yoga practice, focusing on the moves, poses and breathing. I have been reading a book that was recommended to me, which encourages yoga and mindfulness and that doing calm breathing can help when we are stressed, instead of succumbing to our usual ways of coping with difficulties. It did help and it fit well with today’s quote from my other book, Until Today.

At the core of mindfulness is being present in the here and now and not caught up in the thoughts that trouble us. To see thoughts as clouds that come and will pass or as a train pulling into the station. We can ride the train and let the thoughts overwhelm us or we can let the train pass and stay present. Focusing on the breath is a way to practice this and strength our abilities to stay in the moment.

My son’s swimming was earlier than usual today, during the afternoon rather than the evening which means we can all have dinner together, which these days is a rarity! During my time on poolside today I continued reading and tried to simply focus on that. It is difficult at times as we all have a mind that starts to wander, but with mindfulness comes the ability to recognise this and gently come back to the present with kindness.

My blip photo today is of my baby feet which are coming on nicely! Baby due mid-February so I am sure I will get it done in time!

Today’s quote:
“I will know peace when I learn to focus on one thing at a time.” Iyanla Vanzant