Living Mindfully

Normally I race around multitasking. I am always thinking about a million things while I try and do at least two activities at once. More and more I forget what two things I'm doing and I often feel guilt that I'm not doing either terribly well. This certainly is the lament of every working mom. There is a Zen story that tells of a man charging down a road on a galloping horse. Another man, on the side of the road, yells to the first man, "Where are you going?" "I don't know", replies the rider, "Ask the horse." The horse represents our galloping thoughts pulling us along throughout our day. We don't know where we are going and we couldn't stop, even if we did.

Lately I have been reading about mindfulness, the act of stopping and paying attention to the here and now. During the act of stopping, we stop thinking, forgetfulness and the strong emotions that rule us. When we are practicing mindful breathing, eating, walking, loading the dishwasher, driving our car, grocery shopping etc. we are touching deeply the present moment and appreciating the well being that is already present in our day to day lives.

Normally when I do any of these activities I'm usually thinking about something that took place in the past or planning the future, certainly not about what I am actually doing or even where I am most of the time. How many times have I driven almost all the way to work and wondered how I got there! What happened to the last few miles of road?

So there I was, on a fine summer morning, sitting on the steps of my front porch, mindfully eating my breakfast. I was eating whole-wheat squares with blueberries on top. I focused on the taste of the whole-wheat, the tartness of the blueberries. I did wonder if eating mindfully would make me feel more full after a meal but instead of dwelling on that thought which would have led me on the horse of no return, I simply went back to my cereal and the blueberries. Later as I was folding laundry, lost in thought, I asked myself, "What am I doing?" "I am folding laundry, be mindful of it", I replied and brought myself back to the task at hand.

Throughout the day I practiced mindful walking, driving and listening. Each time my galloping horse took off, I simply asked myself, "What are your doing?" and came back to the now. Each task, even if it was simply mindful breathing, became the most important job in my life at that moment.

We are all struggling to find happiness and joy in our lives. Living mindfully suggests that it is right in front of us every day in our ordinary lives. Perhaps it is a blue sky on a summer day, a flower that bloomed overnight in your garden, the sound of your children's voices. My father, who only moves with pain in his later years, would say that joy is being able to move like he used to as a younger man. Did he value this when he was younger? No, of course not. We only pay attention to these things when they have been taken away from us. Pay attention to the now, practice living mindfully and find the joy that is right in front of you everyday.

Lesley Cordero is President of Cordero Consulting offering personal growth solutions in the form of workshops, keynote presentations, and Internet information resources. Subscribe to her free ezine "Deep Linking" at http://www.lesleycordero.com and receive FREE the Special Report: Deep Linking - Articles on Change & Transformation. Are You Ready ... To See Things Differently?? is her new e-book.

eco-friendly cleaning service Buffalo Grove ..

In The News:

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

Living Mindfully

Positive Attitude Tips