This article is different from the other mindful parenting advice I’ve read. It actually addresses the pain a parent feels caused by the voice within. The voice that scares us about our child’s future and beats us up for our mistakes. It reminds us to be aware of the pain and allow/accept it. But remembering that, as the article says, “The mindfulness term for this is “acceptance.” And by acceptance, I don’t mean resignation—the sense of giving up and being defeated by the pain of parenting. No, it’s an active, empowered choice to lie back and let pain move through you.”
You’ll also learn the acronym N.A.P.P., which helps us remember how to do this important work. Yep, parents, you take the napp for a change. 🙂 Please read and enjoy.
According to one study, compassion is the lowest it’s been in 30 years and still rapidly declining. This article shows that just practicing mindfulness, even from an app, improves ones compassionate leanings. It works on our “compassion fatigue. “Put simply, contemplative training appears to teach the mind to move directly from an observation of suffering to benevolent action, without becoming paralyzed by others’ pain.”
Dan Harris, news anchor and author of 10% Happier- his memoir of discovering the benefits of mindfulness, has made this cute 2 minute video that really sums up how easy mindfulness can be. Enjoy!
While we’re celebrating our country’s independence from Britain’s harsh rule, I’m thinking about a different kind of independence. An independence from the hooks and triggers of life that make us suffer. The things that bring us dissatisfaction even when we have national freedoms. Of course mindfulness is the process of looking inside and recognizing those hooks and triggers. By shining awareness on them, many times they shrink and disappear.
I was reading an article about a commonly used word in Danish. The definition seemed similar to mindfulness. The word is Hygge. This word “…has no English translation. “Hygge,” pronounced hoo-ga, is often translated as “coziness.” But coziness paints only part of the picture.
Simply, hygge is about living in the moment. It’s about spending quality, peaceful time in a calm environment with no agenda. It’s about humor, warmth and making connections. It’s about spending time alone and spending time with family. And it vanishes the moment your to-do list gets involved.”
To me it sounded like a real independence (even for a short time) from the constant plans, thoughts and worries that our mind imposes on us. The article goes onto say that because the Danish culture practices hygge, Denmark ranks 1st in Life-Work balance out of 35 countries. Sadly, the US ranks 8th from last.
So as we celebrate our collective national independence, try practicing a little hygge (being in the moment with no agenda). Hopefully it will lead to a deeper, richer independence.