Mindful Parenting is a contemplative practice through which we become more mindful of our children and, in doing so, experience a more joyful life.
The Mindful Parent is an organization devoted to sharing with parents
and other child caregivers ways in which to enhance the many joys
of parenting. By mindfully attending to our children, both when
we are physically present with them and when we are physically separated
from them, we can enhance our sense of connection to them and, in
turn, our connection to the cosmos. This makes us a better parent,
a happier person, and a more vital human being.
To facilitate
a more mindful approach to parenting, The Mindful Parent publishes
on its website, and in its bi-weekly
newsletter, mindful parenting
verses
and commentaries. The Mindful Parent website also serves as
a community forum that encourages and supports a mindful parenting
dialogue and the sharing of mindful parenting experiences.
In
the spirit of developing a mindful parenting community, we encourage
you to
submit a mindful parenting experience through verse,
commentary, and imagery to share with others. We believe that
through our collective experience, we can help each other develop
a deeper and more meaningful mindful parenting practice.
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The Daily Sip:
Bodies and Songs
When we open awareness to the extraordinary
beauty and wonder of our bodies, we expand our awareness beyond
the thinking mind. This can be accomplished by focusing attention on
the body -- perhaps the hands or feet, or the breath, or our beating
heart. When we shift our attention in this manner, we slow
down and become more in synch with the present moment. We can
also open awareness to the presence of our child in our life.
The blood coursing through my body
Sounds like the wind and the rain
Pulses like
the sun
Place your wrist against your ear. Press tightly
enough to create a seal between your skin and your ear. If you
listen carefully, you will hear your blood traveling through your
arm. Place your other wrist against your other ear and do the same.
You hear sounds like the wind, the rain, and the pulsing
sun. Remember, you are made up of the wind, the rain,
and the sun. So too is your child.
Today, when you think
of it, place your wrist to your ear and listen deeply. The sounds
you hear remind you that you are alive. Breathe deeply and slowly.
The sounds you hear remind you that your child is alive, that your
child is a part of nature -- the wind, the rain, and the pulsing
sun.
Try not to take this phenomenon for granted. When
you listen to your body, know that you are listening to a sound that one
day will conclude. But, at this moment, you and your child together
create a beautiful symphony of sound so pure it echoes
throughout the cosmos.
