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 Morning Sip: Be With Your Child
And Wake Up
Yesterday was Father's Day. Whether or not
you are a father, you probably spent special time with your child,
or spoke with your child over the phone, or e-mailed or IM'd your
child. In some manner, you were with your child.
The practice
of mindful parenting asks whether we are "present" when we are with
our child. That is, are we aware of the wonder of the moment
-- our being alive on the Earth together with our child!
Such awareness opens us to great happiness. It is a joy that
transcends even the fun and loving time we may be having with our
child at the time. Quite often we forget the present moment
-- it calmly moves along with us and then, before we know
it, passes us by. But every moment offers the opportunity to
experience this profound happiness.
For example, perhaps you
went to see a movie with your child. If you were sitting
next to your child, you may have been holding your child's hand.
Maybe you were talking and laughing with your child. Then the
movie starts. Do you become absorbed in the movie and forget
about your child sitting next to you? It's okay if you do.
But imagine how wonderful it would be to be enjoying the movie, but
also aware of your beautiful child sitting beside you. All it
takes is awareness.
With awareness of the moment, you glance
to your side and smile as you observe your child -- perhaps share
smiles -- and it hits you that you are alive on this Earth, together
with your child! With awareness your child can be a thousand
miles away watching a movie with their child. It doesn't matter.
The present is the same. Turn your thoughts to your child, wherever
they are and wake up to the realization that you are alive on the
Earth with your wonderful child!
Where is your child now?
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.
Click here to learn more about making a submssion. We thank
everyone who has contributed or is considering making this very compassionate
contribution.
Click
here to learn what recent events are taking place
and of changes to The Mindful Parent website. Please
contact
us with your questions about mindful parenting or to share a mindful
parenting experience. We are devoted to working with you to
enhance your ability to "be" with your children, and to experience
the bliss that awaits you.
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