The Daily Sip:  Are Your Really There With Your Child?

 

Our lives can be, at times, very hectic and fast paced.  At these times, mindful parenting becomes both a luxury and a necessity.  It is a luxury because we so easily forget what it means to live in the present moment, and we plan to do so when "things calm down."  It is a necessity because things really never calm down. 

 

When you are with your child today, try to notice whether you are really with them in the moment.  You may find that, instead, you are trying to solve yesterday's problem or to figure out how to deal with some upcoming event -- be it yours, your child's, or someone else's. 

 

Are you trying to get your child fed, or to brush your child's teeth, or to get your child bathed and ready for bed?  Are you helping your child complete a homework assignment?  Does your child have a problem you are helping solve?  Are you and your child having interpersonal difficulties?  Are you having fun?

 

Whatever it is that may be going on, at every moment, you have the opportunity to open to it with deep awareness.  This stands in sharp contrast to plowing ahead, with the best of intentions, but so absorbed in the moment that it passes by unnoticed.

 

Today, when you are with your child, open to the moment.  Recite the following verse:

  

     My child is alive

     My child breathes

     My child's heart beats

 

Then, think to yourself that you are alive!  Notice that you are breathing.  Feel your heart beating.  Smile.

 

 

    

    

    

    

 

 

 

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.