Oh, to meet the Joy and Pain of Christmas with Compassion by Bill Paterson Suddenly Christmas is on the horizon again! Is it really a year since the last one? Interestingly, I’ve noticed a pattern of contrasting thoughts and emotions wrapped in this winter celebration. Yes, the darkness of winter will be punctured with light,…
Sometimes I have to pinch myself, as it seems I have landed the best job in the world, teaching mindfulness meditation, but also training committed mindfulness practitioners to teach mindfulness so that we can all experience the benefits of mindfulness. I had one of those ‘pinch myself’ moments at the end of our introductory teaching…
It falls to me each month to send out the membership packs to all of our wonderful members who upgrade to or renew their full membership. I love this job and settle down with some music on in the background to sign the letters, write and sign the certificates, stick on stamps and add the…
People often ask, ‘What is Mindfulness?’ and a good answer would be the lyrics of the Noah and the Whale song ‘Now is exactly the time’. I was listening to this yesterday as it is on my running play list. I am on holiday and aspiring to continue and reinforce a good habit; I have…
There are many benefits to mindfulness meditation, including the ability to deal skilfully with long term conditions and challenging life circumstances. I know many people who through their mindfulness practice are able to come to terms with their physical or psychological pain and flourish in their lives despite it. Mindfulness practice enables us to think…
As part of my usual morning routine of practice I picked out one of the compassion cards from Pema Chodron’s compassion box. This morning it was ‘Examine the nature of unborn awareness’. I then read and reflect on the relevant part of her book ‘Start Where You Are’. After my practice on alternate days I…
It is very exciting! Our Joyful Club membership weekend (6-8th July) and retreat (6-11th July) at Samye Ling Tibetan Centre is nearly here (For more details, click here). At the Mindfulness Association our heartfelt motivation is to nurture a community of mindfulness practitioners so that we can come together and support each other in our…
Many of us mindfulness practitioners have children or grandchildren – some of them are young adults, like my own 18 year old daughter. Before we had her my husband and I did talk about whether it was OK to bring a child into the world. But it was just after the fresh Tony Blair government…
Last week I had a meeting with my fellow trustees of the new Everyone Project Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO): Vin Harris, Chloe Homewood, Jan Major and Barbara Reid. You couldn’t wish for a more talented and effective group of people to launch a project with. We signed the articles, which brought the Everyone Project Charity…