Somebody sent me this wonderful list of Mindfulness reminders for Parents – unfortunately, I don’t know where this list originated from ….
1. Take time to practise mindfulness around your children to help them grow up feeling noticed, heard, and understood.
2. Wake up to the abundance of special moments in the most ordinary of days.
3. Cultivate the “Beginner’s Mind” which sees every moment with fresh eyes and responds to what the moment requires.
4. Look deeply to learn who your children are rather than projecting your hopes, fears and expectations onto them.
5. Use mindfulness to discover what you can learn from each situation – are you making unrealistic demands on life or are you accepting the inevitable imperfection?
6. Observe the comings and goings of your own body sensations, emotions and thoughts to cultivate the self-awareness that helps you grow.
7. Avoid creating grievances to fit your passing emotional states.
8. Be aware of any tension building up throughout the day and consciously release it.
9. Notice your surroundings.
10. Remember that mindful living provides you with energy, calmness and the potential for insights.
11. Realise that you have the power to choose your emotional responses – stressed and irritated or spacious and accepting.
12. As you observe the details of the present moment, avoid rating them “good” or “bad”, “pleasant” or “unpleasant”.
13. Remember you can practise mindfulness no matter what you are doing.
14. Whenever you find the time, even if it’s 1 minute, meditate.
15. Realise that the only moment you can work with is the present, so use it to create good karma for the future.
16. Expect and accept your failures to be mindful. Be patient with yourself.
