The old saying goes: “Yesterday’s the past, tomorrow’s the future, but today is the present…,” or something like that. The saying sounds nice when attempting to sound “in control” or “above the noise” but how do we actually practice mindfulness? More importantly, how do we teach our children mindfulness?
I’ll be the first one to say I struggle immensely with living in the present. I only realize how displaced my attention is when I leave a conversation and have no idea what the other person discussed, or arrive in my driveway with no recollection of which route I used. Unfortunately this feeling is not fleeting and in our increasingly demanding and immediate world it is now the norm…
“Be more present. Be more present. ding. Who texted me? What did you say?” This is the internal dialogue constantly plaguing our brains and the only way to stop the dialogue is to actually STOP! Easier said than done. Our lives are intertwined with technology and with that follows instant gratification and constant input. As a teacher I am always on the hunt for new apps to support my teaching and facilitate learning and my students are just as excited to play them. Parents use tablets to help with homework and ease painfully long drives and this practice is more than okay.
What? Yes, you heard me. A-OK! You are not less of a parent or teacher for using technology, but we do need to insert here: mindfulness.
Mindfulness can be achieved by leaving behind our digital native, post-modern, double-shot espresso selves and tapping into our natural state. Remember that lesson from Kindergarten about our five senses? It will come in handy here. Ask yourself:
- Where am I? Tap into sight. Find five things to focus on in your direct sight. This act will transcend you from the top attic of your over-analyzing brain to analyzing what is in front of you.
- What do I hear? Oh, are those birds? Yes, birds still exist in the world and they sing beautiful songs!
- What do I feel? Take a moment to capture the breeze on your nose, the scratch of your sweater, and most of all feel the weight of your body on this earth and remember that gravity is the only force keeping you grounded, literally.
- What do I taste? Do you know how many times I can not for the life of me remember what I just ate? It’s horrifying to think I paid money to not remember how my sandwich tasted five minutes ago! Take a moment to feel the texture of the food, how it changes on different parts of your mouth, and please chew more than once.
- My favorite….what do I smell? Unless you have a cold or cannot physically smell, using your sniffer focuses your brain on your present state. Maybe it’s the roses your husband bought, the smell of rain on the horizon, or the familiar scent of expo markers, whatever it is the sense of smell has the power to pull us into memories from long ago and snap back into reality with a single scent. Take advantage.
It’s as simple as taking a few minutes to disconnect from the noise and tap into our physical surroundings. My favorite way to use this technique in my classroom is immediately after recess. Who knew so much drama happened in twenty minutes? These precious five minutes offer my students the opportunity to reconnect with their bodies and regain focus on the present.
Much of our lives exist on digital platforms, so much so that we forget we are made of physical matter. We are physical and our lives are happening every second here on earth, in the present. Don’t miss out on your life with your thoughts in the cloud.
“Yesterday’s the past, tomorrow’s the future, but today is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.”
Original saying quoted by Bil Keane