Look Up! |

Are you on our FREE Monday Meditation Musings email list? This FREE weekly email is designed to provide an inspirational and meditative kick-start to your week .. a little meditative nourishment! You can sign up for Monday Meditation Musings here. And today, I wanted to share this mornings Musing which is in response to a beautiful mindfulness moment that I had over the weekend ..

Because life is busy and despite our best intentions, even on the weekend we can get caught up in left over business matters (especially if it is your business), and the need to get things done quickly, so you can then jump into the next task or responsibility.

Even on the weekend. But this weekend I wanted to carve our some ‘me time’ .. some time for reading, washing the car (in the sunshine this is not a chore), cooking something wholesome for the family, holding my new nephew .. but no sooner had the day begun, and I was consumed yet again in busyness .. kids needing a taxi, sporting activities to attend to, documents that suddenly needing signing, a shopping list before I even get inspired to cook, weeds that called me from the riotous garden beds and washing!

Mindfulness can be any activity where you make time to deliberately and consciously cultivate awareness, in the present moment. Living mindfully means stepping our of autopilot and bringing heightened awareness and presence to the activity, task or moment at hand.

At one point over the weekend I noticed myself ‘mindlessly’ driving my teenager to yet another appointment .. I was distracted with thoughts on tasks still to be done, and knew that I was only ‘half there’ with our conversation. After dropping her off, I turned the car around to head home and noticed for the first time the deep blue sky above me.

I woke up

I suddenly connected my eyes with my heart and my awareness .. and recognised that Spring was pulsing all around me. How had I had failed to notice?

How absolutely breathtakingly beautiful were the gardens around me, the sky above me, the trees and the bird life? .. how had this gorgeous inspiring day been relegated to just another beige wallpaper to my life.

So I looked up

I parked the car and I looked up. I purposefully watched the trees bowing gracefully towards each other, forming a cathedral above me for my drive home. I noticed how many different shades of green coloured the leaves, the aged and twisted limbs of the trees, the stretching branches and the blue, blue sky that stretched to all horizons. <h3>Oh My Gosh</h3> Studies have shown that gazing at nature, the garden, the beach or just a tree in your street, for even a few minutes, can lower blood pressure, relax muscle tension, reduce pain and stress, lower levels of anger and fear, and shorten recovery time from surgery. Looking up and seeing the canopy of trees that lined my path home, I reflected on the totally amazing beauty of Mother Earth. Right here in the suburbs, close to the city, on an average day. And then I thought about the interconnectedness of all beings, and the breathing relationship we have with nature. Trees partner with us by taking the carbon dioxide from our exhalation, and releasing oxygen in return. When I breath out, the cells of my breath roll out into the world and collide with everyone else’s exhalation and so we share .. the in breath and the out breath .. the pulse of life. Did you know that on average, one tree produces nearly 260 pounds of oxygen each year, and two mature trees can provide enough oxygen for a family of four? and that one tree can absorb as much carbon in a year as a car produces while driving 26,000 miles, and over the course its life, a single tree can absorb one ton of carbon dioxide? Opening our eyes, and our awareness to the wonder of life that breathe around us, even in the city and when we are busy and racing around, reconnects us with the rhythm of nature, the seasons and the interconnectedness of life. <h3>Take a moment to pause and look up.</h3> This week, open your eyes and see the world you inhabit, as your mindfulness practice.

I parked the car and I looked up

I sat and purposefully watched the trees as they bowed gracefully towards each other. I noticed that this looks like a cathedral before me. I observed how many different shades of green coloured the leaves, the aged and twisted limbs and the branches stretching in all directions .. and the blue, blue sky forever above me.

Oh My Gosh

Studies have shown that gazing at nature, the garden, the beach or just a tree in your street, for even a few minutes, can lower blood pressure, relax muscle tension, reduce pain and stress, lower levels of anger and fear, and shorten recovery time from surgery.

Looking up and seeing the canopy of trees that lined my path home, I reflected on the totally amazing home that Mother Earth provides for us. The Art and Design and Beauty and Awe – right here in the suburbs, on an average day. And I thought about the interconnectedness of it all, of all the beings on this planet sharing this sky, and interconnected by each breath. How the trees partner with us by taking the carbon dioxide from our exhalation, and releasing oxygen in return. And that when I am in this moment, calm and inspired by life, and I exhale .. that my breath then rolls out into the world and becomes part of everyone else’s breath .. and so we share .. the in breath and the out breath .. the pulse of life.

Did you know that on average, one tree produces nearly 260 pounds of oxygen each year, and two mature trees can provide enough oxygen for a family of four? and that one tree can absorb as much carbon in a year as a car produces while driving 26,000 miles, and over the course its life, a single tree can absorb one ton of carbon dioxide?

Opening our eyes, and our awareness to the wonder of life that breathes around us, even in the city and when we are busy and racing around, grounds us and reconnects us with the rhythm of nature, the seasons and the interconnectedness of life.

Take a moment today to pause and look up

This week, open your eyes and see the world you inhabit as your mindfulness practice.