Mindful Parenting is a contemplative practice through which we become more mindful of our children and, in doing so, experience a more joyful life.
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.
The Morning Sip: Joy In Every
Number
Your child is always changing. At the same time,
there is a core essence to your child -- the part of them that you
know so well.
As time passes, it is not necessary to wonder
"where the time went" or "how did my little child grow up so fast."
If you look deeply at your child right now, you will see in them the
child who was just born, the little baby, the small
child, and so on. And so too, when you child is much older,
he or she will possess a piece of themselevs today.
Today's
tip celebrates your child and their presence and growth
on this Earth. The tip draws on a previous tip but carries it
to a higher level. Try it and, after a few minutes, you may
begin to feel what I call a "fuzzy bliss." It's a wonderful
feeling that can become more intense through the practice of mindful
parenting.
Today, while you are driving or walking outside, pay
attention to the numbers that appear on signs and buildings --
street signs, speed limit signs, street address and office building
addresses, and expressway signs. Let one or
more numbers on a sign cue images of your child -- in the
past, the present, or in the future.
If your child is six
and you see the number "2"
(or "23" and you choose to focus on
the "2") bring to mind a glimpse of your child when he or she
was two years old. Breathe deeply and smile. You
may be surprised to find out how smiling at this moment opens
your capacity to feel joy. Then, when you see a "0," visualize
the moment of your child's birth. Smile. If
you see a "95" imagine your child very old, having lived a long
and wonderful life. Open awareness to the two year old in your
child today and in your child today in the 95 year old.
Keep
doing this with each number you see. Let it become addictive
-- at least during your ride to and from work, or the grocery or spa
or gym, or while running an errand. You will find the feeling
of joyfulness becomes more powerful each time you conjure another
beautiful image.
