“You have only moments to live”-Jon Kabat Zinn. I have a fear of flying. That’s right, I’m a therapist and I have a fear of flying. When I first read that quote I immediately flashed on being in a plane in distress and thought… “What if I *really* only had moments to live?” I reminded myself I was not in any danger then thought…”Wow. What a gift each and every one of those moments really are.” We live so much of our life on auto-pilot that we are not fully present in the moments of our lives. Why does it take a terrible moment, or fearful one, to make that point a reality? How do we cultivate this awareness in ourselves, so that we can be fully present in each of these moments? We do it through Mindfulness.

In a nutshell, mindfulness is the skill of paying attention…on purpose. It is a cultivating of presence. It means being fully present in this moment, and every moment, so that you can be aware of thoughts, feelings, attitudes and beliefs that arise along with these moments. “That sounds nice, but how does it apply to my life?” When you notice thoughts & feelings that come up for you, through the act of paying attention (being mindful) you are able to see them more clearly, you become less apt to judge them and through that process are ultimately able to change your reaction to them.

You can apply this mindfulness into every area of your life….Mindful eating, mindful parenting, mindful awareness of anxiety, depression, etc. Inviting yourself to be fully present in all the moments of your life, opens you up to all the possibilities in each of those moments.

You live most of your life inside your head. Make sure it’s a nice place to be. ~ Buddhist Quote