“365 Days of Mindfulness” [Day 18] On Not Living Mindfully…

This is uncomfortably close to what I look like right about now, and though I would love for you to imagine that I am deep in meditation, so devoted to my practice that nothing fazes me and I just sit like that like some Lady Buddha in a chair I am sadly not in some lofty meditative state. The truth is I have been staying up so late at night writing that I am just about falling  asleep in this chair. For a person that has committed to writing about mindfulness for 365 days I’m not off to such a good start if I am working such long hours that I don’t get enough sleep and sleepwalk through my days.

This is just absolutely ridiculous. For me mindfulness is not a spiritual practice so much as a self care necessity and I have not been practicing what I’ve been preaching. Well, I hope I don’t sound preachy but I think you take my point. I have so much work to do that I have been working way too late and the truth is I am not efficiently getting the work done anyway because I’m too tired.

That having been said my plan is to put a short little entry up here tonight, let her sit up there in the chair as kind of a place holder (Maybe tomorrow she’ll actually be meditating and not snoring with the pugs. My what a chorus we make.), and head off now at 11:30. Tomorrow I will return to my normal routine of being off of the computer and shut down absolutely no later than 10. I will get this post done earlier and wait until just before bed to put it up to stay in the same timeframe I have been publishing in. More rest means I can get a lot more done in a shorter amount of time.

I think we constantly have to take stock of where we are or we will get lost in a fog and hours and days go by and we’ve no clue what we’ve done. Tonight I took a step back and looked at the work I was doing and for all that I seem to have been working hard I have been frittering more time away dawdling than I realized. Gracious. I haven’t even been reading at night and I got into a good pattern of being off the computer by 9 and reading. Read several books in a row and then fell off the wagon. I’m going to return to that. The computer will suck your brains right out of your head if you are not careful and I need to try to keep my oddball brains as intact as I can. Heaven’s knows there are too many screws loose up there as it is. This blog is a good place for me to be accountable. And I shall. If I look like that woman at the top tomorrow night somebody better throw a rotten tomato at me.

Living mindfully means you don’t let yourself get in this shape. It doesn’t mean you have to live hyper aware of every single moment but it does mean that some part of you is keeping in touch with your life and checking in with yourself throughout the day. I am going to do just that.

I will see you here tomorrow bright eyed and bushy tailed (Well for heaven’s sakes I needn’t go overboard.). The best thing I could have done was start writing this series because though I may have gone askew and haven’t been taking care of myself  as I should have been the very fact that I have committed to writing these posts keeps bringing me back, and that’s the whole point really. We fall away, we pull ourselves back, over and over and over again.

I really want to thank you for being with me and all of you sweet souls who have been leaving such wonderful comments thank you so much, you have kept me going as I started into all of this and it has made a huge difference. Now that I have the ball rolling it will keep on, writing these posts is a practice in and of itself and it does help steady me. It helped me get here tonight and it is helping me get off the computer right now.

If you look like that poor gal in the chair at the top how about you get off the computer now too. Read a book, do something that helps your shift gears and find balance in your life. I am constantly having to find it all over again but at least I am able to do that.

I will see you here tomorrow night. I hope you have a wonderful day tomorrow. I am sending you so much love and a big warm hug. Nighty-night, from Dragonfly Cottage.

Comments

  1. You take care and you will bounce back. I think we all get over whelmed at times be it with work, life and general ‘stuff’, snuggle in bed with the fur babies, relax and wake up refreshed the world will still be here and am sure I speak for your other readers that we appreciate your writings and how it helps others but you need to care for you first. Sleep tight x

    • Thank you so much Caroline, you are so dear, and yes, I did and do snuggle with my babies, am about to now. And I thank you so much for your kind support. It is another night and off I go. You sleep well too sweetie pea…

      Maitri

  2. What a beautiful post Maitri. Self-care is a practice. We get up each day and start again. Be gentle and kind with yourself. She will love you for it. This way ‘falling off the wagon’ has less of an impact on our wellbeing. x

    • Thank you Michelle and yes, self care is essential for all of us but as I am bi polar among other things, and while I have a good doctor and medication if I am not vigilant about self care I have a very hard time. I fall away but quickly come back because I just don’t do well otherwise.

      Blessings to you dearheart,

      Take care,

      Love,

      Maitri

  3. Teresa Myszka says

    Dearest Maitri, I have a saying I use for myself, when I find myself on overdrive “nothing’s leaving the planet”… And so it is for you also, we’ll all be here tomorrow, take care of YOU, as “nothing’s leaving the planet”

    • Oh sweet Teresa, thank you so so much. I love that and I will remember it. Nothing is leaving, nor am I.

      I am much calmer today, better rested, am here now but about to get off and only here this late because I took a long nap late afternoon. But off I go with my babies to read.

      It is such a wonderful sweet thing to have all of the love and support I am getting here from all of you. I just cannot thank you and each of you enough.

      I am sending you love and a warm hug…

      Maitri

  4. You are so right dear Maitri. I have found that getting more rest and not pushing myself I can get more accomplished. Well, maybe not “more” but better quality. For instance, I do get more sewing done when I’m not spending half the time ripping out mistakes because I’m not thinking straight. You are reinforcing what we all should know and realize. We cannot take care of others (whether spouse, children, pets, clients…..) unless we first take care of ourselves. We need to value ourselves as much as those others. That isn’t selfish, it is wise. Thank you for reminding me and so many others that it’s OK not to be perfect.

    • Sweet sweet Paula, it is not only okay not to be perfect, we couldn’t be anyway, that is human life so it’s a paradox why we continue to beat ourselves up for NOT being perfect. One wonders where in the world that came from. And we can’t give when we are empty. As I tell my students so often it’s like a well. I have lived on the country with well water and if the table is low but the pump keeps pumping it will burn up. We simply cannot be anything for anyone unless we take care of ourselves first and let the table rise.

      So yes, let’s go slowly and gently through our days. I will if you will. 😀

      Blessings dearheart,

      Maitri

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