I bet I suck at it more than you suck at it. :)

The only way I've really been able to be at all "mindful" is in my yoga classes. Which is why I love them. I have an awesome studio, and I have basically taken enough classes to find the teachers that do yoga at the slow pace I need. (The level of strength & flexibility, too, but that's another subject.) I need the slow pace, because it takes me a while to get INTO each pose, and if I try and go faster, not only do I not make it into the post, but I get no time to BE there. When I am in and settled, then I can sink into my breathing and my mindfulness.

I think, at this point, the yoga helps, because there is SOMETHING going on. My body is working, even a little bit, and my mind is targeted at that body. The teachers talk about sending your mind to the tight place or the sore place and breathing into it. This, for me, is the closest I get to true mindfulness. It's especially great in Yin and Restorative classes, in which the poses are very supported and soft and held for longer periods of time.

Someday, I'll make it to mindfulness without yoga. For now, I'm just treasuring the feeling when I get there in class.

And, BTW, Kelly--SO nice to have you back blogging and to be back myself--so thanks again for the prod.

I SO need it for bedtime. Off to read.

We're fans of Wild Divine software (and hardware, too...there's actually a biofeedback system that you can hook up to your computer to practice calming meditation). There's also an app from Meditation Oasis called (don't laugh) iSleep Easy that has a great collection of sleep meditations, focusing on mindfulness.

I do most of my meditation on the elliptical. It's surprisingly soothing, and it keeps my pulse rate out of the stratosphere.

I found the book QUIET MIND, edited by Susan Piver, a wonderful place to start. It includes short, introductory essays on six types of meditation (Shamatha, Viassana, Zazen, Metta, Tonglen, and Healing Meditation) and comes with a CD of guided meditations.

Susan also has a lot of resources at her website, susanpiver.com

And I've found Jack Kornfield's Meditation for Beginners, which also comes with a short, guided meditations, a great resource, too.

The most beautiful thing about meditation, for me, is that you CAN'T suck at it. You can't. You can be a beginner, and be practicing, but you can't suck. Because the instruction is always to be gentle with yourself, encouraging with yourself, and, when you drift, simply begin again.

Good luck, Kelly!

Loree

So true!

Thanks for the recommendation!

This is something I'd like to work on more, too. Please report back if you find something helpful! So far, like Becky, I'm most successful at mindfulness in yoga - but it's been ages since I've taken a class.

Mind FULL... yup, I'm not the dog.

First off - no judging! No saying you suck at it. ;) It's called a "practice" for a reason. Hugs! Some days are easier than others. Some days I spend the entire meditation time thinking "am i done yet???" ;) Some days I have to bring my mind back a hundred times in 5 minutes.

I'm no expert, far from, but I've been reading about and practicing mindful meditation for a little over a year now. And recently have gotten into Svaroopa yoga (which is a style of meditation, not exercise), and love it.

Some of my favorite books I've read on mindfulness and meditation:
A Gradual Awakening by Stephen Levine
Beyond Happiness by Ezra Bayda
Peace is in Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh
LOVING-KINDNESS: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness by Sharon Salzberg
Happiness is an Inside Job by Sylvia Boorstein

Enjoy your journey!

I blogged about the books on my post today on LJ. :) Thanks for the inspiration!

I hope to find an eastern bookstore or resource somewhere out here so I can get back to browsing for books. It's hard to do online!

Oh, suckiness. I suck at meditation, badly. I can't even do yoga.

Recently I tried doing floatation therapy - basically you lie in a light-free box of epsom-salted water, and float. It's so buoyant, you literally rest with no tactile sensations anywhere, there's no feeling of anything - you're suppoed to be able to return to the womb. It's supposed to be like flying. I read this great piece in the Utne Reader on it, and I thought, "I think I want to do that."

Apparently I was born with a pleat between my brows and a scowl. I can't DO IT. I float all right - physic still works - but for the rest... I actually lost contact with part of my body ONCE - but I usually have an itch or a thought, or I think it's too dark or too this or that, and thinkthinkthink... and the meditative everything shatters. Yes, it's practice, just like everything else, and it's a process. But, I loathe that I suck. I'm going to the Prevention piece you talked about to check it out... and I guess I'll keep trying.

Apparently this is a topic a lot of us are grappling with!

There's a book I got from the library once that remains the best, simplest, and clearest thing I ever read on meditation--it also led me to direct action. I've tried to remember exactly what it was, and I think I've found it on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Encouraging-Words-Robert-Aitken/dp/067941701X/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1357691589&sr=1-15

This is also one of my favorites:

http://www.amazon.com/Only-Dont-Know-Selected-Teaching/dp/1570624321/ref=pd_sim_b_2

The writings of Thich Nhat Hanh are also pretty good. I subscribe to The Mindfulness Bell and have some back issues if you want them:
http://mindfulnessbell.org/

Oh, found that book I was looking for! It's by the same guy who wrote ENCOURAGING WORDS, but it's very basic and practical. It's an excellent starting point:

http://www.amazon.com/Taking-Path-Zen-Robert-Aitken/dp/0865470804/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357692297&sr=8-1&keywords=aitken+Taking+the+Path

Love the comic! I too am not the dog. Thanks for sharing.

My mind simply refuses to slow down. I'll start out trying to meditate and all will be going well when suddenly I start thinking, Hmmm....whats that clicking noise? Did I take the clothes out of the dryer? I wonder if I have eggs. Maybe we'll have pancakes for dinner. I'm the worst at this stuff!! Better luck to you!!