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This month we settle into the holiday season with fresh opportunities to live more mindfully.

SETTLING INTO THE PAUSE – NON-JUDGEMENT – NOTICING JOY – REFLECTION

This time of year can sometimes feel like one big whirling dervish. Other times it can be relaxed, meaningful, and spacious. Pausing to notice your experience can cultivate self-awareness, personal worth, and a sense of grounding to help make this season rich and joy-filled.

Nothing is needed except to simply notice when you want or need to pause.

It can be useful to have ‘anchors’ or prompts to help remember to take a pause. Consider these:

• When you arrive home, sit in your car for two minutes to just BE STILL and quiet before you go inside.
• Before you pick up the phone.
• Before you put your hand (elbow) to a door/handle
• Before you put your keys in the ignition
• Before you cross a door’s threshold

Mindfulness is about awareness so, notice where you are, check in, and build in moments to pause. Practices become habits and you’ll find yourself performing and feeling better throughout the day.

Whether it is just a few seconds or being still for a few minutes, give yourself permission to pause.

The 3 P’s – Pause, get Present, Proceed

1. Pause: Stop action, take a breath, notice this moment
2. get Present: Drop in. Be aware of what is happening in the moment. Experience body sensations, notice thoughts, feel emotions. Accept and stay present with whatever arises just as it is moment by moment without reactivity.
3. Proceed: Use mindful speech and action to respond skillfully, compassionately, and with positive intention to whatever needs attention in this moment.

If you feel so inclined, go a bit deeper:

This excellent article also has a 15-minute discussion and short practice on the topic of Pausing.

The Power of Pause – Mindful

To view last week’s Mindful Monday click here.

Lisa Wellington is a Certified Mindfulness Teacher who writes about integrative practices that downshift stress, increase insight, and jumpstart joy.

She is best known for her work with law enforcement professionals as well as those challenged by housing instability and addiction. Trained in the Fine Arts at Washington State University, she specializes in group training that engages participants’ inherent creativity.

If she is not under a stack of books about psychology and spirituality, she can be found at a Puget Sound beach or nearby trail, always searching for the absurd, which is her superpower.