When I first started meditating, I would do so sporadically given the hectic morning routine with two little children, over-full work schedule, and constant interruptions. One evening in the midst of chaos as we were getting dinner ready, my partner asked, “You didn’t meditate today did you?” If it was noticeable to her at 6pm whether or not I had spent 10 minutes meditating at 6 am, it was having a bigger impact on my life than I realized. Here are a few visual reminders that I think about when I feel that maybe I don’t have enough time to meditate.
Whenever I feel like I’m too busy, I often turn to this Zen Proverb. “You should sit in meditation for twenty minutes every day — unless you’re too busy. Then you should sit for an hour.”
Mindfulness is different than meditation but related. We easily over-complicate these principles and make them mystical and impossible to achieve. I love this story from Thich Nhat Hanh about mindfulness and washing the dishes.
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