Three Simple Mindfulness Practices for Deep R&R this Summer
Focusing the attention
Ok hang with us - you might be thinking: why are you telling me to focus when I’ve had to focus all year long? You’ve been working so hard the whole school year and now you want to rest. Fair point. Believe it or not, directing the attention to where we want it to be can be a powerful way to experience more ease in our lives. A simple anchor practice allows the attention to rest in the present moment, rather than habitually bouncing around to every thought, every feeling, etc. - which can get in the way of that deep R&R we long for. After such an action-packed school year, it can feel hard to slow down, restore, and rejuvenate. Our advice: try a daily anchor practice or grounding movement session to focus the attention - two great practices to focus the body, mind, and heart on presence this summer.
Letting Go of Expectations
Have you noticed how you can have virtually the same experience in a day - yet one day feels like a great success and the other a massive disappointment? Often, the culprit behind this disparity is our own internal self-talk: What are we saying to ourselves about the day? What are we believing - and is it actually true? Identifying and letting go of self-talk that doesn’t serve us is a transformational experience. Grab a journal and jot down a few habitual thoughts/expectations you have about the summertime. For example, “I need to feel X” or “I must accomplish Y.” Do you really believe these? Do they align with the R&R experience you long for? If not, practice letting them go. Any time one of these thoughts pops up, simply acknowledge it - offer up a “thanks but no thanks” - and get back to enjoying your summer as it is (rather than what our self-talk tells us it should be).
Being with Beauty
The next time you see or experience something beautiful: be with it a moment longer than you normally would. Linger. Do nothing. Rest in the beauty. Use all your senses to take a snapshot of it with your mind and heart. Label it “beauty.” Repeat this, often.
From all of us at Peace in Schools - we wish you a safe, beautiful, and rest-filled summer!