Are we being the change we want to see in the world? We wish for peace in the world, but do we have inner peace? We wish for our children to manifest our full potential, but are we manifesting ours? We wish for humanity to be kind, loving, and forgiving of one another, but are we able to be kind, loving, and forgiving to the people in our own life? Are we wiling to give permission to ourselves to create a future of love, possibility, and joy? Can we sow the seeds for this future while withholding fresh air and water but still expect the fruits? 

If we are to create an authentically joyous and happy life with where we are right now, this moment, then we need to release, to let go of, the past and all it's shadows. Our life is a mere reflection of our state of inner being. As goes our inner happiness, so goes the happiness in our life. In order to see happiness manifest in our life, we must exude happiness from within.

Don't try to be the perfect meditator. Don't try to be the most mindful person there is. Both meditation and mindfulness are called a "practice". Bruce Lee said, "There is no such thing as mastery, only the willingness to be with the practice". Be in the willingness to be with the practice.

Enjoy the simplicity of your pauses throughout the day. Just like in sheet music there are rests between the notes, a pause allows you to deliberately listen to the music in your life.

Even walking 10 paces can be a mindful meditation. Notice as you lift your foot, place it down, move forward, switch feet and lift your other foot and repeat. All along breathing consciously, eyes gently focusing on an arbitrary point somewhere in front of you. In these few breaths you can alter the quality of your presence. This is meditation. This is mindfulness.

Your words are the vessel of your day. Just as a vessel shapes the water that it is filled with, our words shape the possibilities that we eventually live into. Rather than get frustrated or fall into the why-me / victim setting, pause and reflect to uncover how you may have created the present moment with your language. 

When we avoid fully feeling our anger, frustration and sadness, we also block the inflow of love, happiness and joy. The quality of our state of wellness is affected by our emotions, and there is no separation within our emotional body, it is one. When we deny the negative experiences their expression, we also shun the positive ones. 

What we focus on grows and expands. While in meditation when the monkey mind starts acting up, simply notice what comes up. Rather than focus on the haphazard trail of the mind, take a deep breath and come back; follow the next inhale, exhale, inhale and then exhale again. Every breath is an invitation to come back to yourself and rid your mind of the clutter of thoughts. Just keep coming back, lovingly, without judgment.

A pause creates the space for momentary reflection so you can discern if you will react or respond. A reaction occurs on autopilot, a response, through presence and poise. Will you react or respond?