The FIT FILES: What NOT to eat

The FIT FILES: What NOT to eat: "Bottom line here is: If you don't know what an ingredient is in an ingredient list, chances are your body won't know what it is either. Ther..."

Mindful of Mindfulness

I am trying to be more mindful of mindfulness.

And now you may ask "what on earth does that mean"?

I am working on taking my yoga off the mat, into my life; trying to look at the lessons I am acquiring through my practice on the mat and apply them to my life, everyday. 

Have you ever been driving to a destination, and on the way completely missed the landscape - the amazing things happening around you? 

So many times this has happened in my life.  However, on a recent trip with my husband (as we were driving down the highway on route to our destination) I had an 'a-ha!' moment of mindfulness. 

We were both bubbling with excitement about the prospect of sunny weather and four days off from our regular everyday responsibilites, when my husband said "hey, have you ever been to the spot where the Hope landslide went through?"

"No", I replied (wondering why I had not), "where is it?"

"Just to the left up here...do you want to see it?"

"Sure", I replied, as he suddenly veered the car off the highway to head up a windy road, into the drizzling rain of the foggy hillside.

We slowly entered the parking area above the Hope slide, came to a stop, and I got out of the car.  I stopped in my tracks... I was absolutely amazed by what I was looking at, at awe with what was in front of me!  How could I have missed this place before on my travels?  What an experience this was to just be in this moment!

"Pretty amazing, isn't it?", he asked me as I got back in the car, "I stopped here about 40 years ago with my parents on a family vacation and remember how big it was - or seemed at the time, since I was only around 8 years old!"

I looked over at him, smiled, and said "thank you so much for sharing this place with me".

After a few more shared silent moments of looking out on the landscape through the rain-splattered windshield, he started the car up, and we continued back on our journey - back down the windy road and out of the drizzling rain and foggy hillside - back on to the highway and on our way to our destination.

Hope Slide - looking east from the viewpoint, along the Nikolum Valley

Hope Slide - looking to the west from the viewpoint parking

Off the mat:

Mindfulness to me means taking the time for myself to enjoy the moments in my daily life - to stop and look at the amazing scenery in front of me.  To be present.  As the title of the song by Harry Nilsson goes, "Stop And Take The Time To Smell The Roses" - we need to try to be mindful daily, as the moments in our lives will pass, and if we aren't mindful, we will miss living them.

Do not dwell in the past; do not dream of the future.

Concentrate the mind on the present moment.

~ Buddha