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Janice Walton's avatar

I’ve been more enthusiastic about practicing mindfulness lately since discovering an unexpected benefit. Is this a technique you use?

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Sharron Bassano's avatar

I am not sure where my mind is this morning, Janice, but I loved this: "...my body keeps aging despite my best efforts..." As the Italians would say, "Non ce rimedio." (There is no remedy.)

When I was an English teacher, my students participated in a lot of mind-mapping to generate vocabulary and ideas for writing. However, this morning when you mentioned mind-mapping, I read mind-NAPPING and it sounded good to me. ha ha ha! Oh, Janice aging just gets curiouser and curiouser...

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Janice Walton's avatar

LOL - That it does, Sharron, that it does!

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Sharron Bassano's avatar

🤭🩷

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Mac Carol Travel's avatar

Hi Janice! I enjoyed reading your post and am sending a post I shared about contemplative prayer that might enhance your prayer. Godspeed.

https://open.substack.com/pub/jaymack413/p/can-i-be-a-contemplative?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

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Janice Walton's avatar

Thank you, Mac, for reading my posts and for your responses.

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Denyse Whelan B.Ed M.Ed 🇦🇺's avatar

Great reminder Janice! Thank you. I'm posting about being mindful on Monday. My art helps me greatly as does walking & noticing nature! I'm interested in learning more about mind mapping! Denyse x

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Janice Walton's avatar

Hi Denyse, Art is such an important strategy in all of this - at least in my opinion. Our mind has a way of making excuses, blaming, and rationalizing - art tends to skirt all of that and gets to the real truth of things.

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Denyse Whelan B.Ed M.Ed 🇦🇺's avatar

It does. Art, drawing, making patterns and more has helped me through my cancer years, and now my trauma …being more mindful helps reduce then body’s stress and the actual act of drawing the paint brush across the page or maker soothes! My art has helped me since 2013 & the process is more important than the outcome. I wish more people would get that too!

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Janice Walton's avatar

If I had it to do over, I would be an art therapist. I have seen so many successes with this approach, both for myself and for clients.

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Anne Marie Bell's avatar

Timely post! Mindfulness means a few different things to me, but the most impactful way I try to implement in my life is by being intentional with my time. If it is time to pray or meditate, then it is time to pray or meditate, nothing else. It sounds easy, but some days this can be a challenge!

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Janice Walton's avatar

Anne Marie, what an important point you make about time and when it's time - it's time, period.

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Jan Stoneburner's avatar

Hi Janice ~ I'm pretty content right now, but I love your creative mindfulness techniques in this article. I'm going to try them for a couple weeks. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks!!

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Janice Walton's avatar

Hi Jan, you can save them just in case. Yes, I'd love to hear how it's going.

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Barton W Emanuel's avatar

I keep forgetting the WITHOUT JUDGEMENT part.

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Janice Walton's avatar

HI Barton, so do I - all the time.

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