Mindfulness Meditation
Tuesdays, 10AM
1110 Resaca Place
So it was one of those summer days in early spring. We’re on the neighbor’s stoop. Her kids and mine, playing together. One of my boys had had a rough afternoon and makes another (ahem) mistake that I need to (ahem) correct. I get his attention, remind him of the mistake, and they continue playing. Then neighbor mom says, “How do you stay so calm when you do that?” Before I could reply, and completely matter-of-factly, my other son says, “He meditates.”
Contemporary author, Brené Brown writes in Gifts of Imperfection, “Mindfulness requires that we not ‘over-identify’ with thoughts and feelings so that we are caught up and swept away….” Mindful Awareness isn’t just so I feel more deeply connected in meditation (blissful though that is); like any practice, it’s to enable connectedness. Not that I don’t get disconnected, (just ask the boys… or other drivers) but I feel disconnected less when I’m connected to my practice.
“Let go of your mind and then be mindful. Close your ears and listen!” said Muslim mystic, Rumi. I hope many of you practice individually and that you know just as deeply the power of practice together. It’s the difference between singing in the shower and singing with Choir!Choir!Choir! Or the difference between dancing in the living room or in Madonna’s dance crew. Like with all things in this human life; it’s a balance of alone and together.
The spiritual path begins with authenticity and the simple awareness of the here and now. As you move along your path of spiritual depth and true generosity, this summer’s series of worship experiences invites you to connect heart and mind and body to the spiritual practice of Mindfulness. We’ll be joined by new guest presenters as well as friends of the church Rev. Deryck Tines and mindfulness meditation leader, Dr. Richard King. Summer is a time of expansiveness and exuberance and re-creation. Share in the big joy of the season. Dive deep into a “Mindful Summer” at Allegheny UU Church, the great big heart in the heart of the Northside.
“Mindful Summer” offers an opportunity to grow mindfully together.