Mindfulness Reflection

Over the course of this winter quarter, I have learned in my class of Psychology of Wellness how to incorporate mindfulness into my daily life. The definition of mindfulness is considered an art. In the book of the Fully Present, the authors Susan Smalley and Diana Winston transmitted their wisdom on how to learn, practice and cultivate this art. According to the mentioned authors, they defined mindfulness as “the art of observing your physical, emotional, and mental experiences with deliberate, open, and curious attention” (2010, p.78). This definition shared by the authors is simple, but it communicates what are the characteristics that an individual needs to consider when it comes to being mindful. Through this mindfulness project, I wanted

It took a place on campus at Aldrich Park. I chose this place because I wanted to be surrounded by nature. The sunny weather was favorable to mediate that day. I sat on one of the wooden chairs overlooking the park that was how I prepared myself to start my meditation. The name of the meditation was called “ Meditation and Emotion” (Insight Timer, 2018). That meditation had a duration of 15 minutes. Those fifteen minutes were essential to be able to release my physical pain that came from my back. I felt tension on the upper part of my back that connected with my shoulders. Probably, it was because of the stressful day I had the morning. When I started meditating, the narration of the audio included the melody of the rain. The sound of the rain made felt calm. Likewise, it reminded me that any struggle that was dealing was a temporary event. That event was not going to have a long duration. During the seven and eight lecture, Professor Garfin talked about the meaning of the word rain. The word “RAIN” is the recognition of the problem, acceptance of the problem, investigation of the problem, and non-identification of problem. This means that rain is a form of dealing with the negative emotions (e.g. sadness, anger, anxiety) when they arise. I used the rain to make a reflection of my internal and external sensations. Through that meditation, I achieved the identification of my emotions. While

I spent 12 minutes working on it. Similarly, I was sitting on the same wooden chair that I sat the day before. I closed my eyes. The only difference was that the weather was sunny and windy at the same time. While I was meditating, I felt the heat of the sun over my shoulders and the soft wind touching my face. I had a positive experience with this breathing meditation because I focused my attention on my breath as well as my smile. There was a part of the audio that the narrator suggested to “smile” while I was breathing at the same time. I had a pleasant time to work with this meditation because it also included background music with the sounds of birds chirped. During and after my meditation, I did not judge myself because I was familiar with breath and opened to accept how my body functioning. I found a challenge to bring my attention to my breath and smile at the time as the narrator of the audio suggested. After I done meditating, I became more familiar of what my body tried to