Mindfulness is the practice of paying active attention…really paying attention– to the present moment. No multi-tasking, no super-gadget juggling acts, no thoughts of the past or future. The idea is to simply settle in for at least a few minutes each day with whatever is happening in the here and now, and experience it fully.
Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves – slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.
-Thich Nhat Hanh
You can practice mindfulness in anything you do, but one favorite activity is the daily ritual of preparing and enjoying a special cup of tea. The act of making tea seems simple enough- boiling water, scooping leaves, steeping. But tea made with mindfulness is loaded with sensory experiences: the selection of dry tea leaves, the sound of steam building up in a kettle, the color unfolding, a fragrance wafting, testing the temperature, sipping, tasting and so on. In fact, tea-making, when done thoughtfully, is a completely different activity.
Read more about Mindfulness and Tea
Photo by Roy Waddington- CC License 2.0
