Mindfulness and 'Beginner's Mind'

Listening to the radio today I was struck by a feature of the human mind; the search for the new and familiar. This sounds like a paradox, but in fact we tend to seek experiences that feel new and exciting, within the realm of the familiar. Just like the 'new' pop songs that sound familiar enough that millions love them straight away, in life we humans want to be stimulated, but safe. In the practice of mindfulness, this has a couple of implications: first, it is easy to ignore the familiar, to zone out in everyday life. Second, it can lead us to lose our curiosity, our freshness for the new. In the life of a mindfulness student, every breath is different. Every day is completely unlike any other. And time is a practicality, not a reality. Join me today on a mind-ending journey and you might come to see the beauty, the excitement and the joy contained in every ordinary instant.