The Mindfulness Solution Solved

                            

      The end of the book came with peace of mind. I will not lie nor will I pretend to be a master of being "mindful" at all times because I read this book. I will admit to being "mindful" a lot with many moments  where I experience the beauty of who I am in the moment  and for that I am filled with gratitude. 
     The book, The Mindfulness Solution, is more of a review of what I have learned and or read about from many different teachers/authors in my lifetime. I also attended a 10 day retreat that was all about being mindful. The retreat did not allow talking for 10 days so we all could learn to be with ourselves, being mindful of our body and of our thoughts and of our actions and habits. For some, the isolation experienced because of no connection through sharing of language was just too much to bare. Those souls left the retreat within the first 72 hours. Unlike a retreat of total silence like I attended which the author refers to as "formal practice" where you have one focus, this book offers many practices and many approaches to assisting one discover the best method for the reader to (hopefully) experience mindfulness as much as possible.
   I am glad to be done reading this book and done doing the practices suggested by the author (which I enjoyed) because I have my own routine that I will be relieved to return to doing like my meditations while floating in water. I am also glad to be finished with this book because I am anxious to begin reading the next book on my list! I would recommend this book for anyone who is not already well versed in meditation and who is not knowledgeable about the impact our thoughts have on our lives and also for learning some wonderful meditative and of course, mindful practices.

     Now, on to my next reading adventure.

Oh my, the title is very interesting!

Reading Adventure # 3 ~ The Mindfulness Solution

http://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Solution-Everyday-Practices-Problems/dp/1606232940/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1306644822&sr=8-1

On the 24th of May, 2011, I opened my third book in my list of 13 books that I promised myself I would read. Book number three is The Mindfulness Solution by Ronald D. Siegel, PsyD. I am not going out and buying the books on my list of 13. Nope, I don't have to buy these books because I already own them ... I just have not read them. As a re-cap my book list came about after I had a burst of energy and did some serious deep cleaning and became acutely aware of all the books I own but have not read. And I am not talking about just the 13 on my first list! The list of 13 is comprised of the books that I found next to my bed ... I have yet to make list of my unread treasury to be found in  bookshelves and other places around my home where my unread books are kept.

As I read the first paragraph in the preface of The Mindfulness Solution I  became aware of a thread of commonality in the first three books on my list. The apparent similar theme is awareness of and control over our thoughts and how we can alter our perception and experience of life with awareness/control. Or at least from my perspective and from the pages I have turned thus far that appears to be the theme :-) This thought, this concept, this idea of becoming the master of our thoughts is not a new concept and not a concept that I have never put into practice. 

I am looking forward to discovering how Ronald D. Siegel shares his experiences in applying mindfullness to his life. Maybe, I will come across a fresh, new method of Mindfulness practice? Maybe. Maybe I will become "re-inspired" to put more effort forth towards my own meditative practice?  Maybe.  Maybe, I will discover something new within the pages of The Mindfulness Solution. Maybe.

Hugs,
Maryanne