This week our lives changed forever when our beautiful Labrador retriever Rexford died suddenly. It is remarkable how we can be laughing and peaceful one minute and in the next one our heart can be squeezed with such sadness and grief, it takes your breath away.  The loss of this family pet, good friend, furry child and hunting partner is one of the hardest events we have been through. Rex was the eternal puppy and so often would teach us about the importance of mindfulness and living in the moment. Each morning he would greet us with lively energy almost saying “hey- this is great - another day-lets eat and walk.” He loved carrying things often taking our shoes outside and leaving somewhere in the yard or he may have an umbrella or a piece of furniture he had to have something in his mouth and sometimes it would make us laugh and sometimes not!  He loved to retrieve and could spend hours bringing the ball or bumper back. He loved to wrestle with our children and because he was built like he was made out of cement he could give them a good go. Rex protected his property and could put on a fine display of dominance some were even afraid of him. He was really all show. Rex was sweet, excited always to see you, to listen to you, to sit with you.  Rex was unconditional love all wrapped up in soft fur. I will miss him terribly and hopefully will remember his lessons of being here now in the present, of getting excited about each new day and how the same walk is really different if you are present and most of all too truly love with all your heart. Good bye Rexford.

The morning routine can sometimes cause stress in the completion. After discussing with a friend that in order to finish the morning routine I really can not work because it takes until noon to finish! Think of it: exercise, shower, floss teeth, eat a healthy breakfast, meditate, walk the dog , which could be exercise except on weight training days, get things in order for the day, pack lunch, check e-mails and voice mails, check on children, check on parents, what about errands for the day, the list goes on and on. The one that usually goes for me is the meditation. I get lost in the thought if I can not sit for 30 minutes it will not count. I do not know who is counting but I think they would take five minutes if that is all I had.  So how can you stay healthy physically, emotionally and spiritually and still have time for family and work?  I think it has to do with being mindfully and choosing carefully where we put our attention. This can start in how we use our time and energy. The most important get finished and others spaced out in the day. On busy days meditation may only be 10 minutes and that is just fine. Maybe make a lunch the night before? The process of doing one thing at a time with attention can be a start. Then moving through the day mindfully present to this moment is the next step. The steps are not hard to do they are just hard to remember in all the busy work. What do you think?

Mindfulness is easy to do and hard to remember to do. Our minds slip so quickly into the dramas and stories we keep running. We are often in the story before realizing it.  Animals especially dogs have a wonderful gift of mindfulness.  My dog can go on the same walk each day and be as excited as the first time he took it. I think he is very Zen in the way he walks and experiences the world. He is in the moment. I often walk the dog and practice walking meditation. Many times I slip into a story in my head or a very important worry. The dog will suddenly pull to one side waking me up and reminding me to be present to him and the walk! I bring my focus back to the walking meditation. It is helpful to create reminders to stay present all during the day. The reminder can be the ring of the phone, a train traveling by or a bell sounds something you find in your environment. Try to think of something today to help you remember to be mindful!

Finding balance. The body is amazing in its ability to stay balanced in movement. The wonder of walking, running and dancing are daily reminders of balance.  Remember being young and enjoying spinning around on a merry-go-round or just twirling then waiting for your body to right its balance? It would be some seconds usually with laughter and sometimes a weird stomach ach in the process. Soon things were in focus and you were ready to try again! Our emotional body is equally amazing. Emotions are amazing in their movements from sad, angry, and aggravated to joyous, happy and peaceful. Sometimes they are spinning with life challenges. Sometimes they feel as if they get stuck. Most time we do not wait some seconds with laughter or a weird stomach for the emotions to right themselves in balance. Many times we just keep spinning and keep them going in a whirl. Maybe if we would just stop, take a moment and just experience for some seconds they would pass and balance could be found. What do you think?