On the day of birth, the soul essence is instantly squeezed into a very small, dense physical container called a body, and the individual is labeled according to gender, ethnicity, name, and so on. As we age, even more labels are acquired until we forget who we really are and why we were sent here. The focus becomes living up to—or, in some cases, down to—the labels that define us in the world. For many of us, one day, something triggers a remembrance of that ancient conversation with the Beloved and we begin to recall that our sole/soul purpose is to be the living manifestation of the One on this planet. In that moment of awakening, we begin peeling away the labels and the journey takes on a new signifi­cance. As we remember who we really are and from whence we came, we become aware that we each are the One who brings heaven to earth every day in all we think, say, and do. Mindful liv­ing is the art and practice of remembering who we are on this journey.

Mindful living is a lifestyle—it is a way of consciously walking a sacred earth, incorporating pur­pose and an awareness of God's presence in all we say, think, and do on our journey of a lifetime.

As we awaken to our soul's purpose, we inherently know that it is found in our daily experience. Our reason for existing is right in front of us every moment of every day—to be the vessel through which the Infinite finds fullness of expression in an individualized manner. The challenge for most of us is that our minds are often somewhere other than in the pre­sent moment. The day we were born, life became a linear process where we learned doing was very important and time became a commodity. This is when we began to forget who we really are. We were taught how to project ourselves into the future so we might one day create a life of meaning and purpose by accom­plishing one goal after another, moving from one grade to the next, getting through school, acquiring a job, finding a partner, creating a home—essentially acquiring even more labels as we went along. Indeed, we learned how to do life very well on this linear pathway and, in the process, most of us forgot how to be. Some say time is moving so fast that having a spiritual experience is very challenging—there is so much to do. In actuality, time is standing still because it is always now—it is we who are moving so quickly through time. Living mindfully can slow us down and bring us consciously and inten­tionally into the present moment, which is where we find our spiri­tual experience waiting for us toopen to its greatest gift: the peace that passes all understanding.

Right now, if you intentionally take a deep breath, and focus on that breath, you will discover the mind and body are in the same place at the same time. The irony is that one's body can't be any place other than in the present moment, but far too often, one's mind is elsewhere. Mindfulness is the practice of calling the thinking mind back to where the body is, wherein the two become as one in the present moment. As you incorporate awareness of God's presence in that moment, doing becomes infused with being as the activity at hand. At this level of mindful living, every action becomes a spiritual experience, be it driving the car, mowing the lawn, changing the baby's diaper, selling real estate, performing brain surgery, or making love to your significant other. As you deepen consciousness to fully embody the practice of mindful living, all of life becomes a sacred continuum.

Isn't it amazing how often we don't take time to truly appreciate something until it is gone? We get complacent and slip into a "take life for granted" mode. This hap­pens many times in relationships and often with our material status, but even more so with our physi­cal well-being. Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh writes, "When we have a toothache, we know that not having a toothache is happiness. But later, when we don't have a toothache, we don't treasure our non-toothache. Practicing mindfulness helps one learn to appreciate the well-being that is already there."

As a mindfulness practice, con­sider taking five minutes and write down some of the "non-prob­lems" you have in your life at this moment. When was the last time you appreciated your heart and liver for the great job they do at keeping you healthy and alive? How about your feet and toes?

(Did you know you would fall flat on your face without your toes?) How about your eyes and ears? What about the roof over your head—do you ever take your home for granted? Then, move on and contemplate the relation­ships you have with your partner, family, and friends that give deep meaning to your existence. Would this be a good day to call someone you love and tell them so? Mindfulness helps us remember to come back to the present and appreciate the blessings of the moment. Don't wait until you have a toothache to be apprecia­tive of how good a "non-toothache" feels. Don't wait until your co-worker has gone home to say, "Good job." Don't wait until a loved one is no longer there to say, "I love you." Don't wait until you have "time" to be mindful. Every moment is the time.

The mystical Sufi poet Rumi writes, "Only let the moving waters calm down, and the sun and moon will be reflected on the surface of your being." The waters of a turbulent mind will never reflect the light Rumi refers to, which is a metaphor for God's presence. Our minds are always moving here and there, most often lingering in either the hap­penings of the past or the con­cerns of the future where we have no power. What can we do to calm the waters in the present moment?

For many of us, the waters of our daily lives are anything but calm because we don't create con­scious space for intentional breathing or silence as part of our daily experience. When we stop and consider it, breathing is the most life-essential thing we do, and it is always a present moment experience. However, seldom are we consciously aware that we are breathing. When we pause and breathe consciously, we open the portal to Presence and enter a sacred silence where the waters are always calm.

Quite often, early in the morning, before I do my daily meditation, I go to my piano and sit quietly.

With my eyes closed, I gently place my fingers on the keys and, when inspired, begin to slowly play only single notes with no song in mind, just allowing my fingers to go where they are led to go. As a form of mindfulness practice, after each note I play, I mindfully draw in a deep breath and, while slowly releasing that breath, I listen to the silence that arises between each note played as it fades. From a musician's per­spective, the space between the notes is as important as the notes themselves; without the silence (or gap) between the notes, there would be no music—it would be one long, continuous, run-on noise that becomes meaningless. Likewise, the silent spaces between our breaths and thoughts are equally as important because the Infinite is ever waiting for us to create that sacred opening in the present moment into which It may flow.

The good news is that you don't need a piano to create that sacred space. Here is a mindfulness practice I invite you to try by using a silent mantra coupled with a breathing exercise: On a slow in-breath (focusing solely on the breath), silently affirm "God is." Gently hold that breath for approximately six seconds while mindfully observing the space cre­ated by non-breathing. Then, on a slow out-breath, silently affirm "I am." Repeat the cycle in a rhythm for five minutes (longer, if possible) silently affirming "God is ... I am" and notice how a sense of inner peace rises in the field of your awareness and the waters are calmed.

There is no area of our lives where mindful living will not benefit our well-being... and our world.

Our physical bodies and the body of our affairs literally vibrate at a higher frequency when we are mindful of God's presence. When we are guided to eat mind­fully, remembering the Source, the food becomes a blessing to the body temple and we make wiser choices regarding what we put into our bodies. Our relationships thrive when we are mindful of the presence of God, because rever­ence and loving kindness become the practice of those with whom we interact. Likewise, at the workplace, mindful living blesses all of those with whom we work or serve. When we are aware of Presence, every transaction becomes a sacred act and every product, customer, and employee is blessed by our "remembering to remember." When we enter into each day remembering that abun­dance is the natural out-picturing of one who lives mindfully aware of his or her connection and unity with Source, we tend to be more generous with our material good.

Mindful living is a simple con­cept to grasp. In the words of Ram Dass, "Be here now." However, in application, mindful living may require a bit more effort, because the thinking mind is so easily seduced by the vortex of a world obsessed with doing rather than being. In The Science of Mind, Ernest Holmes wrote, "Realization, without application, is hallucination." The practice is to skillfully make mindful living a lifestyle. If all we do is gain an intellectual understanding of how to live mindfully, but never apply it in our daily lives, we shall never know the amazing gift the present moment holds for us. The gift is the richness of a life lived in the presence of the Beloved.

Mindful living blesses each of us and our world. Living mind­fully makes every relationship sacred, every challenge on our pathway a stepping stone rather than a stumbling block, and every day an opportunity to live with a sense of awe, meaning, and pur­pose. The journey of the soul really is the journey of a lifetime, and it is a journey we get to take whether we are aware or not. Mindful living brings awareness to the journey and frees us from the limitation of the labels that have defined us from the day we were born. With this in mind, let us "remember to remember" who we really are, and what we do with who we are truly matters.

May your journey be a con­scious one where the intention of your soul intersects with the intention of your human nature on a daily basis, bringing your being into alignment with your doing in every moment. That is what it means to experience heaven on earth. You deserve it— and so does our world. •

Peace,
Dennis Merritt Jones