Many of the resources I've read suggest that you should
appreciate the small things, in order to “live in the moment” more often. For example. if you’re drinking a coffee,
just sit there and drink the coffee – do nothing else, think of nothing else,
just do it and appreciate it for what it is.
Now this is something I've tried several times and not really
found any true benefit from. Generally
I’ll do it for 10 seconds or so, and then my mind will wander and that will be
it. On the other hand, when I'm doing
something that is very “in the moment” such as mountain biking, or playing
guitar, it is very very easy to concentrate on that one thing, enjoying it, and
thinking of nothing else. For one thing,
when playing guitar it is difficult to concentrate on something else!
But recently I have found that when I am doing some mundane task
such as washing the dishes my mind may wander onto stresses at work or
something else negative. It is when I
feel that trigger of a negative thought (a bit of tension in the face, or
perhaps even in the brain) that I try to then just simply concentrate on the
task in hand.
I've found this technique very useful over the past few days to
help dissipate a feeling that perhaps otherwise could have set me in a bad mood
for the next hour or two.
The link between using “the present moment” as a distraction
from the negativity that has just been triggered is a much more powerful
motivator to me than just “living in the moment” during some arbitrary time
that I just happened to choose.
Otherwise, I’d probably be trying the technique at some point when I’d
be bored, in the mood to be entertained, rather than settling down for some
meditation. If I use this technique
during a spell when I'm feeling negative, then when my mind begins to wander,
the trigger will repeatedly present itself, only to be repeatedly dissipated
until there comes a point when I'm feeling fine again.
Although this probably is a type of meditation, I don't actually feel as if this is "meditating". More as a useful tool to trigger awareness, and to take control of my stress and anxiety.
