31 Days of Mindful Parenting

This month, I will be providing a daily post about how to incorporate some mindfulness in your day as a parent. The COVID-19 pandemic is perhaps one of the most difficult experiences many of us have dealt with in our lives and staying connected with ourselves and each other will help us navigate each of our own paths.

Day 1: Beginner’s Mind

In the world of mindfulness, the concept of beginner’s mind is a cornerstone to the practice. It involves seeing a situation - or a person - with openness, no judgment, no expectations. When looking with beginner’s mind eyes, one sees with no preconceived notions, just fresh eyes. So today, the task is to see your child (choose one if you have more than one child - we will do this at other times this month), as if you were meeting your child for the first time - not as an infant (unless your child is an infant!), but just as he or she is in that moment. What do you notice first? What feelings do you notice within you? What is your child’s essence in that moment?