Learn to Meditate!
Sunday, November 3rd, The Boston Buddha’s own, Andy Kelley will be at Weymouth Club to teach you how to meditate. Meditation is a great way to elevate your mood, increase health, energy, productivity and focus. Join Andy on Sunday, November 3rd, 11:00am-12:15pm in the NEW Mind Body studio. Please register through front desk, this class fills up very quickly!
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There’s only one shortcut in life to being a good person – just be a little bit better today than you were yesterday.” – Lewis Young (The Milton Food Pantry)
This morning, as I whisked into Tedeshci’s hunting for my creamer, I was greeted with a “Good Morning” by a customer in line at the register. I replied back and smiled but continued on at my typical frenetic pace toward the refrigerated goods. I was on task and not about to be derailed.
Moments later, I trotted back with what I initially went in for plus newfound necessities, and stood behind this man waiting to pay. He moved aside and said, “Please take care of her first… I may get just a few more things” and he turned to me, proceeding to lighten the load from my full arms. I smiled and stopped this time. You know when you are so in your head, you are almost startled by kindness?
As I walked out, he opened the door for me and slowly but clearly said, “Take your time, take your time…” Now, if you know me, you know how important this sentiment is. I = rush.
I began my drive home and thought about how fortunate I was to have my day altered by this gentleman – how this simple interaction shifted me. I kept listening to his voice in my head, repeating his simple yet sophic advice to slow down. I felt compelled to go back and tell him. So I did. We chatted for a bit and he shared more wondrous smiles, thoughts and stories. He feels lucky and blessed. When he wakes up in the morning, when he opens his eyes, he knows he has been given another day to spread joy.
I asked if I could take a video of him because I wanted to share his sentiment. He obliged.
Here he is. May I introduce 71 year old, Mr. Louis Young… “Forever” (which he added after shaking my hand).
How stunning life is when you take the time to recognize and savor the little things, the ingenuous joys… They can certainly brighten one’s day, even one’s outlook if you let them in.
So, today, feel free to heed his advice – “Take your time, take your time.”
Catharine =)
“The function of education is to help you from childhood not to imitate anybody, but be yourself all the time.”
– J. Krishnamurti
1. Start with focusing on the breath.
Mindful awareness is a concept that children don’t get very easily, and to be honest, I think most of us adults have issues with it too. The more kids can experience breathing awareness the better off they will be handling stress. I like to start by saying, Continue reading “5 Tips for Raising Mindful Kids”
“You will be your best self when you take time to understand what you really need, feel and want.” – Deborah Day
One of the biggest things that makes our willpower crash is relying on the brains promise of instant reward. We want immediate gratification. We want to feel better now and the ability to remember our long term goals gets foggy. Meditation helps us get real clear in the midst of these stressful situations.
So, we have this reward system in our brain that makes us think something is going to make us happy. When that part of the brain is activated it will tell us that chasing something down is the most important thing to do right now. It’s a primitive part of the brain that’s adapted to make sure we don’t starve, so it’s really susceptible to food temptations.
One of the reasons that we give into these cravings is that we confuse the experience of wanting something with actual happiness and satisfaction. Continue reading “Increase Your Willpower With Focused Meditation”
Wherever you are in your meditation practice and whether your desired outcome is finding clarity in your life, coping with stress/anxiety, emotional healing, or taking your life to the next level, you will awaken your inner healer and begin a powerful transformation.
The Meditation Healing Immersion begins on Friday evening (May 10) with a book signing and discussion with Davidji, author of Secrets of Meditation.
On Saturday (May 11), it will be a full day of intention setting, present moment calming techniques, mindfulness training, and reinforcement of your meditation practice through various types of meditation and yoga. We will also explore the key principles of Ayurveda – the power of our emotional digestive fire – and how to make more conscious choices in our relationships and our daily interactions.
I love this type of workshop because we have a full day to really explore and practice a variety of meditation and mindfulness techniques. We’re able to jump right in and dive deep, stepping out of our ordinary weekend patterns and distractions – breaking away from those usual story-lines. We’re able to let go and tap into a deeper connection to ourselves, our community, and expand our awareness – so when we leave we’re able to integrate what we’ve learned to our everyday lives.
If this sounds like something you’ll find value in, we would be honored to spend the weekend with you. $135 (includes signed copy of book). To register, click HERE or call, 781-407-9642.
Workshop takes place at:
781-407-9642
740 Legacy Place
Dedham, MA 02026
I’m so excited to be a presenter this year! I will be discussing: Integrating Mindfulness In Public Schools – Lessons learned from teaching mindfulness to students and teachers K-12.
We need to give greater emphasis on teaching our kids social emotional skills that can help reduce stress, strengthen attention, and increase our capacity to effectively manage our days.
When students learn to develop their own self-awareness, they learn to become less reactive in class. This changes their behavior and they realize they have more choices. When the students become more aware of their behavior – they’re able to shift their behavior – and the whole classroom environment changes. Mindfulness has the potential to change the entire schools culture.
A great opportunity to learn more and explore how mindfulness is being taught in public schools. We’re in our third year teaching mindfulness-based education in the public schools in Milton, MA.
Anyone interested in bringing mindfulness to schools would enjoy Andy’s Breakfast Roundtable on Friday, April 19th, from 7:00-8:00 AM. We will discuss how the program started, what’s involved in the classes, the general issues that arise when you attempt to bring mindfulness in schools – and how you can integrate this into the classroom without dismantling the system that’s already in place. 
Here’s what Saki F. Santorelli, EdD, MA, Executive Director, Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society, says about this event : “It is a unique conference because it holds strongly to the science and to the scientific process of investigating mindfulness, MBSR, and a whole range of what we call MBI’s, or ‘Mindfulness Based Interventions’, while also seamlessly integrating meditation practice throughout the entire program for five days.”
Check out the link below for an overview of the five-day conference.
Register Here: http://www.umassmed.edu/cfm/conference/index.aspx
Hope to see you there in two weeks!
Peace IN!
-Andy
“For there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so. ” – Shakespeare
A common misunderstanding about meditation I often hear is, “I can’t stop thinking” – but thinking is actually a good thing. Our mind’s job is to produce thoughts. And, thoughts are a very important part of the meditation process. The more you try to force them out, the faster the thoughts will rush right back in.
When we meditate we actually need the mind to be distracted in order for us to see the process at work. When we’re focusing on our breath, a mantra, or some other object of our meditation – we need to be able to catch ourselves distracted about the past and the future. We need to observe the fidgeting around and notice wanting to stop the timer. We have to be aware that we’re tired and restless – notice what our mind is doing – and then find a way to come back to our breath, or the object of our meditation.
Understanding and noticing you are having thoughts is a breakthrough in your practice, because you’re beginning to shift your awareness (that internal reference point) from your ego to YOU, your real authentic self. Continue reading “Why it's awesome if you think you're "bad" at meditating.”
We’d all like to be the best version of ourselves. So what’s the key to making real change?
Meditation & Mindfulness.
Meditation isn’t just powerful, effective and flexible, it’s also deeply personal to me. It has enriched my own life in so many ways. My sitting practice, for example, gives me focus, energy and the clarity to be more mindful throughout the day. But most of all, it shifts my perspective and interactions with people all day long.
I’ve seen firsthand how valuable mindfulness can be – that’s why I feel our Mindful Mondays series and Monthly Guided Meditation classes are so important.
So join Betty and The Boston Buddha at STIL Studio on Mondays and if you’re in the Hanover area I hope to see you at one of my Monthly Meditation classes with Rose and Maryellen at WillowRock!
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Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
- Veronica A. Shoffstall
About a week ago I noticed one of my heirloom cactus plants was starting to bloom for the very first time. It made me smile as I remembered the student who gave it to me. I thought about how this little seed was cultivated, nurtured, and loved – and how in just one year it blossomed into a beautiful plant.
I showed it to Catharine and snapped a quick picture so I could text it to the student later on. When I went to upload the photo, serendipitously I found this incredibly thoughtful note from that very same student in my email.
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Hi Andy,
Continue reading “Looking Back: A sweet note from a Year One meditator.”
