Mindfulness and the News
I like to read the news over breakfast so I start my day informed. Lately, however, the news leaves me gut-punched and gasping. Rage and grief blind-side me. I feel bruised. I begin the day rattled, despite knowing the world needs me to be embodied, grounded, and open-hearted.
In an effort to change this pattern, I wondered whether it was possible to begin the day both informed and centered. I reached out to the hive mind on social media to learn how others were dealing with the news and received some marvelous ideas. Here are a few, shared with permission.
Danna Schmidt: I move beads and buttons and mini-trinkets from jar to jar as a way to pair a gesture with my breathing and intentional thoughts.
Mona Susan Power: My practice…is to go out for exercise and pray/meditate on my walks. I come back feeling at least a bit lighter, having sent protective, loving energy into the world.
Barbara Resch: I do box breathing when I get exposed to the news and I wasn’t expecting it. Breathe in for four counts, hold for four, exhale for four, rest for four. Repeat as many times is necessary. I’m a hospital chaplain and I’ve taught some of my patients to do this, too.
Mimi Goodwin: Since US war on Iraq, I pray through the news. I also often create art while listening to news.
Meg Riley: I do metta (lovingkindness) meditation.
Stacy Yoakiem: I turn to PBS kids when I start feeling upset (about 15 min). Wild Kratts, Daniel Tiger, Arthur have been there to make me feel grounded again because they are care-centered.
Heidi Schneider: I am practicing and teach the Jewish mindfulness practice of Mussar. It infuses every aspect of my life and has enabled me to be less reactive: focusing on what I can do to bring more goodness into the lives of my nearest others.
Natalie Nowytski: I do… a nightly series of 3 questions with my husband around what went right today, what I’m grateful for, and what I’m excited to create or experience. I’ve also been helping others process their grief/anger/sadness and connect to their sense of safety & home through…primal singing & grief singing. With family in Ukraine, I’ve had a lot of practice.
Rebecca Frost visualized protection by embodying her “membranes,” because “we exist in ecosystems we can’t fall out of,” and Catherine Owens Duncan by setting up “energy boundaries.”
Isn’t this diversity of practices beautiful? And helpful. I created an envelope of intention within which I wrap my morning news intake:
Before reading, I ask to be grounded in love, open to understanding, and abundant in compassion.
After reading I ask myself:
What am I feeling?
Who needs my love and healing energy?
For what or whom am I now grateful?
For a moment I hold emotion, care, and gratitude in my heart. Then release them into a mercy greater than I can muster.
In an age of uncertainty and disruption, practice holds us steady. It keeps us human. And sharing practice connects us. I invite you to support your practice this fall with Eye of the Heart’s upcoming programs!
— Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew
Photo by Danna Schmidt
