Mindfulness: L2T Book Club

Dear Friends,

We have started a two person book club. Jon Kabat-Zinn is an author we have discussed before, but never formally read together. Recognizing our common interest in mindfulness we decided to read this together over the past several months, try these teachings, and incorporate them into our lives.  After discussing this on the phone at length, we thought it might be interesting read some of our thoughts in the form of a Q&A to one another.

Here is a quote from Jon about this book:

"Mindfulness meditation, especially when it is understood as a way of being, as living life as if it really mattered, moment by moment by moment, rather than merely as a technique or as one more thing you have to do during your already too-busy day, is one powerful vehicle for realizing such transformative and healing possibilities in ourselves and the world" (pg. 272)

Since the book is rather lengthy and we have gained so much from it, we will break this into three letters. Perhaps you are interested in picking it up from your local library and reading along with us?

Here is our plan:

Mid-October--> Part One: The Bloom of the Present Moment (pages 1-100) This is the foundational introduction to a mindfulness/meditation practice (what it is, why do it, etc)Mid-November--> Part Two: The Heart of Practice (pages 100-170) Here he speaks about how to meditate (time, body awareness, visualizations, types of meditations, etc.)Mid-December--> Part Three: In the Spirit of Mindfulness (pages 171-275) These chapters discuss incorporating mindfulness into every day life (walking, cleaning, parenting, in your profession, etc).

We are learning a lot and hope you will too!