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Mindful Parenting is a contemplative practice through which we become more mindful of our children and, in doing so, experience a more joyful life.
The Mindful Parent is an organization devoted to sharing with parents and other child caregivers ways in which to enhance the many joys of parenting.  By mindfully attending to our children, both when we are physically present with them and when we are physically separated from them, we can enhance our sense of connection to them and, in turn, our connection to the cosmos.  This makes us a better parent, a happier person, and a more vital human being.
 
To facilitate a more mindful approach to parenting, The Mindful Parent publishes on its website, and in its bi-weekly newsletter, mindful parenting verses and commentaries.  The Mindful Parent website also serves as a community forum that encourages and supports a mindful parenting dialogue and the sharing of mindful parenting experiences.
 
In the spirit of developing a mindful parenting community, we encourage you to submit a mindful parenting experience through verse, commentary, and imagery to share with others.  We believe that through our collective experience, we can help each other develop a deeper and more meaningful mindful parenting practice.  Click here to learn more about making a submssion.  We thank everyone who has contributed or is considering making this very compassionate contribution.

Click here to learn what recent events are taking place and of changes to The Mindful Parent website.  Please contact us with your questions about mindful parenting or to share a mindful parenting experience.  We are devoted to working with you to enhance your ability to "be" with your children, and to experience the bliss that awaits you.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
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(c) 2003-2004 Zen Health.  All rights reserved.
The Mindful Parent is a servicemark of Zen Health.
Monday July 26, 2004
The Morning Sip:  One Jewel Among Many
 
When your child becomes difficult to interact with, you may want to share with them that you recognize their behavior to be just a small part of who they are as a human being.  Perhaps they are very angry.  This means that the angry part of them is in charge at the moment.  But the anger is just one small part of them -- there are thousands of other parts, which all together make up who they are.  So often when a wave of difficult thinking or perception flows over a child, they can become so absorbed in the behavior, that they lose themselves in it.  Sharing this with your child can open awareness so that while they are experiencing a mood, they are aware that it is not all that they are.  As a result, it will be easier for your child to not allow momentary forces, both internal and external, to overwhelm them and cause them to suffer.
 
Through the practice of mindful parenting, you can come to realize the same in yourself. 
 
          This part of me
          Is but one jewel
          In a vast treasure chest
 
Today, when your child becomes difficult or upset, share with your child that you understand that what they are feeling is just a small part of them.  Perhaps give it a label "Mr. Difficult" or together "point to it" when it emerges.  When your child begins to observe that part of them from a larger perspective, the suffering begins to dissipate.
 
So too, when you find yourself becoming frustrated or angry, recite the above verse.  Visualize the jewel that is the anger or frustration.  Breathe deeply and allow your mind to see it sparkling along with the other rubies, emeralds, sapphires, and diamonds.  At the moment its sparkle is a little more intense than the others.  But that is just the light of the moment shining on it.  Shine the light of mindfulness on that jewel and all the jewels.    
 
 
From the Archives
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Please share your comments on today's column.  If you would like to receive a courtesy copy of The Morning Cup column e-mailed to you each morning, click here.
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Experiencing the Joy of Connecting With Our Children
The Mindful Parent