Mindfulness. It’s all the buzz. I even subscribe to a magazine titled – what else? – Mindful!

I appreciate this idea of bringing one’s mind to whatever one is undertaking. Many people feel it has to do with meditating for long periods of time – and I must admit the mindfulness magazine often heads into that territory – or that you must go to yoga, let your body flow, and be mindful. At least my mind always goes to either of these options – and, truth be told, I don’t appreciate either one.

However, a Mindful Moment I can get into almost every day.

Really, I would call it more of a “check in” with myself. I stop for a moment – that’s enough time – and simply ask myself, “How am I feeling right here, right now?” Do I have any muscle tension or other pain in my body? Am I feeling anxious or worried or nervous? Am I feeling happy or just neutral?

It’s a little moment for me.

A moment to bring awareness to where I am on any given day in any given moment. It’s a practice that sounds easy as it hardly takes any time and can be done anywhere. However, the practice of stopping for even a moment and checking in with self can be a major challenge, especially if you haven’t done it in the past or feel that it is not really being mindful…to be mindful means the yoga class or some lengthy meditation practice.

Jumping those mental hurdles to claim a mindful moment for yourself is the challenge.

I recommend you try it though…when you come to mind, stop and pay attention to your self in any way that feels right for you.

After the moment has passed, pat yourself on the back, as you were just “mindful!”