Hi and welcome to “In a Moment” where we get to see how every day humans use mindfulness to improve and enrich their lives. There are 1,440 minutes in a day, each presenting an opportunity to dive in, breathe, look around, feel within and authentically experience being alive. From there, we can make truly informed choices that align with our values. Let’s see what’s up with Geroge!

At a Stop sign the other day, George discovered mindfulness. The freeway had been a nightmare and Waze was now navigating him through a new part of town to carve a few minutes off his rush hour commute home. The neighborhood, industrial, dusty and gray offered little traffic as he turned right and left on side streets. There were, however, many Stop signs which soon annoyed him as he raced up a block only to be brought to a halt at every intersection. Soon he sat at yet another corner, this time behind a car whose radiator had just gone belly up as another one pulled up behind him. Now sandwiched between two cars, George realized he was saving no time at all as the driver investigated under the hood. He turned to investigate his snack stash on the passenger seat to find only empty wrappers and some cookie crumbs. Where were the carbs when he needed them? Exasperated he reached to call his wife to complain as his brow furrowed and his shoulders clenched, rising towards his ears.

Just then a bright yellow half empty helium balloon tapped his windshield as it danced towards the sidewalk like a cartoon ghost, gliding up and down. Watching the bouncing orb, George noted it enter the cemetery to his right, which was in full April bloom. Crocus, narcissus, tulips and other bulbs waved their colorful heads along paths, near tombstones and under trees, like elves on parade. Enchanted by the waves of yellow, pinks and violets, George didn’t notice that the car ahead of him had now moved and the driver behind him was honking. He pulled over to let them pass and sat a few moments, enjoying the view, unaware of his breathing now slowing, his shoulders releasing and a calm unwinding his muscles. Waze was urging him to turn right and he swept it off his screen, then as the balloon took off towards a tall pine, he texted his wife: “On my way. Happy Spring!”

So what happened to George as he was stuck between 2 cars? For one, his brain was in annoyance and frustration mode as he realized he had no control over the situation. Two, in response, his body was preparing to fight, flee or freeze in reaction to the perceived threat of being powerless. His cortisol and other stress hormones were rising, his heart rate and respiration rate were quickening and muscles in his shoulders tensed as if to protect his back from attack. These physiological changes in the body fueled the negative thinking that had him trapped. But then a balloon caught his attention, part of his brain sensed that this was a welcome distraction  and allowed his eyes to follow the orb’s path into a field of nature blossoming into spring. As he took in the colors and textures his mind took him back to memories of playing softball on field day during elementary school, a happy time. That memory replaced the current awareness of his traffic situation and replaced the stress hormones with oxytocin and the happier feel good hormones associated with joy and connection. That chemical shift in the body allowed the muscles to relax, which in turn told the brain it was okay to be right where he was: between two cars on a spring day.

And that is how a mindful moment allowed George to disrupt his brain’s tendency towards the negative, and changed the outcome of the rest of his day. Rather than arrive home complaining with a headache which would keep him from his evening walk, he entered the front door with a big hug on his mind. A dinner that could have been a litany of all that had gone wrong that day focused instead on his discovery of a cemetery nestled in the downtown industrial part of town. He knew this would interest his wife who enjoyed reading the obituaries in the mornings. She shared with him some of the more interesting stories of who had recently passed and how these strangers had lived their full lives.  “When were they going to do something fun and exotic?” she wondered.  A happy discussion of places they could go took over the evening’s agenda as George’s brain recovered the feel good hormones previously hijacked by a simple Waze direction.

How might a Mindful Moment change your day? I’d love to hear your stories. The more we focus on the potential of each moment to turn into a moment of spaciousness, the more we notice the possibility for positive experiences. We don’t deny the negative. We simply name it for 90 seconds, watch it rise and fall away. A minute and a half out of the 1,440 minutes in a day could be a good investment of time. Keep practicing! And I’ll see you in another moment!