Feeling stressed, or overwhelmed? Eating hurriedly during online meetings? Scrolling social media too much?
Why not create a moment of mindfulness, gratitude, and peace in the middle of a busy day?
Join our Mindful Meal Circle for eating meditation. It’s free.
We currently meet every other Monday at 12 p.m. Pacific time.
Our next Mindful Meal times will be June 9th and June 23rd.
Sometimes we eat, but we aren’t thinking of our food. We’re thinking of the past or the future or mulling over some worry or anxiety again and again. So stop thinking about your business, about the office, or about anything that isn’t happening right now. Don’t chew your worries, your fear, or your anger. If you chew your planning or your anxiety, it’s difficult to feel grateful for each piece of food. Just chew your food. – Thich Nhat Hanh, in How to Eat.
What the practice of eating meditation looks like:
- Eating silently for at least 20 minutes.
- Doing nothing other than being fully present with the food and those sharing our meal.
- Taking one bite at a time, putting our fork down between every one, chewing 20 times or more before taking another forkful.
- Observing the food through our five senses: sight, smell, taste, hearing, and touch.
- Feeling gratitude for all the beings and forces of the universe that made the meal possible, including the farmers, grocery store cashiers, sunlight, rain, and worms that aerated the soil where the beans were grown.
- Visualizing what the food does after entering our body: how the energy stored within it fuels our metabolism, enabling us to take action every day, and how the phytonutrients heal our organs from the micro-injuries caused by pollution and stress.
