Day 38 of #LiveWell2017

This is one of the coolest – and perhaps hardest – mindfulness exercises I’ve ever seen. This exercise brings awareness to moving through spaces. Call it transitioning, if you will, but it’s mostly about checking yourself at the door. Every time you come to a door – or a threshold – that leads from one room to another or from indoors to outdoors, stop for a moment, take a breath, consider what differences you will experience as you leave one space and enter the other.

You can add some kind of closure – say goodbye or thank you to the space you are leaving – and prepare yourself for the space you are entering. Be aware of the way you open the door and close it behind you. Enter your new space with renewed curiosity and an open mind.

Because we walk through doorways many times during a day, we often do it without thinking about what we are doing. We also tend to think ahead to what will happen once we are on the other side of that doorway, rather than focus on the present moment. This practice gives us a chance to stay in the moment, to treat our entrance with care, and to give ourselves pause.

I’m going to try this for the next week and see what happens. I will report back. Let me know if you try it, too. I’m eager to hear what you learn.

Are some doorways harder to cross than others? Does pausing there help?