Of course you want the turkey to be done. You’d like the mashed potatoes to keep warm, the stuffing to stay moist and the gravy to taste homemade. You’re hoping the pies turn out, the guests turn up and the TV gets turned off. You’ll be grateful to have it over with, but can you take a week of hectic cooking and turn it into a mindfulness practice?
The sages did, and still do.
I have a new photo-post up at the Huffington Post this week, “7 Ways to Make Thanksgiving Mindful,” and it’s worth your while to notice. Follow these instructions step-by-step and see what comes of it:
1. Click on the link to read the post on Huffington.
2. Once you’re there, click on the blue thumb to “like” it.
3. Click on “Facebook Share” to share it on FB.
4. Click on the red “Retweet” to share it on Twitter.
5. If you don’t mind a few ruffled feathers, join the cackle of Huff Post commenters by adding your own.
6. Come back here and leave a comment on this post telling me anything and everything you’ve done. For each step taken you earn a point in my prize drawing.
You must know I would never tell you what to eat or how to make it. I’m simply illuminating the power of your own evenminded attention.
For each step you take, you’ll earn a point toward a drawing for a fabulous gift: an autographed copy of the organic cookbook Food to Live By, an inspiring and passionate 400-page cooking cornucopia by Myra Goodman, the co-founder of Earthbound Farms. The winner will be drawn this Sunday.
Good luck and good appetite!
Loved the advice, less so the images of dead turkeys. Can mindfulness and killing go together?
Comment by Kaspalita — November 16, 2010 @ 4:43 pm
Mind that we don’t inflame ourselves with pictures or embattle each other in words.
Comment by Karen Maezen Miller — November 16, 2010 @ 7:16 pm
A great post on mindfulness AND a chance to win a cookbook? I love it! And am thankful . . . In that vein, we’ve been using a new grace at dinner that I especially like: “We’re thankful for being. We’re thankful for being here. We’re thankful for being here together.”
Comment by J, Connecticut — November 16, 2010 @ 7:01 pm
I followed all the steps out of love and gratefulness. Thanks for a great piece on my favorite holiday.
Comment by Nichole — November 16, 2010 @ 7:53 pm
All 7 baby! Sign me up! And thank you for the words. I will be striving to do all 7 this holiday.
Comment by Kitty Shannon — November 16, 2010 @ 10:40 pm
I want to eat dinner in the sun by the river. š
But… I am also grateful for the simple lentil soup I made in the northwest darkness of my kitchen and ate while sitting at a small, round table.
Thank you, Karen.
-Stacy
Comment by Stacy (Mama-Om) — November 17, 2010 @ 4:03 am
I read them, I liked them and I shared them on FB! Thank you, sage thoughtful words that I will continue to be present with for this holiday. Especially loved the one about using family recipes – so true indeed! Thank you Maezen.
Comment by Anna Katherine — November 17, 2010 @ 7:50 am
Ahh – thank you for the space to have slightly inflamed words, it allows me to bring some of my shadow in to the light, and better than repressing them.
I’m sure I’m speaking to (at least) that part of myself which is ambivalent or even guilty about my own eating practices. Really investigating gratitude to what is on my plate is difficult, when I consider the suffering that leads to me being able to enjoy a meal, even to sustain myself. And even though I limit that by not eating turkey and so on there is still a shadow to my mealtimes.
I wonder if this is not just my shadow.
Comment by Kaspalita — November 17, 2010 @ 11:55 am
Did it all (all umpteen steps)…except leave a comment there. Love the photos, Maezen.
Thank you–I am thankful for you.
Comment by Beth Patterson — November 17, 2010 @ 3:29 pm
Thanks so much for these ideas. Really helpful, as I’m about to host Thanksgiving dinner for the first time!
I did everything but leave a comment. Thank you!
Comment by Tara — November 18, 2010 @ 3:16 pm
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jack Daw, Karen Maezen Miller. Karen Maezen Miller said: Hey everyone! Cookbook giveaway (and it's a really good cookbook). http://fb.me/KewUkl0K […]
Pingback by Tweets that mention heat in the kitchen | Karen Maezen Miller's Cheerio Road -- Topsy.com — November 18, 2010 @ 3:37 pm
Thank you for the beautiful mindful thoughts. I personally loved the idea of seasoning sparingly. All too often we over salt our food, and eventually that changes our taste buds so we crave it more. Thanksgiving is a good time to get back to the basics of food, from buying to cooking to eating.
Thank you.
Posted it on Facebook, Twitter and my blog.
Comment by Kristen M — November 18, 2010 @ 4:10 pm
Thank you for bringing us back to the basic steps. It makes what is usually a daunting task seem much more manageable. I did all seven and look forward to spending time with friends and family. Attention is love! (I repeat that to myself so many times every day.)
Comment by Lesley W — November 18, 2010 @ 6:04 pm
Lovely food for thought š
Sharing in all my favourite places and very happy to do so! Though I will admit I skipped the comment at the Huffington Post.
Comment by Christine — November 19, 2010 @ 6:16 pm
Those Huff Post comments do leave a bad taste in the mouth, don’t they? Such encouragement to practice stepping back. Opinions are always overcooked!
Comment by Karen Maezen Miller — November 19, 2010 @ 6:20 pm
Lovely, mindful article in the Huffington Post. Hope I can put some of it into practice! I liked it and facebooked it!
Comment by Wylie — November 23, 2010 @ 7:34 pm
Disappointed by the reluctance to engage with the other commenter’s.
Comment by Kaspalita — December 9, 2010 @ 10:30 am