My mind flashed back to a professional development event I attended in St. Andrews a few years ago, when I was introduced to mindfulness with a single raisin!

In this well-known mindfulness exercise, participants start to experience this feeling of being “present” for themselves by taking ten to fifteen minutes to eat a single raisin.

It requires you to focus your mind on the present moment using all your senses – what you can see, hear, smell, taste and touch.

Sitting in a circle, and our teacher gave each of us a single raisin.

Taking a moment, I got comfy in my chair…

– I held the raisin in my hand.

– Looking at it, I saw the different colours, light and ridges on the raisin.

– Closing my eyes, I felt the smallness of the raisin, it’s softness and its waxy texture.

– I brought it close to my nose to smell the raisin, concentrating on any scents or aromas I could detect.

– Next, I placed the raisin in my mouth and on my tongue. Without chewing, I noticed the sensation of having it on my tongue.

– Taking a bite of this tiny raisin, I tasted the sensations in my mouth. The smaller pieces of the raisin felt different.

– I listened and heard the sound as I chewed.

– I detected the intention to swallow starting to build and then decided to swallow it.

– Finally, I tracked the sensation of the raisin going into my tummy.

A simple little exercise to help us slow down.

How many moments do we miss with our spouses, our children, our parents, friends and colleagues, because we’re too busy rushing forward with our own always so very important tasks that need to get done?

We get so busy that we forget about seeing or ministering to the one, until we catch ourselves, or someone helps us once again to refocus.

Is it time for you to come back, slow down and refocus?

Taking time to enjoy one little raisin, may just help you and I to refocus on that one thing we need to do today.

What is your “one thing you will do today?”