Melissa’s Mindful Moments

Book Recommendations Part 3

By Melissa Ann Roush, MS, LPC-Intern

Supervised Katrena Hart, LPC-S

This month I end the series of book suggestions with two books- one fiction and one for those who want to learn about the science of mindfulness as it bridges into the spiritual components of meditation. 

One of my favorite fiction novels, The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein, is told from the perspective of a Labrador dog named Enzo.  As Enzo observes the frailities, challenges and triumphs of being human, most specifically, his race car driving owner, the reader is reminded of the paradoxes of life – of taking time to remain and respond in the present moment so as to best engage in the next.  

Excerpt from The Art of Racing in the Rain:

I felt bad for Zoe: all she had to do was say that the nuggets didn’t taste right, and this incident would have been avoided.  But Eve would have found a way to hurt herself anyway, I suppose.  They needed this.  This moment.  It was important to them as a family, and I understood that.

In racing, they say that your car goes where your eyes go.  The driver who cannot tear his eyes away from the wall as he spins out of control will meet that wall; the driver who looks down the track as he feels his tires break free will regain control of his vehicle. 

Your car goes where your eyes go.  Simply another way of saying that which you manifest is before you.

The second book is for those who are interested more in the why’s and how’s of mindfulness and meditation in order to manifest the reality of your choosing.  Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One by Dr. Joe Dispenza is chock full of diagrams and exercises as well as information to help readers unlearn old ways of being- including becoming a more mindful observer and creator. 

Excerpt from Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself:

To break the habit of being yourself, you would be wise to select one trait, propensity, or characteristic and focus your attention on that single aspect of your old self that you want to change.  For example, you might begin by asking yourself: When I feel angry, what are my thought patterns? What do I say to others and myself?  How do I act?  What other emotions spring forth from my being angry?  What does anger feel like in my body?  How can I become conscious of what triggers my anger, and how can I change my reaction? 

As I have written previously, there is no one way to become more mindful as an end goal.  Mindfulness is a practice that must be taken moment to moment.  It is also a practice that increases in efficacy, I believe, as we choose to learn from various teachers and gurus, through different concepts and voices- including science, fiction, myth, mystery, experience and intuition.  Be curious.  Be open.  Be willing.  Be present on purpose, but most of all- just BE. 

Happy reading!