Is People-Watching being Mindful?

I was recently asked the question:- ‘Is People-Watching’ being Mindful?' Well Yes, definitely it is, provided we’re watching the Mind as much as the people! Anything the mind is aware of is Mindfulness. So this people-watching would be an ideal opportunity to Notice and Remember to be Mindful of the Mind, partly because the mind can be so judgemental. As you know, we often make our minds up about someone based on first impressions of the way they look or sound. We can notice this tendency of the mind and anything that comes up such as changing feelings, thoughts and even physical reactions. There is plenty to notice when People–Mind–Watching!

Then there’s the other question:- ‘Frequent Mindful moments, or long periods of Mindfulness’ – which is ‘better’? When we think in terms of which is ‘better’ or ‘worse’, according to Mindfulness, we may not be accepting things just as they are. The fact to acknowledge is that you Notice you are constantly swept away by your thoughts. In Mindfulness, ‘nothing more to do here’ – just Noticing that the mind is swept away, is enough. Also, there’s the tendency we all have to want to be ‘soothed’. Wanting to hang on to a comforting thought is very natural. We can be Mindful of that too, as a thought to be aware and let go of. So in Mindfulness there’s always that letting go, and that sense of no effort. In this way, we don’t have to achieve anything, neither frequent moments of Mindfulness, nor long periods of Mindfulness. We learn that ‘What is, just is’. This is the Mindfulness of acceptance and being kind to self.