Mindfulness means paying attention on purpose to what is important. When you are practicing mindfulness, you want to be sure that your mind is full of both facts and feelings. When you have the right balance of facts and feelings in your mind, it is easier to take control of your actions and manage your feelings.
A first step in taking control of your mind is to learn how to be mindful. With practice, you can learn how to notice when your feelings are filling up your mind too quickly, and you can slow your feelings down by adding in some facts. A main goal when practicing mindfulness is to find your own balance of noticing the facts about the world around you and noticing the feelings you have about those facts.
In this activity, let’s pretend that your mind is a jar, the facts are rocks, and your feelings are sand. You are going to practice filling your mind so it is full with both facts and feelings. It will be important for you to remember these things as you practice: