February 3, 2024

My Mindful Mornings

My mornings can be calm, peaceful, busy, or full of life, depending on how I choose to spend them. Sometimes, I have scheduled work, and sometimes I’m free. When I have more free time in the morning, I usually do many things like house cleaning, laundry, walking in the park, reading books, or sitting at a cafe with my book and doing some work. I love my mornings, and what I love most is when they are grounded and peaceful.

In this blog, I have crafted mindfulness activities to help me feel more grounded and peaceful when I have more time in the morning. After, I woke up, I will be at a place where I feel most comfortable—usually start in my apartment, on the rooftop garden—and start these 10 mindful activities that I love to do in the morning!

1. Welcome the light and fresh air into my room

I love waking up to the sunlight and with cool morning air streaming into my room. First thing first I do after get up is opening the curtains to welcome the sunlight and then open all the windows, allows the air to circulate, filling the room with freshness. This ritual gives me a tremendous sense of energy and peace at my space.

2. Making bed

Simply folding the blanket and rearranging the pillows gives me a sense of having more space and brings order and clarity to my bedroom. While I don’t mind if the bed is messy, I believe it’s a fast and effective act of organizing that I invite into my morning.

3. Drink a glass of water

I’m not consistent with drinking water in the morning, so to address that, I started filling a 2-liter jar with water at night and placing it on the table along with a glass. I need to make sure to have a glass of water first before any other caffeinated drinks to combat dehydration -and I need to remember that! The remaining water in the jar serves as a visual reminder to finish it by the end of the day. If I can, I prefer drinking mineral water in the morning or as much as I can.

4. Mindful breathing exercises & meditation

I then take some time to settle into a relaxing seated position for breathing exercises and meditation. I like to start with 5-7 minutes of Yoga pranayama ‘Nadi Shodhana’ before delving into meditation. During meditation, I mindfully allow my thoughts to pass and aim to find stillness in my mind. The practice takes about 30 minutes, but sometimes I also do a shorter version as well. Morning meditations bring me profound peace in the quiet emptiness of the space.

5. Mindful body movement

I always notice my right leg slowly getting numb just a few minutes before the end of my meditation, and it’s like a perfect cue to begin moving my body. Spending 10-15 minutes with gentle movements coordinated with my breath helps release tension throughout my entire body. This can be done in a seated position. I typically focus on side stretches, spine, hips and hamstrings.

6. Self-reflection with cards, and journaling

I find that picking a card is a good idea, especially on the days when I can’t find motivation and inspiration. I often go for a self-reflection deck or a practical deck for my morning activities. I slowly turned to my journal and write down on thoughts, aspirations, self-reflections, things I am grateful for and practical things advises I got from the card.

7. Gratitude

Reminding myself to take time and focus on positive thoughts helps me cultivate gratitude. I believe that the way I see the world is a reflection of how I see myself. Sometimes, I get lost in my own thoughts and turn negative. Starting my day with positive thinking makes me aware and helps me take care of my thoughts throughout the day. My favorite mantra is “I believe in the good things. I am happy to be able to see the good”

8. Tea time

I love tea! And I adore the entire process—from spending time selecting tea, boiling water, and preparing tea sets on the table; it’s one of my favorite things to do. I always make sure to fully engage in the moment when I pour the tea into one of my favorite tea cups and take a moment to appreciate its presence before starting to sip. It’s the little things that count, isn’t it? Surprisingly, this small, simple act brings me so much calm and joy in the morning!

For my morning cups, I usually go for caffeine-free options, but occasionally, I will go for the rich flavors of black or green tea. Here are my favorite choices of tea for my morning:

Ginger tea is one of my all-time favorite morning choices. It’s easy to find ginger in Thailand, so I always stock some fresh ginger at home. I enjoy the spicy flavor and the herbal scents and taste from ginger. Sometimes, I also add lemongrass; this brings more flavors into my cup. Ginger tea is for digestive benefits, enhanced immunity, and inflammation reduction. And overall, why do I love ginger tea? Simply because I feel good drinking it.

Peppermint tea is my ritual. It holds the title of being my favorite! I love the freshness and sparkling flavor of peppermint, as it boasts essential oils like menthol, menthone, and limonene within its leaves. This tea is perfect for addressing bloating and indigestion, and I can drink it anytime I like!

Black Tea I sometimes enjoy a cup of black tea in the morning, but most times, I save black tea for the afternoon tea (so I can add sugar and milk). One of my favorite blends is called “Paris” from Harney & Sons. Paris is a fruity black tea with vanilla and caramel flavors, along with a hint of lemony bergamot. French Earl Grey is also very aromatic and a signature tea from Chan & Yupa tearoom, adding variety to my black tea collection.

9. Books & reading

I love books and prefer to keep them close. Immersing myself in the world of books is truly delightful. While I appreciate physical books, I also enjoy the comfortable feeling of reading on Kindle. Reading provides a wealth of ideas and an endless source of informative thoughts. I am fascinated by the beautiful words that weave rich and captivating stories. For mornings, my go-to choices might be inspirational articles or a captivating fantasy book that I’m eager to continue.

10. Cook my first meal

My first meal can be at breakfast, brunch, or lunchtime, depending on how I choose to start my day. Normally, if I stick to my routine, I will start eating between 11.30 and 13.30. I don’t often start before 10 AM unless I’m traveling or on vacation. I usually cook a simple dish with veggies, including broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes. I normally choose eggs, bacon, fish, or chicken for protein. Sometimes I prefer some hash browns for a crunchy munchies touch.

11. Spend time with your love ones

I refer to this topic with the person I’m closest to, which, at this moment, is my boyfriend. I always feel grateful that I can spend time with him. I want to make sure that I do my best in our relationship while I can. Spending a moment expressing gratitude – whether through texting, calling, or telling the person you love how amazing they are, and how thankful you are to be with them in this life – fills my heart. It’s truly magical to feel all this goodness in a little love and kindness towards each other. Love is truly a gift. … and, of course, this simple act of love can work with anyone you love too!

12. Take a moment to pause

I love to simply be still and just look at the scenery from my balcony, observing the sights and sounds of the world as time passes by, and embracing everything in that very moment. Stillness teaches me about life and about myself—how I perceive the world and how it truly is. It also reminds me that I am small… and I’m also great and beautiful. This understanding brings a sense of peace—it simply feels like that.

Sometimes I do things a little differently, and of course, it’s depending on my choice, and I don’t want to stress out if I can’t. Some mornings, I add more workout time on my treadmill, especially when I feel loaded on my physical body (and mind.) I slowlyyyy get back on track, and I hope I can share soon my new blog on the active day of my life.

But for now, I’ll end this blog with tips on another most important point: sleeping. To wake up to the magic of the morning, it’s essential to start with a good night’s sleep. So, I should not forget to prepare myself for a good night’s sleep. A cup of chamomile tea or a bit of nice essential oil helps me to unwind for a good sleep… and perhaps setting an intention to wake up to the magic of a new day, as well?