Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.

So there's a story about a Zen

master who taught just one simple

method for inner peace and awakening.

Her name was Sono, and she advised

everybody who came to her to

adopt a particular affirmation.

And this affirmation was to be said many

times a day and under all conditions.

So the affirmation was this:

Thank you for everything.

I have no complaints whatsoever.

So many people from all walks

of life came to see Sono.

They'd heard about this spiritual teaching

that she did was transforming lives.

So some of them came to see her

and they were in physical pain.

Others were really suffering emotionally.

Some had been through great loss.

And some were seeking spiritual awakening.

But no matter what their distress or

their desire, she always gave them

just that one, same practice, a mantra.

Thank you for everything.

I have no complaints whatsoever.

So some people, when they went to

see Sona, they came away disappointed

with such a simple teaching.

But people who began to practice it found

deep inner peace, healing and happiness.

So what Sono knew was that in life

we only ever experience present

moments, just one after the other.

So your relationship with

the present moment is your

relationship to life itself.

So often in life, when the circumstances

of the present moment don't show

up the way we want them to, or

they're a little unpleasant, and we

psychologically struggle with what is.

We dislike it, we get angry with it, we

think it shouldn't be this way or we go

to outright war with it, raging against

the way things are, and that creates

so much of our stress and suffering.

But when we stop being locked in

battle with life and we wage peace

with the way things are, we can arrive

wholeheartedly in the here and now.

So personal story.

I recently got a cold sore on my face

the day before I had to do a film shoot.

And I was mortified.

These negative starts, thoughts

started to roll through my head.

I look disgusting.

I can't do this.

This is humiliating.

And I had so much negativity

and shame washing over me.

I felt really debilitated by it.

And then I remembered this

mantra, Thank you for everything.

I have no complaints whatsoever and I

just let it fill my mind over and over.

And as I let go of thinking, things

should be different and just let

them be the way they are, all that

constriction in my mind just opened.

And suddenly I realized the beauty all

around me, the aliveness all around

me, and I was washed with gratitude.

You know, that I get to do these

daily moments for you and connect

with you in this way, that I have

such an amazing team to work with

and grateful for what make-up can do.

So yeah, this week, I invite you to carry

Sono's mantra with you, play with it.

If you feel in resistance to what's

happening or out of touch, simply repeat

these words, thank you for everything.

I have no complaints whatsoever.