43. If you can practice even when distracted, you are well trained.

When I travel the path of mindfulness, it is inevitable that I will sometimes become distracted by external circumstances. As I train my mind, I gradually increase my capacity to recognize this distraction. I become more and more able to clearly see when I am drawn into habitual patterns or discursive thought. Paradoxically, this very unmindfulness then brings me back: Once I notice that I have drifted away from mindfulness, then I have returned to mindfulness! Distraction itself brings me back to the present moment.