A Gritty, No-Nonsense Review of The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
Got curious about mindfulness lately — not in some sit-cross-legged, incense-burning kind of way, but more like… what actually is it? That curiosity kicked in after watching a video from Sterling Spencer — surfer, bit of a mystic these days. He rattled off a bunch of names that helped him rewire his brain, and I figured after a bit of an ordeal, why not follow that breadcrumb trail.
First up: The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh.
Surfing’s always had this built-in stillness to it — the quiet before the drop, the focus it demands. Feels like there’s some crossover with mindfulness. So I picked up the book, gave it a read, and here’s what stuck for me. No fluff, no guru glow — just a gritty first take.
1. Be Present
Hanh kicks off with the basics: just be where you are. Fully. Even if it’s washing dishes. It sounds stupidly simple, but it really makes you realise how much you check out of your own life. For surfers, that’s being in the wave, not just chasing the next one or overanalyzing the last.
2. Use Your Breath
Breathing: it’s free and you’re already doing it, so might as well do it properly — and from the sounds of it, most of us aren’t. Hanh treats it like a rope you can hold onto when your brain starts spiraling. In the surf, it’s your anchor when the paddle out gets hectic or you’re duckdiving into something that might eat you.
3. Find Joy in the Small Stuff
He’s big on enjoying the little things — a sip of tea, a step on dry ground. Surf version? That one glidey turn on a slow roller. Doesn’t need to be a hero wave. Doesn’t even need to be clean. Just feel it, appreciate it, move on.
4. Practice Compassion
This one’s not just “be nice.” It’s more like: stop being a dick to yourself. Bombed a takeoff? Fine. Bogged the nose? Whatever. Don’t carry it around all day. Be kinder — to you, to everyone.
5. It’s a Practice
This isn’t a one-and-done fix. Hanh repeats it over and over — you’ve got to keep showing up. Surfing’s the same. You don’t just go once, nail it, and retire. It’s repetition. Attention. Screw-ups. Showing up anyway. That’s the work.
That’s where I’m at with it. Just a first take, scrawled between sessions and life. I’ll keep poking at a few more of these books from the Sterling Spencer / mindfulness rabbit hole and circle back to this one later — see what hits different on the second pass.
For now? It’s curiosity. It’s growth.
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