Porthcawl

u3a

Mindfulness for Everyday Living

Status:Active, open to new members
Leader:
When: On Tuesday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
Weeks 1 & 3
Venue: Porthcawl YMCA

Links to discussion papers

What is Mindfulness Meditation
Resources
What is Mindfulness
9 Attitudes
Can Mindfulness help
Origins & Pioneers
Handout for new members


Mindfulness Poems

Guided Meditations

Past topics discussed

Mindful Moments Archive

Creating the Life You Want,
One Mindful Moment at a Time

Most of us spend a surprising amount of time living on autopilot. We rush from one task to the next, replay old conversations, worry about future ones, and occasionally wonder where the week went. Mindfulness offers a simple alternative: waking up to the life that's happening right now.

One of the greatest gifts of mindfulness is learning to make your mind your best friend rather than your worst enemy. We all have an inner commentator, but sometimes it behaves more like a grumpy critic than a supportive companion. Mindfulness helps us notice those thoughts without automatically believing them. Instead of being pushed around by every worry or self-doubt, we can respond with a little more kindness and perspective.

A second aspect is reconnecting with our values. It's easy to drift through life following expectations, trends, or other people's ideas of success. Mindfulness encourages us to pause and ask, "What really matters to me?" When we know our values—whether that's family, creativity, community, adventure, or compassion—they can become a reliable compass for daily decisions.

Finally, the informal practice of everyday mindfulness invites us to pay attention. Not in a serious, mountain-top-guru kind of way, but in the simple moments: noticing the taste of your morning tea, listening fully to a friend, or appreciating a sunset instead of photographing it. Life becomes richer when we actually show up for it.

Mindfulness isn't about becoming a different person. It's about becoming more present for the life you already have—and perhaps discovering that the life you want begins with paying attention to this one.

If you haven’t attended before, please wear comfortable, unrestrictive clothing and bring a wrap if you think you might get cold.

Upcoming Meetings details

20th October

3rd November

17th November

1st December

For the first three months of 2027, we will be meeting once a month as follows:

5th January

2nd February

2nd March

No need to ring beforehand, just turn up. Everyone is welcome, the group format is a 15 min meditation to settle our minds , followed by a discussion on a theme, idea or arising issues, followed by coffee, tea and a chat and ending with a meditation. 

Mindful moments

The Stories Behind October – from our youth to our golden years.

October has always seemed to me to be a month of change. The leaves turn gold and copper, the mornings become cooler, and the evenings draw in. But October has changed in other ways too. For those of us in our golden years, it can be a month filled with memories of traditions that were once simply part of everyday life.

The name October comes from the Latin octo, meaning eight. In the old Roman calendar, it was the eighth month of the year. Today, of course, it is the tenth, but the name remains—a small reminder that traditions can survive even when the world around them changes.

Think back to Octobers of our childhood. There were harvest festivals at school, conkers collected from beneath horse chestnut trees, piles of leaves to kick through and the excitement of knowing that winter was on its way. October was also the time to start thinking about Bonfire Night.

All the effort we used to put into our ‘Guy” scrounging bits and pieces for his body and clothing and collecting wood for our bonfire for weeks and weeks before, then hoping it wouldn’t rain when the big day came. Remember the jumping jacks🤣 how they used to chase poor unsuspecting people around, the joy of the bonfire, the fireworks, the smell of smoke in the cold air and if you were really lucky, a jacket potato cooked in the embers. Traditions have changed, it’s more about Halloween now, but the memories remain remarkably vivid.

And perhaps that is one of the interesting things about growing older. We have lived through enormous changes, yet the simplest memories can remain the strongest.

This is where mindfulness can quietly enter our autumn lives. Mindfulness doesn't have to mean sitting cross-legged in silence or following a complicated practice. It can simply mean being present for what is happening now.

Next time you walk through fallen leaves, listen to the sound beneath your feet. Notice the colours in the trees. Feel the coolness of the air on your face. Smell the woodsmoke or the damp earth after rain.

Instead of thinking only, “I remember when October used to be…”, perhaps ask yourself, “What is October giving me today?”

We can hold both things together: the memories of the past and an appreciation of the present.

Perhaps the greatest gift of our later years is that we have accumulated so many stories. A pocketful of conkers, a homemade Guy, a few pennies collected from neighbours, a harvest festival, a bonfire glowing against the November sky—these small memories form part of who we are.

But mindfulness reminds us that we don't have to live only in those memories. There are still new leaves to notice, new conversations to enjoy, new places to discover and new traditions to create.

So this October, perhaps we can celebrate both the October we remember and the October we are living now.

Take a moment. Look around. Listen. Breathe.

The seasons are changing, as they always have….

And so are we.

*** Our mindfulness group is a respectful, safe space for all our members,
but we are not therapists or a replacement for professional advice.
If you think you have mental health issues, please visit your GP. ***

All images used on the Mindfulness pages are either the Group Leader's photos or are AI generated.

Full list of Groups

Groups listed alphabetically

  • Astronomy
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons
    Weeks 1 & 3 at 2 p.m.
  • Beach Clean
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:00 am
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Book Club 1
    Status: Full
    Monthly on Friday mornings
    Last Friday of month
  • Book Club 2
    Status: Full
    Monthly on Wednesday mornings
    week 2
  • Book Club 3
    Status: Full
    Monthly on Thursday afternoons
    Week 1 @ 2 p.m.
  • Canasta
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons
    Week 2 & 4
  • Ceramics
    Status: Waiting list
    Weekly on Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
  • Coffee Morning
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Saturday mornings 10:30 am
    Last Saturday of the Month
  • Conversations Group
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons
    Weeks 2 & 4 at 2 p.m.
  • Cymraeg/Welsh
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Evening Talks
    Status: Dormant
    Weekly on Friday evenings
    Through July
  • Exploring Poetry
    Status: Active
    On Monday mornings
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • French for All
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:15 am
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Gardening
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Tuesday afternoons
    Week 4
  • Guitar
    Status: Waiting list
    On Monday mornings
    2nd and 4th Monday of the month
  • History
    Status: Active
    On Monday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • International ZOOM
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Italian for All
    Status: Active
    Fortnightly on Thursday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Kaffee Klatsch
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings
    Weeks 2 & 4 - 11 a.m.
  • Latin
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Mah Jong
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Mindfulness for Everyday Living
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Monthly Meeting
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Wednesday afternoons
  • Origin and Development of Drama
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons
    Week 2 & 4
  • Painting Workshop
    Status: Waiting list
    Weekly on Thursday mornings
  • Philosophy and Ideas
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Photography for Everyone
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday afternoons
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Play Reading
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Psychology
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Week 3
  • Quiz
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Monday afternoons
    Week 2
  • Rummikub
    Status: Active
    On Friday afternoons
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Scrabble
    Status: Active
    On Monday mornings
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Search for Knowledge
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Monday afternoons
    Week 3
  • Sing it Again
    Status: Active
    On Wednesdays 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    Week 4
  • Social Cycling
    Status: Active
    Ad Hoc
  • Social Dance
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month
  • Sustainability
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Tuesday afternoons
    Week 2
  • Table Tennis
    Status: Active
    Weekly on Friday mornings
  • Technology Help Desk
    Status: Active
    On Monday mornings
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Ukulele
    Status: Active
    On Friday afternoons
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Understanding Modern Art
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Monday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    2nd Monday
  • Walking
    Status: Active
    On Friday afternoons
    Weeks 2 & 4
  • Whist
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Wildlife
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Tuesday afternoons
    Week 1
  • Writing for Pleasure 1
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Writing for Pleasure 2
    Status: Full
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am
    Weeks 1 & 3
  • Writing for Pleasure 3
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am
    Weeks 1 & 3