Mindfulness Made Simple: A Challenge to Center Your Week

This week, we’re taking on a simple but meaningful challenge: meditating for five minutes every day.

My mother raised me to expect the best from myself. For me, that has always meant aiming high, embracing challenges with joy and energy, and also learning when to slow down. This week’s challenge is a small opportunity to do exactly that.

If you’ve been following our other family challenges, you already know that I love practices that are simple enough to fit into real family life. Five minutes may not sound like much, but sometimes a few intentional minutes are exactly what we need.

This Week’s Challenge: Meditate for Five Minutes a Day

For some of you, this may feel easy. For others, sitting quietly for five minutes might sound surprisingly difficult.

You may even wonder, “Am I doing meditation correctly?”

The good news is that meditation doesn’t have to be complicated. There are many different approaches, including focusing on your breathing, becoming more aware of the present moment, using imagery, praying, or quietly reflecting on something meaningful to you.

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health describes meditation as a group of practices that can involve focused attention, breathing, imagery, or present-moment awareness.

What Meditation Looks Like in Our Family

Our first attempt was definitely not perfectly peaceful.

Peter was fidgeting. Claire was very vocal about what she thought meditation should look like. There was movement, noise, and plenty of personality.

And honestly, that was okay.

We stayed committed to the five minutes and gently reminded one another to return to the practice. That may actually be one of the most valuable parts of this challenge: learning that mindfulness doesn’t require a perfectly quiet house or perfectly still children.

Just like our Say Yes a Little More challenge, the goal isn’t perfection. It’s becoming a little more intentional about how we respond to everyday moments.

Two Simple Ways to Think About Meditation

If meditation feels unfamiliar, I like to think about it in two simple ways.

Quiet the mind. Sit comfortably, focus on your breath, and allow yourself to simply be still for a few minutes.
Focus intentionally on something meaningful. This might be a peaceful place, something you’re grateful for, a prayer, Scripture, or a moment in the life of Christ.

For our family, meditation can also fit naturally alongside faith and reflection. The point isn’t to follow one perfect method. It’s to create a few minutes where our minds aren’t rushing from one thing to another.

Meditation Idea #1: Visit Your Favorite Place

Here’s an easy exercise to try:

Sit somewhere comfortable and become still.
Close your eyes if that feels comfortable.
Take two slow, deep breaths.
Imagine your favorite place in the whole world.
Think about what you see, hear, smell, and feel there.
Take two more slow breaths and stay with that feeling for a few moments.
When you’re ready, open your eyes.

That’s it. Meditation doesn’t always need to be long or complicated.

Meditation Idea #2: Notice Your Thoughts

Another option is to simply sit quietly and notice what enters your mind.

When a thought appears, acknowledge it without getting frustrated with yourself. You might quietly think, “That’s interesting,” and then gently return your attention to your breathing or the quiet around you.

Your mind will probably wander. That’s normal. Even experienced meditators continually practice returning their attention to their chosen focus. Mayo Clinic also notes that meditation takes practice and that the mind wandering is a normal part of the process.

What If Your Kids Won’t Sit Still?

Don’t let that stop you from trying.

Five minutes may be a lot for a young child. You can begin with one or two minutes, let them focus on breathing, listen to quiet music, imagine a favorite place, or simply sit together.

You can also pair this challenge with something more active. Our Gentle Daily Walk Challenge is another simple way to slow down, get outside, and create a little more space in the day.

And if your family enjoys reflection through conversation, try our Thank You Game challenge afterward. Gratitude and quiet reflection work beautifully together.

Make the Challenge Work for Your Family

Your five minutes might happen first thing in the morning, before bedtime, after homeschool lessons, in the car before an activity, or outside in the sunshine.

You could meditate alone, together as a family, use a guided meditation, pray quietly, or simply sit and breathe.

The goal is not to make meditation another thing to accomplish perfectly. The goal is to intentionally create a small pocket of stillness in your day.

If you’ve enjoyed other small habit challenges, you may also like our Smile More Challenge or our Daily Music Challenge. Each one is a different way to bring a little more intention into ordinary family life.