Here's a lovely little lesson from one of my favourite meditation teachers, Buddhist monk Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche which explains that you don't have to try to empty your mind of thoughts to practice mindfulness.
Sitting in a comfortable position, close your eyes to focus, and there's only one rule. You are not allowed to think of anything that's related to pizza. Not size, not toppings, not where you buy it from, not when you plan to eat one again.
Sit quietly for five minutes, and at the end of that time, ask yourself whether you actually thought about pizza at all. Chances are it's going to be what you mostly thought about, because you couldn't get it out of your mind, once it had been planted there.
But it doesn't matter. It's just to remind yourself to come back to the current moment, over and over again if you need to when meditating. It's just not possible to stop the chatter of the mind, but many would-be mindfulness meditators give this as the excuse for 'not being able to meditate.' Just remember that whenever you find your thoughts wandering, come back to the current moment. The pizza is just a representation of our daily problems which we tend to obsess about, as our minds search for solutions and outcomes.
Give it a try and see if Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche isn't right.
And if you'd like to watch the actual video, here it is!
Photo: Jordan Nix Unsplash
Southern France Farm