The One Practice You Need Right Now

Your eternal nature is one of expansion- and expansion is the potential for unspeakable joy. –Abraham-Hicks

The November Experiment

At the beginning of November, I finally decided to commit to a practice that I have long, long desired to incorporate into my life.

Meditation.

I have been dancing with the practice and idea of meditation for at least 10 years now.  And over these 10 years, I have been through many stops and starts: sometimes meditating for weeks on end but only sporadically, other times abandoning it entirely because I “didn’t have time for it.”  Or, I would meditate, nothing would “happen” and frustration and judgment would rip through me like a bad case of food poisoning.

Meditation is like a green smoothie:  you’ve heard of it, it’s probably a good idea, but you’re really afraid it’s going to taste bad.  You let the idea slip through the cracks of life’s busy-ness and chaos.  It plummets down the priority list as urgency claims itself sovereign of your daily experience. It’s also just plain scary to sit in complete silence and non-doing with yourself because frankly, there is nowhere to escape, no distractions, no shiny objects.  So, you don’t meditate. The excuses are many, right?

Mine were too. But in November, I committed to meditating at least 5 days a week for a minimum of 20 minutes.  I’m not formally trained in meditation practices and have never attended a meditation retreat.  I don’t follow any rules nor ascribe to a particular path.

I simply began.

My motivation.

Before you can make a green smoothie, you have to gather your ingredients.  Your motivation is a good place to start. So, why do you want to meditate?  Or better question, why don’t you want to meditate?  Spend some time in these questions and see what shows up.  You might be surprised.

I began because I sought guidance and wisdom, I really wanted to hear what that little voice in my heart had to say about everything. From business planning, to family dynamics, to creative projects– I wanted guidance on how to prioritize.  I also wanted to deepen trust in myself and express more of who I really am.

I began because refuse to pay loyalty to fear and self-oppression.  I have been afraid to meditate for fear of disliking what I might find. Would I have to make huge changes in my already dynamic life?  Would I find that I’m not as capable or good as I thought I was?  Would I feel feelings that I’d just rather not? These were some of the questions that came up for me and I wanted to face them.

I began because I wanted a better relationship with myself and the people around me.  I’ve been told that I can be “all or nothing” in my relationships in that I won’t settle for quaint platitudes, surface conversations about the weather or hiding behind polite pleasantries that don’t really tell me who you are.   I crave intimacy and knew that it had to begin with me.

The Practice that Emerged

The first week, I simply sat down, set the timer for 20 minutes and started with counting my breaths: “Inhaling 1, exhaling 1.  Inhaling 2, exhaling 2…”  trying to get to 10 before the ticker tape of my mind derailed my focus.

This morphed into observing my unchecked internal experiences zooming along and then naming them, “thought about work, emotion, thought about husband, urge to open my eyes and check time, elbow itchy…” In naming my internal experiences, it gave me some measure of distance from them, a pause if you will.

Simple.  But not easy.  First “green smoothie” tasted better than I thought.

By week 2, I realized that a very natural ritual had emerged and so I kept following it.  It went/goes like this:

• Light a candle
• Settle in
• Follow my breathing
• Ask for guidance
• Picture myself as a Hollow Bone- open to receiving
• Open my eyes
• Choose 3 Angel Cards
• Free write

And so it went like this for the entire month.  Mediation is a practice in returning to simplicity.  It is also a practice of focusing my attention, choosing where I want it to go, and no longer being a slave to my ego.  The more I meditated, the easier it became, I wanted to keep doing it and I could do it for longer and longer with less and less discomfort.

The Results

As I write this post, I am exuberant.

I feel wildly generous and expansive in ways that until now, I didn’t know existed.  My ability to focus, draw upon creative inspiration and then take action is unparalleled.  I have more patience with everything, and with more patience, I have more choices.  I have more energy than ever, like “I’m-jumping-out-of-bed” energy.  I feel completely in Flow.  Life balance is no longer an illusion but a reality, a joyful, comfortable, dance-able reality.

I swim in beauty and it takes my breath away.

See?  Meditation.  It is the only new factor I introduced into my life last month. The benefits became more clear just 2 weeks after beginning.  And I’m pretty sure that it will just get better and better over time.  That every time I consciously choose to be present in the moment through stillness, silence and non-doing, I will reap rewards such as happiness, equanimity, wisdom and love.

Getting the picture?

Some Tips to Begin a Regular Meditation Practice

Release the notion that there is a “right” way to meditate.

There isn’t.  Meditation cultivates stillness and non-doing, a much needed break from the busy, hairy, urgent chaos of lives at warp speed.

Let go of any expectations or end results you’re wanting.

Meditation is the means.  Yes, I wanted to promote more well-being and joy in my life.  Yes, I wanted to feel less scattered and more in tune.  But these and other benefits arose naturally out of the practice and not because I was trying to change anything in my life.  It’s paradoxical, but the minute I understood that meditation wasn’t about wanting to change anything but more about embracing what is, everything shifted.

Conditions don’t have to be perfect to meditate.

Because there is no right way to meditate, there are also no right conditions to practice.  I have meditated on a plane, at the airport, with construction and/or lawnmowers whirring…  Distractions aplenty.  And I still meditated.  Though, I will admit that my favorite conditions to meditate in are in silence, in my office, seated on my couch, candle lit.

Whatever has kept you from meditating to this point is less important than simply beginning.

Commit. Believe. Begin.  Repeat.

So, you ready to take the meditation challenge starting today?  Ready to see what happens when you commit to sitting in stillness and non-doing with awareness?

If so, please share your intentions and commitment here on the blog so we can all support you and each other.  And if you already meditate, I would LOVE to hear your tips and tricks that keep you in this soul enlivening practice.

Now, don’t just do something, sit there!

Wishing you courage,

M.

PS: Here are a few seminal books I’d recommend as resources:

When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron

The Buddha’s Brain by Rick Hanson

Wherever You Go There You Are by John Kabat-Zinn

The Mindful Brain by Daniel Siegel

The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Naht Hanh