The Mind, Body, Spirit retreat offers quiet and space to withdraw from the busyness of life to reflect on and deepen one’s personal commitment to well-being. With guided instruction of simple techniques and take home tools for continued practice, you will return to balance with ease. Continue reading
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In “Becoming a Healer,” author Deborah Schlag shares her observations, struggles, and successes with overcoming Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBT). Hers is an inspiring story of coming to terms with confusion, loss of memory and need to leave behind an old identity and discover a new way of living. Continue reading
Day 22- It seems that there is no time for time…or to do enough in that time. If I let myself get caught up in this ideology I will start thinking about all of the things I have to do and the amount of time left. The super calculator in my brain would just combust. Our sense of time is nonsensical. Anyway, I know better. See, I didn’t even list the things I am trying to do right now. In the years of my Type A recovery I have learned that multitasking is not a real thing. Most importantly, I have learned to just let go and do what I can, one step at a time, and to be present for it.
So if you are feeling any twinge of not having enough time, focus, organization, or whatever it is you don’t have enough of, this is my offering to you. For the rest of the Real Happiness Meditation Challenge check out MyMindfulWayofLife.com and access our 5 minute Meditation on Breath: Click for meditation
Check out the full meditation CD with soothing sounds of nature here or download it on Itunes by searching for Mindfulness Based Biofeedback by Urszula Klich.
sunrise by ikarwowski-deviantart.com
Begin Again
How is sit-sit-sitting
going to help?
When all I wanna do
is yell-cry-yell!
Okay okay okay
I’ll try again anyway.
I take a deep breath,
notice where my attention goes,
find I’m feeling grateful
for my amazing nose.
But then I remember
so much work to do,
and I’m not limber,
and I’m mad at you.
“Notice, simply notice,”
the calm voice says,
and I start to realize
the power in my head–
when I simply notice,
name, and let go,
this future-tripping
falls away like snow.
This judging and anger–
it’s ok they’re there,
but they’re not the same as me,
and I am everywhere.
Another deep breath
as my hands begin to warm,
and I forget to worry
about my lack of perfect form.
None of us are perfect,
and that’s okay.
Somehow each and every moment
can be the start of a new,
perfectly imperfect day.
-Signed, Meditating Poet.
Some days we want to never end, some days we may count down the minutes. The moments contained in each of those days is precious in its own way, and possibly informative if we can stay present. Each breath can be a resetting of the clock to signal a new beginning, even if only to get through a moment of difficulty. Starting anew, beginning again is a way for us to refresh ourselves.
To meditate, or to do work, or to check the blog, or to be with the kids? THAT is the question. The possibilities floated by like fish gliding through the ocean and circling back around. They weren’t intrusive thoughts. On the contrary. I barely paid any attention to them. That was it! I was not paying any mindful attention to what I was doing or my thoughts. Continue reading
These thoughts arose from my stuffy nose sitting meditation. I’d been down this road before. A sinus infection, a cold, a relentless headache. None of these are an excuse to skip meditation, in my mind. At the same time, these challenges dont make it any more pleasant. Over the years, I have begun to think of each sick, painful or “off” feeling as an opportunity to deepen my practice. I suppose one could say this about any adversity.
Tonight, as if I needed to forewarn myself, I acknowledged that this would be my stuffy nose meditation. It was almost as if to banish any expectations of relief or potential serenity. So, I set my timer for a conservative 15 minute cutoff which I rationalized was adequate to sit with my stuffy nose, in my tired body. My routine is to start with observing the breath from its moment of entry. So there it was. The breath was not going to make its way into my nose today. My mouth was getting dry and lips were chapped from the dry air. Still, I was in acceptance and I knew that was fine. I would simply sit in expansive awareness and notice the totality of the experience.
Then, it arose. The utter boredom. It happened in a flash. My mind had tired of being with this unpleasantness and sought greener pastures. It’s not even that I thought of good things, just anything other than what is. I had started to get absorbed in planning a task. I caught myself and laughed. I thought to myself, “if I am going to be with something else unpleasant that is not even happening, I might as well be with what is.” Here I have the advantage of truly feeling in real time. There was certainly much more richness within the present experience, outside of the breath itself. Of course. There was the cozy comforter I had positioned around my meditation cushion. It was warm, quiet and there was nothing to have to do but just be. It was then that the fullness of the experience was present before me.
When we turn away from pain, we turn away from the only moment we have. In that way, we don’t just avoid what is negative but miss what is full and good. I emerged from my meditation with a stuffy nose and a smile. It was not that long ago that it occurred to me that wherever we are we need to practice being there, even if it is unpleasant or boring. Otherwise, we will soon find ourselves somewhere else during those times it really matters, being only partially present with people we truly care about.
Read more in “Wherever You are You are Somewhere Else” If you haven’t done so already I, along with meditation teacher, Sharon Salzberg, challenge you to join us on this 28 day Real Happiness journey. In addition to resources at SharonSalzberg.com check out MyMindfulWayofLife.com and access a free sample meditation to follow along: Click for meditation Come along there is still time to Begin!
The months of May and June mark the time of year that kids are scrambling around to honor their mother and father for that one special day. Visions of elaborate breakfasts in bed may lead to trails of dripping eggs and clouds of flower in the kitchen aftermath. Painted handprints create everything from flower petals to butterfly wings, pronouncing each child’s love for mommy or daddy. So on that day we may ease up on expectations of clean kitchens and even take the time to tune in and admire the most simplistic of our children’s creations. Continue reading
What is rain but the product of a collision between thousands of minuscule droplets of water. It is this collection of droplets that joins with particles in the air such as dust and other foreign bodies that form a cloud. Through this process of collision and joining, the mass eventually becomes heavy enough to cause what we see as rain- liquid drops of water falling from the sky.
Day 1 of Sharon Salzberg’s Real Happiness Challenge, and here it was evening already and I hadn’t formally meditated. No, I wasn’t avoiding it, at least not this time. No, I hadn’t forgotten. In fact, it was on my mind when I was awakened by an energetic superhero toddler. Continue reading
During February, renowned meditation teacher and author, Sharon Salzberg sponsors a 28-Day Meditation Challenge. I challenge you to join us on this 28 day Real Happiness journey to begin or renew your practice by committing to meditate every day for the month. During this time, there will be numerous references and a great deal of support from various areas to keep your practice going and help you understand the experience. You can find the posts on SharonSalzberg.com and on MyMindfulWayofLife.com Like us on Facebook for updates. Access a free sample meditation to follow along: Click for meditation
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