I breathed through the family outing yesterday at the Huntington Gardens. I began my day with a half an hour sit and have carried the stillness through out the day. I'm not sure of the correlation, but everybody was on their best behavior. Even the traffic getting there did not stir up the waters. I had Kirtana playing in the background, a spiritual singer/songwriter, and nobody asked me to change the music.
The Practice
Morning meditation - 30 minutes
Reflection
Starting the day with meditation is like getting yourself to work out the first thing in the morning. All the mind wants to do is go back to sleep or get some coffee or browse the internet. The mind is very busy in the morning and I'm realizing that's why so many people hate waking up early and need some kind of a stimulation to get them going. And it's not just busy, it sort of refills your psyche with backstory of how you got here, what your goals are, what you're not doing, what you should be doing, what you have, what makes you feel good and what doesn't, and all those details in between.
However, the mind does still once you sit with it for a while. If we roll over into our day without taking a breather or taking it slow, then it's just another day of living through one thing after another and never getting there. I find the rest of my day to be grounding, calm, and clear after the morning sit.
I agree. Morning sits can be difficult. In general, I think the most difficult part of sitting is actually getting oneself to sit down and start meditating. The rest takes care of itself, but it requires having the necessary discipline to actually meditate.
ReplyDelete