I (use to) often schedule time to meditate. I would allow 20, 30, even 60 minutes to meditate. I would do this when I could be left alone. If there were any distractions, that would be an excuse to skip out on meditation.
It's fine if you want to schedule a meditation time. I still do as well. But if you're looking for the perfect moment to meditate, it's not going to happen very often. The good news is that there is something else you can do. You don't need to schedule a time; you don't need the perfect moment. All you need is a moment. And your breath. It's called mindfulness meditation. This is when you become 100% fixated on what you are doing and your surroundings. If you have a passion or hobby you take part in, you may understand what I am talking about. You sort of "lose" yourself. Time passes and you don't realize. Your attention has been on what you are doing.
You can do this literally with anything. Taking a shower? Pay attention to the sound of the water running, how the water feels when it's on your body, the smells from products you may use. Doing the laundry? Notice how the clothes feels in your hands and pay attention to how you fold it. Periodically bring your attention to your breath. Breathe deep from your diaphragm. Don't worry your mind wanders away. Bring it back to your breath and what you're doing. Do this 100 times if you have to. And there you go! You're living in the present moment. It's that simple.
Also, distractions can be used to your advantage. Put all your attention on them. Even if they are unpleasant or annoying. They deserve love to!
Now you have no excuse!
I would love to hear from you. What do you do to meditate?
Have a great day (even if the sun isn't shining),
Ang
Here is a link to a more in-depth tutorial on how to meditate:
https://confessionsofanawakenedyouth.blogspot.ca/2017/04/meditation-for-dummies.html
Edit no. 1: I'm not sure why this is saving as one big paragraph when I actually put paragraphs in it. I'm new to all this and I'm not tech-savvy so please be patient. :)
Edit no. 2: I have figured out why my paragraphs weren't spacing. I was writing in HTML instead of compose. It's a learning experience right?!
Great article. I like to dedicate time to meditation but also find it hard to set aside the time. Making the effort to be present with any activity is a good way to keep the benefits going. I see both activities similar to rebooting a computer that is running slow. Sometimes you just have to clear out the memory before you can focus on what is happening now.
ReplyDeleteExcellent analogy. I'm happy to hear that other people are putting in an effort to mediation. Sometimes it's just a matter of finding what works for you.
DeleteThanks for reading and the comment :)