Some days, I sit down knowing exactly what I want to write about. Sometimes you see a post that has been drafted in advance, and revised multiple times, with most details carefully selected to best support my message. And then there are days like today where I stare at the screen for a minute or more before I understand what I want to share.
I have had renewed energy for my meditation practice since I got Ann Swanson’s Meditation For the Real World. Disclaimer: this post is not sponsored and I am not being paid to rave about this beautiful hardcover. There are illustrations, useful diagrams to help with breathing patterns and the brain science of meditation, and charts and quote blocks. The colours are calming and the two-column page style makes the text easy to read. Most importantly, it offers dozens of meditation exercises organized into practical topics relating to everyday life.
I am learning that I am someone who appreciates and benefits from reviewing the same information in multiple texts: there is a lot in Swanson’s book that I also read in my meditation training. Rather than finding this boring, I feel that it helps reinforce the knowledge, and often adds context (since I am seeing the same facts while also being further along in my own meditation journey).
If you are looking to begin a meditation practice for yourself, I think a lovely goal is once a day for 1-2 minutes. You can start with a focus on the breath, on the way it feels moving through your nasal passages, your esophagus, and filling and emptying your lungs. Take a moment to ask yourself how you feel afterward, and as you build your practice, get into the habit of doing this before and after each exercise.
My current meditation goals are:
- for ten minutes after dismissing my morning alarm, before scrolling on my phone
- during transitions between activities
- at least once daily when I feel the urge to pick up my phone
It’s been a good day and I’ve hit all of them already, which helped me sit down at my computer and be calm about the fact that I didn’t know what I wanted to say here. That peace of mind meant I could just sit and be for a minute, and let something float up to me. What I heard my inner voice say was, “trust the process,” which is an especially useful reminder for beginning a blog post.
It can be difficult to trust a process that we are less familiar with, like when I was beginning massage school and hadn’t understood how to properly connect with my own body. In moments like these, I like to think of the Fool from the tarot deck, the zeroth card of the major arcana, who goes through the other 21 cards as part of their journey. This makes them a part of the beginning, middle, and end of the process. When you’re trying something new, invite a sense of foolishness and play as you’re figuring out your own process. Give yourself grace and laugh a little, if you can.
Housekeeping notice
I will be unavailable at the Cavendish location from Tuesday, January 27th to Friday, January 30th for bathroom repairs. You may still request an appointment at Meta 1111 during this time period (please note that I am not presently offering shiatsu at this location).
I will be pet sitting next month, from Wednesday, February 18th to Sunday, February 22nd.
Other than that, the times you see in my booking calendar are times I am happy to work, and I am in the habit of blocking time if my agenda starts to fill up. I find it so important to have rest days between days of increased activity and hope you have opportunities to do the same for yourself.
