Friday, December 12, 2008

Meditation - Day 2

Duration: 15 minutes

Type of meditation: Mirra’s heart-centered meditation snacks

Reflections: Meditation was more challenging today - in part because Nick was home and making noises that distracted me. I also had a hard time stopping my brain from reflecting on what I was feeling and putting it into words so that I could record it here later. (Oh the irony!) I really like the feeling in my head and body after I spend just a few minutes meditating. It’s hard to describe, but if you can imagine a pool of water that is completely calm, that comes close.

I also got bored today, about 3/4 of the way through. Has that ever happened to anyone? Rather than stopping, I refocused on my breath and the light in my heart-center and the feeling seemed to go away. When the three bells chimed, signaling the end of my meditation, I wasn’t sure I was done. Interesting.

Let’s see how the rest of the day goes!

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Meditation - Day 1

I’ve had this intention to make meditation a regular part of my daily life, but haven’t quite been able to pull it off. Then it hit me that maybe a blog-experiment was just what I needed to motivate me to try practicing every day. I’m not sure if “blog-experiment” is an actual concept or not, but I got the idea from Steve Pavlina.

He hosts a thought-provoking blog devoted to personal development. One of the interesting things he does is experiment on himself - testing self-improvement ideas like polyphasic sleep, raw diets, juice feasting, etc. - to see if the benefits that are touted by the various believers/practitioners actually work for him. He commits to a period of time and blogs about his experience. Some experiments, like the raw diet, are successful, while others, like juice feasting, don’t work for him.

The Plan

I am purposefully not going to set any rules regarding the length of time I have to meditate each day, the location, or type of meditation. I just have to meditate, for some length, each day at least until January 9th. I will keep track of my meditations to see how it affects me.

Depending on reader interest, I could blog about this experience as I go along or just share a summary every few days. I realize this may seem a very radical to some people, so I’m not sure how many people would care to read about my experience with it. When I do log it publicly, I’ll of course be brutally honest in sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly.

If you happen to meditate on a regular basis especially for longer than 30 days, I’d welcome your feedback and advice, either via the comments (public) or the contact form (private).

Pre-meditation preparation

I found a small tool online called Buddha Bells, to help me time my meditation. That way I can set a time limit and stick to it without checking my watch to see how much longer I have to go. Vipassana Santa Cruz offers a similar, albeit simpler timer on their website, which would also work.

I also did some research on meditation posture. When I have meditated in the past, I’ve experienced all sorts of uncomfortable side effects, such as loosing sensation in my legs and a sharp pain appearing in my upper back between my shoulder blades. Rather than invest in a zafu, meditation bench, or other elaborate setup, I’ve decided for the time being at least to meditate sitting in a chair. This morning, I raised the back of my chair about an inch, using a book and placed a rolled blanket across my lap to support my hands and keep them from sliding down my legs. It was unusual at first, considering how much I sit in a “flat” chair, but I seemed to get used to it.

Day 1

Duration: 20 minutes

Type of meditation: Listening to a chant (10 minutes), Mirra’s heart-centered meditation snacks (10 minutes)

Reflections: It was really hard to relax my muscles during the chant and focus on the music. Eventually, I gave up trying to “meditate” while the chant was going. I opened my eyes and read the text as the song went along. When it was done, I closed my eyes again and did six mental centerings and three hip centerings. There was still time left, so I simply concentrated on my breath. When my mind wandered, as it’s apt to do, I refocused on my breath.

I had that familiar pain between my shoulder blades when I started. Interestingly, it seemed to melt as I did the mental centerings.

I meditated in our home office, next to the computer, and found the glow of the screen a bit distracting. I’m going to cover it with a scarf next time.

Now, how do I feel? I certainly feel calmer after my brief meditation. I also have a strong desire to ride my bike to school - something I knew I should do, but wasn’t sure I wanted to do before my meditation. If I notice anything else worth blogging about, I’ll post an update later.

Update: As I was packing up to ride this morning, I was thinking about where I might have left my cell phone charger. (I haven’t been able to find it for several days.) Out of nowhere, I just knew that it was in my red backpack. Nick suggested the other day that it was in a bag or maybe in my car. I put two and two together and realized that I had emptied my car out last week and used a red backpack to transport things into the house. When I looked in the backpack, there it was! A result of meditation? I can’t say for sure, but I was happy to find the charger.

I also noticed that I was much less agitated on the bike ride to school about the bad behaviors of others (talking on cell phones while driving, for example). I usually have a desire to yell at someone to hang up and drive. Today, I actually thought to myself: “He knows what he is doing is illegal. There’s not much I can do to change that, is there?” And then I didn’t want to say anything anymore. Go figure.

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

“I love cyclocross!”

Nick hasn’t really had an interest in cyclocross racing. Until this year, that is. He raced every race (except the weekend we were in Banff), setting and meeting important goals, such as beating a certain rival rider each race. Last weekend, while I was slaving away finishing my Indian law outline, he participated in the final race of the season and brought home a solid 11th place. Way to go babe!

Monday, December 08, 2008

Lake Samammish Loop Variation

I’m not sure how some students do it. They get up early every day and study until late into the evening. Each minute of every day is scheduled - down to the exact minute they’re going to shower (if at all). My limit is about 6 to 8 hours a day, depending on what type of studying I’m doing. I also need to take short breaks every hour and a half or so. Usually, I do a few push-ups and sit-ups to get the blood flowing. Sometimes I stretch and meditate to rest my brain and let the material settle.

This afternoon was lovely (in December that means it was above 40 degrees and not raining), so Nick and I took off on the bikes for a few hours before dinner. When we want a short loop we usually go over Juanita Drive and back home via the Sammamish Slough. This time, I took Nick on a ramble through Issaquah and Bellevue. Our trip even included a stop at the local Buddhist Temple in Redmond.

We started from home and went down West Lake Sammamish Road before heading west on Newport Way. The route pictured here, would be better for folks meeting at the Velodrome at Marymoor Park. It takes you clockwise around Lake Sammamish, something of a novelty.

When you’re done, you’ll have 25 miles and 1400+ feet of climbing under your belt. Not bad for a not-rainy afternoon in December.

Sunday, December 07, 2008

Props for my pa

If you haven’t read today’s Seattle Times yet, grab a copy and flip to the Travel section. One of my dad’s pictures is on the front page. If you don’t have access to a copy of the paper, you can see it online: