Peace of Mind

Meditation has become popular as a way to quiet the mind so that you many enjoy your own natural state of peacefulness. A popular form of meditation includes watching your thoughts but not attaching to them, and another includes staying focused on your breath so when a thought arises you simply go back to focusing on your breath. These are wonderful techniques to start working with our mind. However, many of us have monkey mind so it is very difficult to sit and be with our own thoughts. 

Another way to experience the same peace of mind is to chant or sing devotional lyrics. I am sure all faiths have a form of singing and chanting but I know firsthand that kirtan, a call and response chanting/singing of hindu gods, is a way to directly quiet the mind and engage the heart. The experience seems much easier for a busy mind to get to the juicy place of a peaceful mind and a joyful heart. So go to the thebhaktibar.com to check out local events of kirtan to try something that just may become part of your weekly practice.

Letting Go

My trip home yesterday was a perfect situation to practice the art of letting go. I flew stand-by since my trip was unexpected and all the flights were overbooked so I ended up going to San Diego with no connecting flight back to San Francisco. After doing all the "right" things to list on a new flight the agent still would not let me get on a flight. He said the system needed an authorization. I got the proper authorization and the system still would not let me on the flight. 

There was absolutely nothing I could do. I tried talking to the agent, checked out rental cars, inquired about the cost of other flights, so finally I decided to buy a flight back. I thought my entire day spent traveling is a great example of letting go. 

There was no use in getting anger even though I felt like it. My anxiety was reaching a high point so I just continued to breathe deep breaths into my belly. I texted friends instead of speaking to share a little of my frustration but also to connect. A lot of life is about surrendering to what we cannot control...a failed relationship, a job rejection, the loss of a loved one, etc. In many ancient philosophies it is said that our free will is only our response to something already happening so this is a lot of letting go. But we do get the choice in how we respond to life's events. See what makes you feel more happiness...responding peacefully and lovingly or the opposite.

Intimate Relationship

How much of your attention and energy is spent on an intimate relationship? If you have a relationship you may be devoting a lot time on your partner, and if you do not have a partner your longing might be taking up even more time. Many of us of have incurred our greatest pain in relationships. I just watched "The Notebook" again for about the third time. In short the film is about a wife who has dementia and a husband who is devoted to her remembering so he recites a book about their love story. She remembers. 

I spent some time thinking about why my heart felt so connected to this story, and ALL love stories, and why I wept for what they shared. As with most love stories they shared playfulness, devotion, loyalty, conflict, passion, and a person who will be there until the very end. The interesting thing about what they shared is also available to us through the love of a child, the love of a friendship, the love of an animal, the love of clients, etc...the feelings are not reserved for an intimate relationship. Pick up the classic "The Art of Loving" to see the authors various categories of love. The shift to thinking in a broader sense allows us to be fully present to all of life's happenings. And just when you are loving who knows what or "who" can show up.