How have you been? Around here, the last few weeks have been hard — practising my daily meditation was nearly impossible for days on end because of an epic chest infection that I am still getting over, four weeks on.
Stillness feels like a dream of the past (oh, the dream). I sit upright on my meditation cushion, of course I don’t dare recline, lying down isn’t much of an option. My sternum rocks, my chest feeling contracted and tight from the coughing. I yearn to connect with my breath and I can, sort of, but I’m very aware of the unpleasant sensations linked to each in-breath and out-breath.
I’m not alone, of course. It’s that time of the year, flu/cold season, especially if you are in the Northern hemisphere. And if you are in the USA, Thanksgiving has come and gone, and with it a break (hopefully) and the beloved and dreaded family time.
This reminds me to feel grateful for what is okay, or even what is good in this moment.
The end of the year can bring as much joy as it can offer pain, frustration, exhaustion, and other assorted difficulties. It’s how we react or relate to what is happening, moment by moment, that shapes our lives.
Creating a pause before acting or speaking is the gift of MIND-FUL-NESS.
We can cultivate a different state, a quality of being that is innate but that takes work to develop. And we can nurture this by gifting ourselves daily with a moment of gratefulness, a few intentional breaths, and perhaps five minutes (or fifteen) of quiet time to change the inner monologue, and create new possibilities in our lives.
Throughout it all, the ups and downs, between the coughs and the sneezes, I feel grateful for my practice, the tools I have and the connection to myself that it fosters, the sense of being home.
So here’s to being thankful for what works in our lives. To you reading me! and to our teachers! ✨🙏🏼
Want to nurture your practice? Join the MeetUp community ‘Mindfulness Meditation Geneva’ and meditate live via Zoom three times per week or find me on Insight Timer. Or get in touch for one-on-one coaching.
Until next time, with mettā
