MINDFULNESS

My husband and I hosted a Meditation Mini-Retreat at our house this morning for a group of 10 friends, led by our friend who runs Meditate Seattle.  She did a great presentation of why meditation is so good for us:  mind, body, and soul.  She gave us lots of scientific evidence for the power of meditation to keep us healthy physically and mentally. The data is compelling.  We did several meditation practices -- using a mantra, focusing on taste, doing a body scan, focusing on listening.  With mindfulness meditation there is never a moment too short to "meditate" or be mindful of the moment you are inhabiting; it is, after all, the only real moment that exists.  The past and future are just products of the mind: memories and projections; regrets and worries; if only's and what if's.  Right now is ... well, whatever it is.  And actually right now, this split second!, is usually pretty fine.

Yesterday in class I was still trying to find my strength and balance after a long hiatus due to illness and found myself struggling a bit.  As we stood to do a pose where we raised first one arm then the other in the air to do a side stretch, it turned into a bit of a flow motion.  Suddenly I got out of my own critical way, and opened my eyes to what was around me.  I saw the class of 15 women, moving in perfect symmetry.  All ages and body sizes, all ability levels, fitness levels, baggy pants and t-shirts, lycra and sports bras, friends and strangers meeting together in the tranquil, beautiful studio.  Hues of green, blue, purple, red, yellow -- clothing and yoga mats and curtains -- flowing into a river of beauty surrounding and accentuating our movements.

It no longer mattered that I felt weak and uncoordinated, frustrated, or exhausted.  The only thing that mattered was being there in the company of others committed to breathing through whatever challenges they'd brought through the door with them, finding a space of welcome, of community, of breath and life.

Can you open your eyes to the beauty around you even in the midst of struggle?  Can you accept whatever is happening, knowing our minds tell us stories that may not be true?  "If only" can't be changed; "what if" may never happen.  Be. Here. Now.©

Namaste,  donnajurene