A Question on Meditation.
I was asked the question yesterday, “How should I meditate?”
Good question.
The question that I asked myself was not long ago was, “Why should I meditate.”
How is any way you feel comfortable.
The why is the harder question to response to straightforwardly.
Part of the answer to both is that you are actually starting to explore yourself.
We all have lived with ourselves for a long time. SOME OF US OLD FOLKS LONGER THAN OTHERS
The fact that we go about our lives, daily, hourly or year after year does not necessarily mean that we know ourselves.
It is an overwhelming task to truly understand what we are about, why we are afraid, what makes us tick and why we are so rigid about our lives.
Exploring the “why” behind all of our actions is something that most people don’t discover.
Are we that insecure that we just need approval all the time by showing off all that we have?
What about working for the wonderful things we gather around us? WORKING?
What about appreciating what we do have? ENOUGH!
Okay, okay enough moralizing about what is wrong with us humans.
We are always so busy.
Our minds are multitasking to get all our “stuff” done.
All this busy work creates a lot of stress.
Ever want to slow down enough to relax?
What about slowing down our body and mind? HOW?
How to slow down your mind that has been trained to react to all the stimuli around us is not easy. LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS OF STUFF
You need to retrain your mind.
By slowing down your mind you in fact will become more alert and sharper in everything you do.
Most people pray in a sanctuary as part of a structured religion.
Which ever faith that you chose to believe in, you have spirituality. SO….
The emphasis with meditation is that you have your sanctuary with you at all times.
It happens that you can meditate anywhere.
How to meditate is totally up to the individual.
You can start with a guide or a person talking you through a meditation.
There are meditations focused on breathing, healing, spiritual awareness or any topic you chose. ANYTHING OR ANYONE
You can read “How to meditate”. INTERNET TO THE RESCUE
Try to meditate on your own.
Most people think that you need to sit on the floor, have incense and candles burning with “funny” sounding music in the background. OH YEAH!
What you really need is somewhere quiet and comfortable.
If the floor is comfortable with a cushion, go for it.
You can certainly use a chair.
The way I start to meditate is to lightly exercise first.
My body needs some realignment to be quiet during meditation. STOP TWITCHING, IT’S DISTRACTING
My mind is what I need to focus on, not my body as I meditate.
When I am seated comfortably my meditation starts.
I just ask for help with the most important part of my day.
I have a “mala” or Indian prayer beads to help me with the second part of my meditation.
Prayers for healing, realignment of my energy and peace of mind are what this part of my meditation is about.
The third part of my meditation is to smile and relax into the quiet that I have surrounded myself with. PEACE IS BEAUTIFUL
How to meditate is a personal experience.
Learn with someone or by yourself.
It comes easier as you practice.
Why you should meditate has many reasons for me.
To distress myself, heal my broken body, keep a positive attitude during hard emotional, financial and personal times and to just plain cope with my life is why I meditate.
I have learned to focus on me.
I have learned to understand my past behaviors and redirect them.
I have learned to realign my attitude about many things.
I have found a way to manage all the “stuff” I do with a smile.
I understand that other people are overstressed and react accordingly.
I can avoid the same behavior because of my inner peace.
That peace I directly attribute to my meditation.
I like being here in the peaceful space.
Give it a try.
You could be a calm person too.
Piper, an emotional intelligent caring being
I would like to tell you about Piper.
Piper had a very powerful impact on me.
My emotions, my thought process and my creativity were stretched by Piper.
I would like to introduce you to Piper the way I was introduced.
I had called to make an appointment and Cindy agreed to meet with me.
I parked my car and walked over to Cindy who was holding Piper.
As I approached I noticed that Cindy was about my height and had pretty blond hair and brown eyes.
Piper had beautiful red hair and large brown eyes.
Piper took one very short jaded look at me and then just ignored me.
Cindy and I introduced ourselves and Cindy then introduced me to Piper.
I held out my hand to allow Piper to know my scent and realized how truly large he was.
Piper stood 16 ½ hands tall at the shoulder and was over 7 foot at the top of his head.
Piper was a horse.
It was love at first sight, as least on my part.
This was my first adult horseback riding lesson.
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Memories
Yes, it is Memorial Day.
Today is usually in honor of the people that have served our country in the Armed Forces.
This Memorial Day had become something more personal to me.
I am remembering important “people” in my life.
Some of these key people have been my father, all of my grandparents that I grew up knowing and certainly the many dogs that have been a part in my life.
At the memorial service for my father I wrote him a letter.
At the time I could not read it to the assembled friends and family.
The minister at the service needed to read it for me.
I would like to publish that letter now.
Several weeks after my father’s death, a dog that had been a part of my life for 16 years had to be put down.
In order to help with my stress, depression, grief and emotional crisis of looing two such important figures in my life, I wrote Heidi a letter that was to say how much I missed her.
I would like to publish that letter for you too.
Both of these letters, I recently found when I was “cleaning up” some old files on a computer.
I was brought back to many of those memories when I reread the letters.
I can now smile and enjoy the many wonder memories that all the important people in my life have provided me.
Memories are treasures from the past.
I found these letters to enjoy again.
I hope you will enjoy them as well.
Enjoy your treasures.
October 9, 1999
Dear Dad,
I want to thank you. There are so many things I want to thank you for doing for me, with me and showing me. Thank you for taking the time to teach me my times tables. Thank you for showing me how to read a map. Thank you for showing me how to look for animal tracks and which animals belonged to those tracks. You showed me how to plant vegetables, flowers and trees. You let me annoy you into showing me how to use all sorts of tools. You taught me how to clean a gun. I still sharpen my knives as if I were left handed.
I know that you were also a very difficult man. It always seemed you had to have things done your way. The vacations we went on, the foods we had at holidays, and sometimes the boys I went out with were your way. The times that I wanted to do it my way, were just a reflection of the way you always did things, your way. Be reasonable, do it my way was your idea of being a good parent and a good person. I now understand that you didn’t know any other way.
Because of this control, you sometimes did things the hard way. This control also allowed you to get through some very rough times. This control was what made you into the strong person you became. That tempered steel attitude allowed you to start your own business. That business became a success because of your attitude. The business that you can still be proud of today.
I will always remember your sense of fun. I will always see you sitting at the dinner table with Erick or Ben on your lap and tickling them. Their squirming and giggling and struggling to get away, then turning right back again once you did let them go and wanting to be tickled again. I could see in your face that you were having as much fun as they were. I can also imagine and hope that once upon a time you enjoyed doing the same to Bruce and me. I will always remember your joy in having fun.
Thank you for being the person you were, because it certainly helped me become the person I am in so many ways. I hope you will continue to enjoy hunting and fishing. I hope you will have some fun.
Love,
Dale
October 26, 1999
Dear Heidi,
Do you want to go for a walk? Do you want to go for a ride? Do you want to go out? You always enjoyed being on the go and meeting people. You tried to be everyone’s friend. You certainly were our social butterfly. Everyone offered you a great opportunity to get a different sniff or maybe even mooch a snack. You loved those potato chips and french fries. Sometimes you could even sneak in a lick on a hand or face or knee. Knees were the best because they just the right height for you to give a special lick, especially Stan’s.
I still see you sitting so regally on top of you dog house, just waiting for me to come home. Your black coat just draped over your back, as if it were an outer cape. Your white ruffled throat and white stockings were so elegant. Those brown eyes that drooped just enough to see the red rims of your lower eyes were enough to melt our hearts. How you enjoyed laughing when you were patted.
How you loved the water. The first time you were taked to the beach was such a treat. You went charging across the sand and then stopped just short of the water. You turned your head toward me, as if to ask permission to go in. You were motioned forward and said to go on in. What an enthusiastic running jump you took! How happy you were! There was very little to stop you from going into the water after that. The puddles you would lie down in to cool off. The ice you would break at the edge of the pond so you could go for a paddle. What a surprise it was to realize you enjoyed quahoging too.
You so enjoyed being outside. The fields you bounded through with you ears flying behind you or up and down as you sprang up to see over the taller brush. All those tennis balls you chased across the lawn were so much fun. The snow balls you would catch or go digging for if they hit the ground. And your oak stick you had to carry around was so special. Like so many great sticks it got chewed to nothing. Those special walks we took, especially on trash days with all those great smells were your favorite.
You have been such a good friend and companion, I would like to thank you for letting me be a part of your pack.. Hopefully, we can go for a walk again sometime.
Love,
Dale
The Effects of Depression on Others
What is it like to sit across the table from a depressed person for 12 years?
A good friend asked that question of me not so long ago.
This question hit me like a tsunami.
What is it like?
What have I been doing for the last decade plus?
The answer to that first question I now understand.
It has been a year in the thought process to understand the issues that have generated the answers.
I found part of the answer by making the decision to quite a 37 year old marriage and putting some time and distance between me and that depressed person to allow me to truly understand the situation.
I hadn’t really thought about what depression looked like from my side of the table.
What was I doing all those years?
Walk of Terror
I love to walk.
Some of you have heard the speech of my morning walk with Buddy.
My dog, Buddy and I walk every morning, 365 days a year.
The walk is better than the alternative…..
Several weeks ago, I took my car into be serviced.
It was going to take between 1-2 hours.
Okay, so what was I going to do?
I forgot to bring my book.
The option of sitting in a nice dealer showroom with air conditioning was not this scenario.
The auto mechanic that I took my car to uses Eau de Petroleum for a fragrance on himself and in the waiting room.
His waiting room is designed by Nauga Hyde with a heavy influence from Nas Car.
His idea of air conditioning was to open the overhead door.
The day is hot and the comfort of sitting on a form of petroleum, breathing in fumes of some form of petroleum and looking at pictures of racecars wasn’t my idea of entertainment.
The service center is located in an unusual spot.
