To follow the path, you must be the path. 

Thoughts in Meditation

During morning meditation today a leaf fell from the potted tree in my meditation space.   I heard it in the subtlest way in my mind.  It did not interfere with my meditation, but a thought came up immediately after the sound.   “If a tree falls is the forest, does it make a sound?”  An answer followed immediately.  “Of course it does, it is our ego that thinks it doesn’t, because we aren’t there to hear it.”  I then had a sense of a large tree falling in the deep woods, with a whoosh sound and a loud thud.  How interesting. 

Now why would I think that? It is interesting where these kinds of insights come from.  Often in meditation, you get some of your most important questions answered, have solutions to problems come to you and at times profound and interesting thoughts come. 

This is why meditation teachers tell their students to keep a pad of paper and a pen or pencil nearby.  If you like, write down the thoughts that you had come up during your meditation.  Don’t come out of meditation to write them down however. 

We don’t always want to suppress the thoughts that we have during meditation.  You can and should tell the negative thoughts to go away.  You can also ask for a solution to a problem in a question meditation.  If an interesting thought comes up, you can just let it flow.  I often come up with good ideas.  I have had for example; design ideas come to me for my garden or a room in my house.  It is not as much a picture, as it is an idea.  Does that make sense?  So I have learned to write some of the things down, so I would not forget it.  Just as I wrote that thought from this morning.  I don’t really think that thought would have come to me at any other time, other than in meditation.  Thoughts that are so profound often come from a meditative mind, from someone who meditates all of the time.   Studies have shown that the brains of frequent Meditators are different from other people.  I have never heard anyone say, nor have I seen my thought written anywhere, with that particular answer.   

Even in deep meditation, on a very unconscious level, you still are aware of the sounds around you.  They enter your consciousness on the subtlest of levels.  You don’t necessarily need to acknowledge them.  But when you do, don’t let them disturb you.  Instead, let them become part of your meditation.  This is what mindfulness meditation is about.  You hear your breathing, you feel your body, you are aware of what your body is doing.  You hear the sounds aground you.  They are you and part of you. 

So how did I know that it was a dry leave cascading to the floor, you might have asked.  I did not see it fall or open my eyes to look at it.  I remained in meditation.  I felt it, as well as heard it inside my mind.   What I am trying to relate, is that it did not interrupt my meditation.  It just brought out an interesting insight.  It actually enhanced my meditation.  

On some level my mind knew exactly what the sound was, because I have heard it before.  I have seen the dry leaves fall from that tree and heard them hit the floor.  My mind remembered that sound and related it to a dry leave falling and hitting the wood floor. 

Meditating regularly enhances your focus and perception.  You become more aware of things that you may not have noticed before.  You have more clarity of thought and more insight into things and the world around you.  Your intuition becomes heightened.  If you trust those feelings, you will better perceive subtle little signs and be able to put the pieces together into a conclusion.  People who say they can read people practice this everyday, without realizing it.  They pick up the clues and signs and piece them together in their minds.  Through meditation, the increased ability to focus on normally hidden signs heightens one’s awareness.

People you know may think that you have an ability to predict things.  In a way, you do.   However, it is not prediction.  Actually, it is nothing more than the better ability to see things as they are or many become. 

The Last Rose of the Season

 

Love of the Printed Page; What Makes a Book Beautiful

I recently joined PermanenceMatters.com, because I love books. Permanence Matters promotes the importance of printed books and pages printed on quality paper.  I would rather read a book on a quality prinked page, than on cheap copy paper. 

Now mind me, I like to read blogs, articles and other things online.  Obviously I do or I wouldn’t be writing a blog.  But when it comes to a good book, I like the full experience of it.  I like the smell of the pages.  I like to feel the quality of the paper.  I like to look at the cover, especially if it has a well designed dust cover, or good binding.  I like the feel of a book in my hands.  I also appreciate a good quality paperback. 

A good book is your friend.  It shares it secrets with you.  It waits for you to turn its pages or come back later.  I love to sit outside on a warm sunny day and read, or curl up in an overstuffed chair and snuggle in for a long read, as I drink oolong tea.    Reading is an adventure.  You can travel to places you’ve never dreamed of and meet people you would never otherwise have a chance to meet.  I own many different kinds of books, on all sorts of topics and types of fiction. 

Some books I pass on for others to treasure too.  Favorites are read over and over.  As a girl, I read "Black Beauty" so many times; the pages were falling out of the binding.  My favorite book is “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen.  I’ve read several different copies of it.  I’ve probably read it seven times and I’ve watched every film or television version of it I come across.  Elizabeth Bennett is one of my best friends from the literally world; and I’ve grown very fond of Mr. Darcy.   Books should be honored for the worlds they open for us.  Books are our windows to the world and the soul. 

As I blogged about before, I always go to the local library's book sales and look for interesting books to buy.  I usually come home with several.  Books deserve to be re-circulated and passed on to others.  Sometimes the books even tell a story about the pervious owners. 

I like to write things, like this blog, because I love to read.  I like to read about people’s interests, passions and ideas.  I also like to learn new things and many of those new things are written in books. 

When I was a kid and well into high school, I used to devour several books a week.  We would go to the library and I would borrow about ten books for the two week time limit.  At night I would close the door to my room, when I was supposed to be in bed.  I would go under the covers with a flashlight and read.   I used to sit in the living room and read by the light of the street light.  My mother often told me I would go blind reading that way. 

I read “The Exorcist” in one sitting.  I sat in the bathroom with the light on until I finished it at three in the morning.  I felt safer in that room with the door closed, sitting on the floor, pressed up against the heat register, as if it would protect me from the demons.  I was too scared to leave, or turn the lights off and go to bed!  I laugh at that memory now.  Horror stories no longer affect me like that, but what fun to be so immersed in a book.  You create much better pictures in your mind with words, than any movie can put on the screen. 

When I went through college and graduate school, I became more of a chapter skipper.  There was so much to read and write, especially in graduate school.  I only got an opportunity to read a book on breaks from school.  Today I read a lot of non-fiction and I buy books all the time. 

After I revamped my home office, I started going through my collection of books.  I want to donate many to three local charities.  Why not share that love of books with others?  I will keep the ones I can’t part with.  I have a large gardening book collection.  Not only are they helpful and have taught me much about gardening, but they are beautiful to look at.  I also love a bookshelf full of books.  Don’t you?   

The Death of Manners?

Have you noticed that politeness and manners are becoming less and less frequent nowadays?  Is it just me or are people becoming ruder?  They may not even realize they are being rude.  Perhaps they have not been taught manners by their parents or in school.  I remember being taught manners in grammar school.  Do they even do that today?  It doesn’t appear to be so.

I can tell you which parents are, and are not teaching their children manners.   I do know some kids with lovely manners, but they are becoming fewer and fewer.  Most of my friends and relatives’ children are well mannered.  However, not all of them are. 

It is actually refreshing when someone holds a door for me or steps aside to let me pass these days.  I am not thinking about women’s lib right now, and holding my own door, so no negative comments please.  I am thinking more about common courtesy.

Wednesday, as I was taking a walk, I had to pass a teenage boy on a narrow path lined with shrubs.  He did say excuse me, as he proceeded to walk through first, making me wait until he went past.  So I guess I have to give him credit for using “excuse me.”  However, since we both got there at the same time, shouldn’t he have let me, his elder go first?!  I suppose that the “excuse me” was in fact really a politer version of “let me pass first please”! 

Last week I was shopping at the local market.  While perusing the avocados, an arm reached across mine to pick ripe fruit.  Not once, but several times.   Incredulous and without even turning to face this clueless person, I stated rather than asked, “Would you mind waiting until I am done, please.”   She was gone like a shot, but not before I got a glimpse of her.   Wow, what was that, a non-acknowledgement, acknowledgement?  She didn’t even try to have a confrontation with me.   Maybe my stating the obvious out loud jolted a dusty memory in her brain.  Oops, I forgot my manners and I am too embarrassed to acknowledge it.  Nah, she was just about being in a hurry. 

The grocery store seems to attract a lot of “loose mannered” people.  They either work there briefly, one can one imagine why; or they shop in the odd hours.   I seem to run into a bit of both.

First there was the guy, who stared at me as I went down the aisle and stood in my way as I tried to round the corner.  Then there was the older couple who stopped in the middle of the aisle and discussed each item before putting it in their cart and moving on.    

A few weeks ago I had to pick up fresh veggies when I was not feeling particularly well.  Usually I am tolerant and ignore young clerk’s nonchalant attitudes about their jobs.  But this clerk seemed to think she was impervious to critique, and I was not in my normally good mood from my walk.  

Without realizing it, I left my cart at the front of the check out as I went to pay for my purchases.   The clerk was chatting away with the two people working at the next check out, as I unloaded my cart.   She never said hello or even acknowledged my presence, except to start scanning my selections as she talked.  As I started to run my debit card, I heard her say to the two people, “What is this ditch your cart day.  That’s the second one.”   Clearly, even in my sinus pain haze, I realized she was talking about me, in front of me.  I wasn’t done with the purchase.  I pulled the chart over to me, and put my groceries in it.   I acted as if I hadn’t heard her. 

 As I was picking up my bags of groceries, I heard her sweetly talking to the next customer, about lazy people.  Her friends in the other check out were busy helping their customer.  Instead of addressing it in front of everyone, I vowed to myself to leave a voice or an e-mail message for the manager.  Just in case you are curious, I sent an e-mail on the much needed training in politeness and customer service.

Today was the latest reminder of the loss of manners.  While waiting at the doctor’s office for an hour and a half, I was assaulted with the high pitched laughing and screams of two little girls while they ran around and threw themselves on the floor. 

One mother’s constant prattle to her daughter and a friend, who was with her, was particularly annoying.  Everyone in the waiting room did not need to hear her every thought, nor did they need to suffer the antics of her children.  Mrs. Ill-mannered finally seemed to get a clue when the other patient’s kept giving her dirty looks and one said something at the front desk.  The ladies in the office never once interferred. 

Of course there were what has now become all too common; numerous cell phone rings and phone conversations.  In a waiting room, you are like a prisoner while awaiting your turn and are subject to the assault of the rudeness around you.   People talking on cell phones is a technology assault almost every where you go now.   

We all need to start practicing politeness and brushing up on our manners. 

Peace and Tranquility in the Mountains

 

Autumn: A Time for Rest, Rejuvenation and Rebirth

You may think at first, doesn’t she mean spring?  It would seem as if at least two of these words reflect spring and not autumn.  But think more about autumn.  Yes, it is a time when the growing season is winding down and the sun starts to set earlier.   But it is also a time of planting seeds, bulbs and plants.  It’s a time for gardeners to clean up and ready the earth for new plants.  It is a time for some plants to take their nap until spring to rest and rejuvenate and rest for renewed growth in the next year. 

Just like people and animals have to sleep at night in order to be refreshed in the morning and recharge our cells, so do plants.  In a sense, their long sleep is the same as our own.  Autumn is the perfect time to plant tulips, which grace the garden with their delicate beauty in spring.

So instead of looking at autumn as the end of something, I like to look at it as the beginning.  It is a favorite season for me in many ways.  Although spring is spectacular for sudden growth, autumn is spectacular for its burst of color.  There is nothing quite as gorgeous as a grove of trees in the midst of high color.  There are multiple shades of reds, oranges, burgundies, and yellows.  Even the grass responds with a last show of rich, healthy green. 

On a sunny autumn day the light casts new shadows and is dappled through trees that have lost most of their leaves.  I love when people plant mums, asters and other plants that bloom as the weather gets colder.  Everything looks special, sort of magical and fresh; see I got back to rebirth!    

As the weather gets colder, I love to take long walks and come back to drink a warm mug of tea.   In the summer I walk in the morning, before it gets too hot.  In the autumn, I can walk at any time of day. 

For a meditative experience, a comfortable day that’s not too hot, windy, cold or rainy is a great for meditative walking.  Then you just keep your thoughts on the sound of your footsteps; and in the autumn the crunch of the leaves.   It is almost like a form of rest.  You stop thinking and rest the chatter in your mind. 

The autumn weather has been perfectly wonderful lately and even if I may be tired, it compels me to go out and walk.  I feel revitalized after a walk.  Something I discovered  several years ago, is that regular exercise decreases allergic reactions. 

I did some research and found that exercise helps to release your body’s own ability to defend itself and makes your immune system stronger.  It also helps your allergy medications work well.   As a bonus, it even helps to reduce asthma over time.  So does the yogic breathing when practiced everyday.  I don’t have to use my inhaler, even when I walk uphill.   

Discuss walking first with your doctor and then try it out.  You may find your own love of walking on a beautiful autumn day.  Or any day!

I voted today.  Did you vote yet?  If not, why  not?  What are you waiting for?

Using Mudra in Meditation

I practice the Aum (OM) mudra.  When I use it, I begin to feel more connected to the unseen world around me.  It seems to help me go deeper into my meditation.  I stop feeling my arms and my hands resting on my legs fairly quickly.  I can only describe it as a floating sensation.

You sit with the back of your hands resting on your legs, palms up, hands out stretched with your index finger and thumb touching lightly.  It is the mudra that I am most comfortable with, mostly because I have practiced it for a long time.  To me, it is the most naturally relaxing mudra to hold for a long period of time. 

The other mudra I practiced for a time is the cup mudra.  You sit with your hands resting one placed over the other palm up, as if you are holding something.  Thus it is the cup posture.  However, when I use this mudra, I am slightly aware of the position of my hands.  I am aware of them being held in the cup in a very subtle sense during the beginning of meditation.  In a way I can’t describe in words, it helped me to feel more spiritual.  There was definitely is a spiritual feeling, especially as I went deeper in meditation.  In the beginning using this mudra, I even visualized fleeting images of angels.  But that disappeared with the regular practice of meditation and being able to meditate for longer periods of time.  I also can go into meditation sooner, and don’t have to sit for as long to get into deep meditation.

There is other madras, like sitting in prayer pose, arms up at your chest, palms held gently pressed together.  But this pose is not comfortable to hold for a long time for most people. 

Another simple mudra, is to sit and simply rest your hands palms down on your knees.  This is easiest for most people and beginners may want to use this at first.  Some of my group members still use it.

By comparison for me the Aum and cup mudras are good to use for meditating and feeling more relaxing to go into another place in my mind.  Holding your hands to rest in your lap or on your legs, keeps them from feeling heavy, falling asleep or tingling and interrupting your meditation.  They both help me to go deeper into mediation, as does the resting hands on the knees palms down. 

In contrast, for me the cup mudra is not as comfortable as a position as the Aum mudra and it is not as natural a feelinging.  I can feel my hands more through out the meditation than I do with the Aum mudra.  I get different feelings from both mudras, which I was initially surprised at.  These are not thoughts, they are feelings.  Remember that while you meditate, you want to clear your mind of all thought.

Aum gives me a more “out there in the universe” feeling in mediation, where the cup mudra makes me feel more spiritual and more aware of God’s presence.  I have experienced bliss a few times while meditating.  It is the most amazing and wonderful feeling, even if for a fleeting moment.

Volunteering; a Rewarding Personal Experience

Some of my friends and I were sitting around discussing how mundane their lives now seemed, since their kids are grown and moving on.  They wanted to find more meaning in their lives.  I talked to them about doing worthwhile things to help others, animals or the earth.  I suggested that they may want to try volunteering.  It really helps to boost one’s self esteem.  Volunteering can be a very rewarding experience.  Not only are you helping others, but it also helps you to feel good about yourself.   When you feel good about yourself, you see it come back to you in other positive aspects.  It also helps to make one feel more vital and gives one a sense of accomplishment. 

I’ve had quite a few volunteer experiences, and have really enjoyed most of them.  For example, one of my volunteer jobs was calling on the phone to remind people to vote.  Another was for the American Civil Liberties Union, calling people to donate money for a specific cause.  I also made calls for the local Art Museum.  I volunteered for human justice, stuffing envelopes.  I helped at a crisis center phone bank and helped wrap presents for kids at a women’s shelter and also sort donations of goods and clothing.   Just remember, that many of the volunteer jobs may seem like little things, but they make a big difference to the organization.   Without volunteers, some organizations wouldn’t be able to do what they do best. 

Sometimes volunteers are even offered paying jobs where they volunteer.  Do you think you may want to become a volunteer?  I will give you some guidelines from an article I wrote several years ago.   After you have picked the agency or group that you are interested in, you may need to bring some things with you.   Here’s what to expect when you decide to volunteer.

Start your inquiry

·        Call the agency or group you are interested in to ask if they are accepting applications for volunteers.

·        A Coordinator or Volunteer Leader will either; send an application for you to fill out or make an appointment with you to come in for an interview.

·        After your interview, ask if you may tour the facilities (if applicable) to get a feel for the culture of the agency.

·        The Coordinator will meet with you and ask questions about your interest in the volunteer work they offer.  He/she will ask about your hobbies and interests and any work experience you have to see what you may be best at.

·        The Coordinator will review your application and makes suggestions.  Bring a resume detailing some of your work skills that would be helpful to find a good fit for you.

·        Some agencies may want personal or business referrals; ask if they do not mention it on the phone, so you can bring a list with you.

·        They will inform you of their time needs and will help you determine how much time you many want to commit.

After you are accepted as a volunteer, you will usually have to attend one or more training sessions.   (If you are not accepted, ask about being placed on a list for future opportunities as they come up, it shows your determination and commitment.)

·        Be prepared; bring a pad of paper and a pen or pencil to take notes and a folder to keep any handouts you are given.  

·        Ask plenty of questions and write things down, so you can refresh your memory later.  Taking notes will help you to be less confused when you are actually volunteering.  You can always refer to your notes to help you recall information.  Some programs offer a lot of information in training and there may not be someone around later who can answer your questions.

The training will help you learn more about what you will be doing and if you want to continue. 

·        After training is over you are ready to start volunteering. 

·        You may have regular meetings with the Coordinator or a leader to see how you are doing.

If it is not a good match for you, don’t give up.  You can always contact another program that may be a better match.  Volunteering really is not all that hard; most of your work will be in finding the right situation for you.   Remember to be on your best behavior, be cheerful and friendly, because sometimes it can lead to a job opportunity.  The experience also helps to polish your job and people skills.  Let me know what type of volunteer work you end up doing!

Other People’s Lives

The other day my local library’s had its semi-annual book sale.  They sell donated and other books that do not circulate well in the library, to raise money.   It’s a worthwhile cause to help raise funds for improvements.  I’ve gotten some very good books for less than a dollar.  Most of the books are gently used and others are like new. 

One of the books I bought was “The Language of Letting Go” by Melody Beattie.  It is from the Hazelden Meditation Series.  In it she helps one to become responsible for our own pain and self-care.   

When I first started meditating again, one of the mantras I often used when I became upset was “let it go”, while taking a deep cleansing breath.  So the title of the book caught my eye.  For 63 cents, I thought it was a good bargain and a nice addition to my growing meditation book collection.  I planned to use some of the affirmations with my group. 

As it was such a beautiful day, I slowly walked back home and looked through the chapters of the book to read some of the affirmations.  As I flipped toward the back, a piece of paper peeked out of the pages.  I hadn’t seen it when I looked through it at the sale.  The paper had notes next to page numbers and then a to do list. 

I stopped in my tracks and looked the piece of paper over.  Although the book looked barely touched, there were quite a few notes.  But it was the heartbreakingly serious to do list that affected me the most.  Someone had taken the time to go and buy the book, pay $12.95, read it and make notes to themselves. The list read:

                                                Join Al-Anon

                                                Go to counseling

                                                Sell house

                                                Get a divorce

                                               

The fact that this was on the reverse blank side of a piece of floral note paper, was even more profound to me.  It was as if the person who wrote it didn’t want to write such serious things on the pretty floral side. 

At that moment, my heart went out to that unknown person.  I wondered if they were okay.  This was a very specific, serious list of to-dos.  I felt as if my purchase of the book was too frivolous.  I had casually picked it up and decided to buy it, because it was only 63 cents. 

I read the list several times over by the time I got home.  I wondered if the writer had indeed joined Al-Anon; gone to counseling; sold their house and got that divorce.  I wondered how they were doing now and how difficult it was for them to deal with what they had to go through.  I thought to myself, “Did they even move out of the neighborhood?”   Since the library has the sale at least a couple of times a year, I assumed that the book was donated since the last book sale. 

I wanted to find them and reach out to them, but I had no way of knowing who it was or where they lived.  Even if they had put heir name and address in the book, I would be seen to be intruding in their personal life.  I’m sure that I would not be welcomed, even as a concerned stranger who shared a moment with them.  But then I’ll never know. 

It was important for me to realize that something I picked up on the off-chance, may have been partly responsible for helping forever alter someone else’s life.  I know that  books are not always just books.  But I feel that now I should treat the book with more respect, because of the power it had for someone else.  I will pass it on to someone who needs it more than I.   I may re-donate it for someone who needs it to find it. 

The Times They Aren’t A Changing or Everything Old Is New Again

I blogged in ”Cleaning and Simplifying” about finally really cleaning my home office.   I had just thrown things in boxes and stuck them in the closets here when we moved.   I left it mostly untouched for a year. 

Well I’m proud and happy to report that everything is neat, tidy and organized.  I purged a ton of stuff.   Simplification in action.

I am trying to be a former collector and memento keeper.  I had even kept all of my notebooks, handouts and papers from college and grad school.   When I was done purging, I had 3 empty boxes just from the school stuff.  I was left with a much smaller stack of things I might keep.  Hey that’s fantastic for me. 

I read much of what I found and separated it into save and throw away piles.  Then I came across one of the student newspapers I wrote for.   I had only kept one copy of one newspaper.   I wondered why I did that.  I flipped through it to see why and saw an opinion piece I had written in my under grad years.  Then I knew why I had kept the newspaper.

There was a piece where I had bared my soul, shared my real thoughts and admitted I would be unable to finish my education, because I couldn’t pay for it.  I had lost my job.  I had kept that particular newspaper because that piece helped get me a scholarship for my senior year.   The Dean of Students read it.   She said that I embodied that spirit of our school or something like that and approved me for a scholarship.  Good things really do happen in the real world sometimes. 

I wrote the piece in 1992; but it could easily have been written by a college student today.  I am directly quoting snips from the piece

“I keep reading and hearing that the recession is almost over.  From my point of view, it is still escalating.  Why do I say this?  I was recently laid off from my job.  The company I was working for apparently had not been doing well enough to keep me on at the pittance of a salary they were paying me.  They have been having financial difficulties for two years.

Since 1990, the company has laid off more than 100 people – nearly half of its 1989 workforce.  What does this say about the current state of the economy?  I guess it says that some of us are still up the creek without a paddle.

There are thousands of college graduates who can’t find jobs.  Master-level graduates are competing for jobs as receptionists.  They can’t find work in their chosen fields. 

If you don’t have a lot of experience, how are you going to get a good job?  I’m not talking about working at McDonalds’s for minimum wage.  I am not trying to sound like the voice of doom; however, I am the voice of reality.

         

Now, I am not telling anyone how to vote in the November 3^rd election.  I am only voicing my own opinions.  I have watched all of the debates.  It’s pretty scary to think that one of these men could possible take over the presidency. 

The one thing you must ask yourself is, “What has the current administration done for me lately?” Now I am not a political science major, but I know when I am not satisfied."

The piece continued on talking about politics and the importance of voicing your choice by voting to fix what was wrong with the current administration.    I wrote about change and how it has to come through the voters. 

Did anyone else get a small chill just then?  Either I am physic, or we are just repeating a cycle.  I remember reading somewhere there are 20 year cycles in politics.  If anyone reads that, would someone please send it to me?  I want to prepare for the next cycle.



 

My Little Miracle

My little Miracle isn’t what you might think it is. Actually, “it” is a she and she is a bird. That’s right. I said a bird. She is a cockatiel. When we first met she was in a plastic lunch bag. She was a small puff ball of gray feathers. I gently took her out and she lay quietly in my hands. It was friendship at first sight.

So how did she happen to get into the lunch bag? Well it turns out that a family of rowdy boys found her at their school and put her in the bag and took her home. They wanted to keep her and named her Taco. Yeah Taco, I hate it too. But the rowdy boys’ mother was having none of that. She told one of the other mothers. It just so happened that the other mother lives at the end of our block. She was home the day before when my husband accidentally let our bird out. My husband searched and told all of the neighbors. He was even more upset because my father had a serious accident just 17 days before and I was already overwhelmed.

Sunny was gone in a minute, too afraid to find his way back. My husband was devastated and I was very sad. How many times did I hear my husband say, “Be careful of leaving the door open, or the bird might get out.” Ironically he was the one who did.

So I was one bird short when the doorbell rang the next day. There appeared the smiling faces of the rowdy boys, the neighbor and the mother. The mother said, “My son found your bird.” I was thrilled until I opened the bag and saw the puff ball of gray. “That’s not him” I said softly. I thought how odd it was that the neighbor confused a white and yellow bird with this gray puffball in the plastic lunch bag.

But it was the way that the little puff ball snuggled down in my hands that made me say, “I’ll foster her until we find the owner.” We called the police and made a report about finding the bird. The mother didn’t really want to leave the bird with me, but I wasn’t about to let the rowdy boys take her or have her put in a shelter. After all, a lost bird is almost never found and I had just bought a large bag of cockatiel food.

Well, Sunny was never returned to us despite ads and an amber alert to shelters. And a year later my little puff ball is still with me, giving me birdie kisses. However, she has grown into a beautiful 2 tone gray, with white markings on her wings, dappled white legs like stockings and a blend of white, gray and yellow tail feathers. She now has a large patch of yellow on the back of her head. It’s almost as if she is trying to look a little more like Sunny.

Her big bright eyes look at me and she stretches her wings in anticipation of coming out of her cage to spend time with me. She is my companion and my little buddy. She goes wherever I am in the house. She likes to get head rubs and snuggle into my hands and get kisses. She is a little bundle of love.

So you can certainly see why she is my little miracle. She came to me when I most needed her and I was there when she most needed me. The universe looks out for us I think. Oh and by the way I named her Miracle.

Truely Beautiful

I watched a program on aging the other day. It was about beauty and how to look younger. I was a bit miffed by it. It didn’t really highlight anything but Botox and facelifts. They talked about unnatural ways to stay and look younger. Whatever happened to a more enlightened discussion about one’s inner beauty and the light that shines from within? I was hoping for a lively discussion of how aging gracefully is better than artificially changing one’s self. Isn’t what’s inside of us more important in the overall scheme of things? In our society, I think not. We look at the wrinkles on the aging faces and sagging body parts, not the beauty of the soul.

We usually do not fall in love with just a face or just a body. We fall in love with the whole person. The same goes for falling out of love as well. How many people have fallen out of love with someone because they were not the person that they thought they were? That doesn’t just refer to them getting wrinkles and loosing their looks. Of course there are those people who fall out of love because their partner is too fat or looks older. But aren’t those people somewhat narcissistic anyway?

Some of the prettiest people are ugly inside. They are so self absorbed that they ignore the rest of us and others in need. Some of these pretty people will spend their last dime for the latest designer wear, but never think once to give to charity. Charity begins where the heart is. Uplifting others is just as important as uplifting ourselves.

Doesn’t real beauty come first from the inside? Of course it does. It comes from what’s inside your heart and the good that you do. Would someone like Princess Diana have been so loved by millions, had she not been the caring person that she was? I wonder. The most beautiful people I can think of were Gandhi and Mother Theresa for their lives of loving, selfless acts. They lifted people’s lives.

A truly beautiful person is more beautiful on the inside than the outside. It doesn’t take a lot for it to be seen. Anyone of us can do it. Through simple acts of kindness and generosity, the beauty inside will radiate out of us. Your inner beauty enhances your outer beauty. I admire the people who use their wealth and celebrity to help others. Nothing says they have to. It is their soul’s direction to better our world.

Good health habits and a life helping to rid the world of poverty, strife and trying to make it cleaner and safer for future generations, are keys to inner beauty. Religious beliefs and spiritual pursuits practiced in a positive manner also uplift. One does not need to be religious however, to help others; one just has to do it with a generous heart. Healthy practices help to beautify us from within. Combine all of these things and we are the embodiment of what aging gracefully and beautifully truly is. Being the best person that we can be is more important, than being the most beautiful.

Cleaning Up and Simplifying

I am cleaning my home office right now. At least that’s what I’m supposed to be doing. I'm almost done, but I get spurts of energy and clean for a bit and then sit at my computer or read through the papers I find. I am a recovering chronic saver. I would rip pages from magazines, and save brochures. I have lot of books and other things that you never know when you just might need them. So it’s taking me a lot longer to clean.

This year I am going on a purging binge. It has a lot to do with my meditating and the act of wanting to simplify my life. Meditation clears the cobwebs of your mind. So I felt that it was about time for me to clear the cobwebs of my life too.

I cleaned out my office at work not long ago. It was way overdue for a scale back. I share a tall narrow closet of an office with someone else. Good thing we like each other. We practically sit in each other’s laps. She backs her chair up and I can’t open the drawer on the left side of my desk.

My office mate is something of a hoarder too, so we both had a lot of stuff. I got rid of so much. I was proud of myself. I had to show my closet friend at work, just so I could see her reaction. I had an empty drawer and cabinet ready for the things I had stacked on top of my file cabinet and under my desk. I had an empty desk top for the first time since I started at this company, 4 years ago!

We moved to this space 3 years ago. My office mate was on vacation, so I had to move both of our things. I never had time to find places for everything and get work done too. It didn’t help that I had brought a ton of resource materials with me, that I had collected at my last company. I left a lot of resources for the person taking over my old job too. I am guilty of keeping duplicates. So I gave myself the excuse that I had moved twice in one year.

I must admit I have only cleaned out my home office once or twice every year and then managed to quickly clutter it up again. When we moved here a decade ago, I packed up my old home and took most of the things with us. My husband was responsible for the basement, but never quite got it done. He always had an excuse. He was busy with work. He is the cleaner spouse, the Felix Unger of the relationship, so it wasn’t done because he didn’t have time. It takes him forever just to pack his luggage for a trip. So I tried to pack most of that stuff too.

Since I had very little time off of work to pack and move. I started to throw things in boxes and bring it all over. I started stashing the boxes in the closets and piling things on the floor in this room. We dubbed it my office, but it was really a spare “stuff room”. I can’t call it a junk room, because most of it wasn’t. Then with the chaos of the last year, I never got an opportunity to put things in some order again. So it just got messier.

We Americans tend to collect too much stuff. We are the ultimate consumers. I have become greener and recycle more things. I have adopted some of the yogic philosophy of scaling down possessions. So I am almost appalled at my accumulation of stuff. I was also embarrassed at the piles of things in the room. Thus I am doing the purging of said stuff.

Today I was pulling things out of the other side. I found clothes I haven’t worn in, well I don’t know how long. They will go to goodwill or the Salvation Army for someone who will use them. It feels good to be able to give them to someone who needs them more than me. It’s taking me a long time to go through a lot of it because I am discovering things I haven’t seen in years. Its almost like revisiting the past. I am of course keeping treasured memories, but this time I am able to throw away things I never could before. You know the things you think you might need someday. Often that someday never comes, or you forgot you had it.

I have never cleaned everything out of the closets here before. I have removed some things and vacuumed and dusted around things, but kept putting stuff wherever I could stick it. I had no real system or order. There is a double closet in the room, and it took 2 days to pull everything out, get rid of things and make it more efficient. I put in books, VHS tapes, DVDs and crafty stuff. It’s no longer in plies here and there waiting for something to be done with it. It looks so neat and tidy. I am keeping the door open just to admire it. I know, that’s a little strange, but you should have seen it before. It is so neat now; I just want to be able to look at it. Organization is my new project, and so far I am right on target. I really have grown up.

Sitting in Meditation Practice

As a beginning meditation student you learn how to meditate best for you. Practice it every day. Find a comfortable posture either sitting on the floor or a chair. Do this every time. This will help you to get into a meditative state more quickly and deeply. It will also help your body to recognize that you are about to meditate and help you get into the habit whenever you use the asan (posture) and mudra (hand postures).

Try not to change your asan and mudra. Once you choose what is comfortable to you, stick with it. Otherwise, it may be a little harder to go into your mediation as quickly or as deeply. It may take longer, because your mind will think that you are not in the correct posture.

Practice at the same time every day and in the same place. The best times to mediate are at the break of dawn and at dusk. But any time you are able to is fine.

Make your sitting space a sacred space, which you use only for mediation and nothing else. In other words, no one else should use it; it should be used only for meditation. People should not walk through it or use the space. It only needs to be the size of a large cushion to sit on.

I have a zabuton and zafu (a high foam cushion and a large flat generously stuffed cushion) that I sit on. I keep them in the corner of my living room. They are on a wool rug on the floor and I keep a wool blanket or warm shawl nearby to wrap around myself if needed. The area has some of my favorite pictures in frames on a piece of furniture to make the space my own.

I sit in easy pose, legs crossed on a cushion because I have very tight hip and thigh muscles. Yoga has helped to loosen them up, so I can sit on the floor much easier. But I need the extra height and padding so I can sit for longer period of time. I use the Aum mudra, hands resting on my legs, palms up index finger and thumb touching, the other fingers held open. I cannot bring my feet up onto my legs, but you may be able to. This is the asan and mudra that are most comfortable to me to help me to mediate. Experiment with how you sit and your use of mudra, such as the cup mudra, hands simply laid one on top of the other, palms up in your lap. Settle into the asan that you would like to try and begin your breathing.

When to Meditate

Use a set time or ritual to practice. Meditate daily. Meditate in a particular place, preferably in the same (quiet) place everyday. Meditate at a particular time. Mornings at sunrise or at sunset are best. But anytime is fine, if you aren’t able to practice at these times. Just practice.

Meditate in a particular asan (position). It takes about 2 months before you will notice the positive effect on your mind and it has become a habit.

Where to Meditate

Your small space must become sacred to meditation only. It should be a space with the least amount of foot traffic and be special to you. Make it comfortable. Avoid heavy emotions when in the space.

Bless your space. Imagine a solar sphere radiating a golden white light into the spot and another radiating out into the whole house. Think positive and good thoughts to attract higher vibrations to your meditation space. Make the area beautiful. Place favorite pictures in the area. Use incense if you wish. (Be careful not to burn anything.) Think positive thoughts and send them to your space even when you are at work. Never bring your problems or anger into your space.

Start by breathing slowly and deeply through your nose (if you can). Fill your lungs with air. Pause and slowly exhale all of the air out through your nose or your mouth. Close your eyes and focus on the root of your nose. Clear your mind of all thoughts. Focus on your breathing. Sit for a few minutes at first. You don’t need to meditate for a long time. You need to meditate everyday or almost everyday to benefit from meditation. Try building up to 20 minutes if you can. You will begin to find inner calm and see subtle changes in yourself. Then you will start seeing more clearly and softening your karma. Even 2 minutes of meditation is beneficial.