Tag: life

Monday Meditation: Books that changed my life week

Posted on by Joy Held

LIGHT ON LIFE by B.K.S. Iyengar changed my life with its straightforward, head-on approach to the questions we face as we live. As we live a life that includes the multi-limbed practice of yoga, we encounter quandaries that challenge our decisions about how to live in a world of other people also challenged by their own questions. Iyengar’s book written in 2005 is presumably his final chapter offering in a long list of quality books he has penned about yoga, meditation, and spirituality. LIGHT ON LIFE resonated with me and continues to provide a source of go-to support when I’m seeking a way to explain or make sense of a rarely perfect existence. What Iyengar offers is plain talk about the freedom that awaits those who make the yoga journey. The trip includes profound and not so intense moments, but Iyengar reminds us that recognition of the smallest things is a profound step in the direction of peace. And then we are asked to share that with our communities.

“Yoga is the rule book for playing the game of Life, but in this game no one needs to lose. It is tough, and you need to train hard. It requires the willingness to think for yourself, to observe and correct, and to surmount occasional setbacks. It demands honest, sustained application, and above all love in your heart. If you are interested to understand what it means to be a human being, placed between earth and sky, if you are interested in where you come from and where you will be able to go, if you want happiness and long for freedom, then you have already begun to take the first steps toward the journey inward.” (LIGHT ON LIFE, B.K.S. Iyengar)

 

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

http://amyshojai.com Amy Shojai

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well

Thursday Thot: Time for a “Joy-Fix”

Posted on by Joy Held

I was named after my Grandma Joy. When I was a little bit of joy, she told to watch out for days when it would be difficult to live up to our name. In other words, feeling joyful would be challenging sometimes. That’s life. I grew to be a practical person who doesn’t like to waste time or breath. So I tend to work hard before I get to the joyful parts of life. Sometimes the work is so overwhelming that I’m too tired for the joyfulness that should be my reward. Alas, the conundrum Grandma Joy warned me about.

Many people mistake my diligence and persistence for unhappiness. I am happiest when I’m working and productive. Some people don’t believe that work is a joyful occupation. I do. These folks think I need more joy in my life when my whole being is made up of joy. I take joy in my work. I find joy in my purposes as parent and teacher. I know joy with every word I publish. Joy is achieved, at least for me, through my desire to make a difference. I have found my niche, my way to make a positive difference in my life and that of others through teaching and writing. Those are occupations to some but they are joy-filled opportunities for me. I do run into stinkers every now and then. They try to threaten my ability to find joy in my work. I’m only human. So I turn to my journal and hash it out in words and drawings and thank-you notes from people I’ve helped.

 

But everyone needs some helpful reminders now and then on how to find joy in life and therefore that positive attitude that is October’s mission. Here are a couple of tips I’ve found useful.

1.Daily affirmations-these are little snippets of what I call “cheerleader talk” that you write down and keep handy throughout the day. Examples of such positive self-talk are “Today is a good day to notice one good thing about myself and share it with the world.” There is a list of positive affirmations in my book Writer Wellness.

 

2.Daily meditation practice-five minutes of sitting in stillness and listening to your own breath rotate through your body and mind sounds mundane, but the results of such a long term and simple practice are amazing. Don’t discount the simplicity. That’s exactly the point in this crazy, work-till-you-drop world. I should know. That’s why meditation is an important part of my plan for joy. There is a chapter in my book to help you get started with meditation.

So when it’s time for a “joy-fix”, pull out the simple things and watch your negativity gradually fade away until all that’s left is pure joy.

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

http://amyshojai.com Amy Shojai

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well

Tuesday Tickle: Creative Ways to Stay Positive

Posted on by Joy Held

 

Continuing to support “National Positive Attitude” month, here are a few ideas for creative ways to stay upbeat in spite of the natural pitfalls of daily living.

See full size image

1.Health-get a check-up. Schedule an appointment with your health care practitioner and ask for a full work up. It helps to know exactly where we stand in the areas of dental and overall health. If something pops up in the test results, address it as soon as possible. This is a great way to feel good about our health and gives us a reason to feel positive. A regular mammogram schedule saved my life by identifying a problem well before it got out of hand. Good health is everything.

 

2.Donate-give some time, money, or resources to a local charity. Clean out a closet and deliver unwanted items to the Salvation Army, Goodwill, or your church. Offer your volunteer services to work office hours for a non-profit or read to children. Send a financial contribution to your favorite charity or hospital research center. Don’t know who to support? Try the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, P.O. Box 6025, Albert Lea, Minnesota 56007-9832.

 

3.Gratitude journal –it’s an amazing process to take the time to sit down and write out everything we’re grateful for. From the smallest (our pets) to the largest (our health, our freedoms), everyone has a few things to be thankful for. Write them down and carry the list around with you for a few days. The smile on your face will catch on with others.

How do you plan to stay positive this month and always?

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

http://amyshojai.com Amy Shojai

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well

Monday Meditation: Banned Thoughts During Meditation

Posted on by Joy Held

It’s national Banned Books Week. Sigh. A history of yet another way, besides disappearing bricks-and-mortar bookstores, to make a writer’s life more challenging. In spite of the collected freedoms we and others support and sometimes die for, the concept of banned books is ultimately about freedom of speech and censorship. When it comes to meditation and choosing not to follow a path of thoughts but staying present in the moment of the breath, are we actually censoring our mind’s free flow of ideas instead?

 

In the colorful history of banned books, there is the concept of books being ‘challenged’ as well as actually being removed from the availability of certain populations such as children. Just as often however, books are kept away from adults with the right to choose what they read. It is the sense of challenge that permeates meditation practice rather than total separation. As we meditate and thoughts surface in the consciousness, we are given the freedom to choose at the very moment if we want to dwell on the thought or simply not. We have the freedom in our minds to set aside the thought temporarily, and this is in a sense meeting the fundamental challenge of all meditation practices. Do we grasp or do we let go?

 

Famous classics have been and continue to be challenged and/or banned by institutions and groups for various reasons that seem clear to those taking advantage of their right to free speech to question the propriety of a book. I see a contradiction there. If it weren’t for the freedom of speech and ergo freedom to read and write, these particular entities wouldn’t be allowed to oppose these books. In our minds during meditation, we are ultimately free, freer, in fact, than anywhere else or time. Real freedom of choice exists during meditation. We are free to challenge thoughts or free to follow them down the spiraling road of tangents. The spiral is thinking about something, and that’s entirely different from meditation as I see it practiced. Thinking is good. But the freedom not to think while meditating is just as good.

For more information on Banned Books Week 2011 visit the American Library Association website.

http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/index.cfm

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

 

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

 

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

 

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

 

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

 

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

 

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

 

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

 

http://amyshojai.com Amy Shojai

 

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

 

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

 

 

 

Be well, write well

Tuesday Tickle: Creativity Leads to Fashion Independence

Posted on by Joy Held

My daughters are both very fashion focused. I like to think it’s partly my doing because I loved dressing them alike (the same dress in sizes 4T and 7, please,) and always making sure their clothes matched and were clean. I took great pride in dressing my beautiful babies. As they approached the pre-teen stages they turned their eyes toward me and noticed I didn’t dress myself like I dressed them. The closer it looks and feels to a pair of elastic waist pajama pants and a baggy t-shirt, the more I’m drawn to wear it. And if there’s a drawstring in the waistline, honey, I want six pairs, one in every color it comes in. My fashion savvy daughters do not approve.

I really don’t mind, but they have been picking out and/or “sanctioning” my clothing purchases for years now. No “matchy-matchy” (I will happily wear five shades of the same color at the same time,) and keep patterns at a minimum. I have been sitting at the mall food court with my daughter and she will gather my attention to a woman wearing a colorful pair of Capri pants and say, “In case I’m not with you when you’re shopping, no multi-colored prints across your butt.” I thought they were fun and vibrant looking. Let it be said, I have a few wardrobe pieces in hiding that neither off-spring would appreciate. This one pair of elastic waist silk pants from India is crafted of more than fifty fabric swatches and almost none of the patches match. Granted they are amazingly difficult to wear with any solid color top, but I love them.

I’m what’s known as a non-conformist dresser and personality in general. I’m not a trouble maker or intentional hellion, but I prefer the beat of my own drummer. My wardrobe reflects practicality and creativity. It’s practical because it is easy to wash (I do five loads of same-color laundry a week: whites, black, green, purple, and red/pink/orange. Although brown has recently been gathering strength.) It’s creative because I can buy a scarf of many colors and wear it with three other solids and have an outfit that is “acceptable” yet simple, quick and self-created. I didn’t have to rely on the whims of a regional clothing buyer at a major department store to pick out my clothes. I wear what I wear because I like it not because it’s fashionable.

In his fun book The Art of Non-conformity, author Chris Guillebeau looks at life much the same way I view creativity. Creativity is a side effect of thinking outside the normal way of doing things. Guillebeau explains that the advice we received as children from supposedly well-meaning adults was good to a certain extent. The patina-speckled remonstration goes something like this: If everyone else was jumping off a bridge, would you? Well…….it depends. Guillebeau says, “It’s not bad advice, even if it’s sometimes used to exert control more than to support independent thinking.” While the advice is meant to make us think for ourselves, then what’s wrong with dressing for ourselves? Because everyone else is jumping off the same fashion bridge into their laundry pile of the same thing everybody else is wearing doesn’t mean I’m going to swan dive right along with them. Guillebeau then says, “Screw those people jumping off the bridge. Make your own decisions. Live your own life.” But he adds to do in a conscientious way that contributes to our world and doesn’t suck from it greedily without returning the juices.

That’s what creativity is for. Being creative in life helps return the flow of exciting energies back into the Earth and the Universe to help others find their own creative habits. And as Guillebeau points out, the age old phrase is really meant to encourage independent thinking but the message gets skewed by manipulators with control agendas. Okay, I’m not really an intentional hellion, just want you to think (and dress) for yourself. After all, even Albert Eistein knew the clothes make the man when he said,

"Once you can accept the universe as being something expanding into an infinite nothing which is something, wearing stripes with plaid is easy." - Albert Einstein

Girls, I promise not to wear stripes and plaid at the same time out in public, but that’s as far as it goes. Love, Mom.

Tell me about how the fashion police would write you a ticket for a clothing infraction!

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well.

Monday Meditation: The Consequences of Meditation

Posted on by Joy Held

Monday Meditation: The Consequences of Meditation

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Things change. Whether we want them to or not, everything changes. To bring this to the attention of myself and my students, I close every yoga class with these words:

“With every breath we grow. With every breath we change. Every breath is precious. Until your journey brings you back to me, remember to breathe. Namaste.”

It’s my way of saying, “Change is a natural part of our existence. Fighting change causes stress. Embrace the concept of change and you will know less stress.” But how do we “embrace” change? I don’t have a practical answer, but I do have qualified experience because I practice yoga and meditation regularly. One of the consequences of regular meditation practice is the ability to readily embrace change and not be as stressed about it. The more you practice watching things come and go during meditation, the easier it is to watch things come and go in life. We may not wish to see things come and go, but it happens. One of the consequences of meditation is less stress because we understand that everything comes and goes, and it isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

One of my favorite descriptions of the sensations of living as the result of meditation and yoga comes from yogi Mukunda Stiles in his book “Structural Yoga Therapy.”

Symptoms of Inner Peace

1. A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than from fear

2. An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment

3. Loss of interest in judging others

4. Loss of interest in judging yourself

There are other symptoms or consequences of meditation listed by Stiles. Just as everyday is a beginning, so is every meditation practice. It’s a place to start learning to watch things come and go without fear or stress.

Have you noticed any consequences as a result of your meditation practice?

Happy Note: Book signing and hatha yoga demonstration Saturday, June 25 at Borders in Vienna, WV, 2-4 p.m. Will I see you there? Bring your yoga mat!

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc. 

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well.

Wednesday Workout: Housework Is Not Exercise

Posted on by Joy Held

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

“I’m going to clean this dump—just as soon as the kids are grown.”

                ~Erma Bombeck

Erma Bombeck is probably the reason I love being a Mom but hate cleaning. She always wrote about hating housework. I read her in the local paper when I was young and to this day think of her column about changing the toilet paper roll every time I do it. She’s the one who asked many years ago why she was the one person solely responsible for refilling the toilet paper when the house was full of other capable people who could accomplish the chore just fine. But any time she sat down, well, being the only one “in charge” of the changing, sometimes she was caught without. Why didn’t the person who used the last sheet recognize the condition and refill the roll instead of leaving it to her? Bombeck never discovered the answer to my knowledge and neither have I, but I keep extra rolls really close by because it happens all the time. Why me?

Cooking and baking are very spiritual, satisfying activities for me, but I really would rather not have to clean house. I love a clean house, and I’m good at cleaning, but it taxes me to the point I have nothing left with which to exercise. And I love exercise. However, I’ve never quite bought into the concept of housework as exercise. The idea is flawed in many ways.

1.Exercise is enjoyable. Cleaning house is not. Who wants to clean hair off the floor behind the toilet for heaven’s sake? The bending required isn’t healthy and neither are the fumes. No physical benefit and no improvement in breathing technique. But I know the gunk is there and eventually I have to swab it out at the expense of my exercise for the day. Ugh.

2.Exercise has recognizable rewards like tone muscles and improved attitude. House cleaning has little if any rewards. I no sooner am dumping the mop water down the drain as a person or a dog is coming in the room with dirty feet or paws. “I just mopped!” is greeted with, “Looks nice, dear.” Grrrrr.

3.Exercise has many success stories. There is no one to my knowledge (if they existed there would be a reality TV show about them) who has lost weight, toned up, and kept off the pounds from cleaning house.

“I hate housework! You make the beds, you do the dishes—and six month later you have to start all over again.”

                ~Joan Rivers

Household chores must be accomplished, however, and many writers have designed a routine to think about writing projects while folding laundry and mentally working out plot problems while running the vacuum cleaner. But these jobs don’t count as exercise, so it’s off to the gym! Have you achieved fitness by cleaning the house? Prove it!

“Women with clean houses do not have finished books.”

                ~Joy Held

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well.

Tuesday Tickle: A Broad Definition of Idiot

Posted on by Joy Held

 

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

I’ve never been a fan of the word “idiot.” It is the ultimate insult to someone’s intelligence in most circles. But words, particularly prickly ones like idiot, get popularized through overuse by a group or a celebrity or some other pop culture phenomenon. Apparently “idiot” is a new favorite word in the world of entertainment.

There are the Alpha Books series “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to fill-in-the-blank” http://www.idiotsguides.com/

My daughters loved the Broadway musical “American Idiot,” a rock opera performed by the group Green Day.

http://americanidiotonbroadway.com/

And there’s the “Idiot Proof Diet” with a picture of a cartoon character saying, “I’m a certified idiot,” with a big smile on her face.

http://idiotproofdiet.com/

I mean, who wants to be an idiot? It’s the greatest reverse psychology marketing idea ever, isn’t it? You don’t want to be an idiot so you need the information or the product in your arsenal to prove you aren’t an idiot. But then two comedians (Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant) come up with an idea for a television show called “An Idiot Abroad.” And even though the word idiot still rubs me the wrong way, this reality series is hysterical in a funny and perhaps a not so funny way. The Science Channel took the bait and the show is running more “broadly” in a second season this spring.

http://science.discovery.com/tv/an-idiot-abroad/

While he’s never actually referred to as the idiot, Gervais and Merchant have convinced Karl Pilkington to visit the seven wonders of the world because he’s a stay-at-home-and-happy-to-be-there Brit who’s not the most culturally aware fellow you’ll ever meet. Or maybe he is. What’s so funny is seeing yourself in what he says and does in all these countries when faced with some culturally bizarre (by some terms) foods, customs and traffic. Imagine Archie Bunker getting a back wax in Brazil so he can wear a Samba costume to Carnivale. That’s Karl Pilkington, just no recliner or cigar.

For instance, not too long into the travels he becomes obsessed with toilets when he discovers that they are not the same abroad as he’s used to at home. He hates crowds, parties and planning, so everywhere he goes Gervais and Merchant have arranged for Pilkington to participate in some major cultural phenomenon that tests his patience and sometimes his stomach. Mostly what Pilkington does is complain. He witnesses the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazil and all he has to say about it is the price of a can of Coke is too much, and they can get away with it because there is nothing to compete with.

Needing a voice of reason among the cackles, I turn to Webster. “Idiot, n. 1. Psychol. A person of profound mental retardation.” Just when I think this isn’t going to help, I read, “No longer in scientific use and considered offensive.” Finally, an idiot that agrees with me.

In my opinion it is ignominious to call someone an idiot. Do you agree?

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

Be well, write well.

Monday Meditation: Am I Meditating?

Posted on by Joy Held

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

“Success is never a destination—it’s a journey.”                                ~Satenig St. Marie,

Unless we have a homemade brain wave monitoring machine, we usually don’t have the means to measure our level of success with meditation in a scientific sense. We can feel certain changes and measure them to a degree. The average meditation journey should experience three specific measurable stages:

1.Tension-this is where we notice just how tight our jaw bones are, how sore our backs are and how busy our minds tend to be

2.Letting go-this is when we notice some of the tension releasing and our breathing is slowing down

3.THERE-this is when we become aware of very few things, less and less bothers us physically and mentally we realize our thoughts have slowed down, and we can control whether or not we want to follow monkey mind down its ragged path. We do not follow monkey mind.

These stages coincide with brain wave activity.

Tension = Beta (busy, busy, busy mind)

Letting go = Alpha (focused awareness on our breath and what it’s doing, fewer thoughts)

THERE = Theta (just about to cross the hazy boundary into slumber-ville)

Sleep isn’t meditation as I’ve said before, and theta is the gatekeeper of sleep so the goal is to remain relaxed and aware at the alpha level. Regardless of how messy the day has been, a successful meditation session need only give us a conscious pause from the issues we’re dealing with and that’s enough. Yep. It only takes a few minutes a day to meditate successfully. But what does a successful meditation practice “feel” like?

This brings up the question of goals. Should we have goals where meditation is concerned? Is it better to let things take their course and follow along? Like yoga, meditation is a blend of healthy balance. It’s right to set a goal to meditate for a specific amount of time each day. It’s right to practice particular habits like sitting still and watching breath flow. But it isn’t right to set expectations beyond the realm of the realistic. Why? Because unlike measuring the fact that our brain activity actually slows down during meditation, it creates more stress to attach a measurement or a benchmark for meditation. “If I don’t find perfect peace in my life in three months of meditating, I failed and will give up meditating.” Or “I should notice a major shift in my actions in a set period of time, and if I don’t I will stop meditating because it just isn’t for me.” These are normal examples of our “quick fix”, I-want-it-now mind sets and this doesn’t work with meditation. With meditation, the less you expect, the more you receive.

To answer the question of what successful meditation feels like, beyond the physical and mental releases (which may not feel gigantic, but they occur,) the positive results of regular meditation show themselves in our everyday actions. We are more patient. We smile more. We laugh bigger. We appreciate little things more. We share more. We hold the door more often. We focus better on other projects when our brains are challenged. We are healthier. We are brave. We trust more. We think the best first. We are less critical of ourselves and others. We are more accepting. We are more loving. We are more truthful. We are more understanding. We are more creative. We are more of who we were meant to be.

But it’s a long journey worth every step. Do you have any meditation stories to share from your journey?

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

Be well, write well.

Monday Meditation: Lessons In Living

Posted on by Joy Held

 

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

We are each living our daily lives as we would like to experience our deaths.

“Whoa! Hold on,” you’re saying. “I don’t like to think about dying. I’ll deal with it when it happens.”

It happens a little to everyone every day. Awareness of that tiny fact creates a huge relief in those who notice it. Yoga has a particular gift in this area. It’s a pose called ‘Savasana’ which is Sanskrit for ‘corpse pose.’ The end of every decent hatha yoga class is spent in this one pose for up to 20 minutes. My students call it “the present at the end of the yoga workout party” because with practice ‘Savasana’ is truly a gift on many levels. One of those levels is the practice of our death.

“Okay, too morbid for me. Next blog, please.” 

That’s the normal reaction to a discussion of death. But this is a discussion of the appreciation of life.

I was raised in a ballet school and had to perform on stage quite a bit. Recitals, “The Nutcracker”, and benefit performances used to make me nervous. As a young dancer, I sometimes got so ill I couldn’t go on with the show. Nowadays that’s called “performance anxiety” and the study of it has shown that sufficient preparation and practice of an activity completely alleviates the stress caused by having to perform in front of an audience. I taught myself to practice more often and rehearse my dances in my mind over and over by visualizing the movements night after night before falling asleep. When it came time to perform, no sick stomach or sweats, just a great experience for me and the audience. The dedicated repetition in the studio and in my mind gave me the confidence to perform without tension and without worrying about the expectations. I knew I was doing the best job I possibly could because I had practiced a lot. 

In his brilliant book The Inner Tradition of Yoga, A Guide to Yoga Philosophy for the Contemporary Practitioner, author and psychotherapist Michael Stone explores some of how ‘Savasana’ is an honest, stress-free practice of “life structured by death.” In a pure and simple sense we all make daily living choices that lead us along the path of how we will experience our endings. In the regular practice of corpse pose we gently, slowly, and gradually choose in a small way to live and pass peacefully and with respect toward our world and others. Relaxing deeply in the gift of corpse pose at the end of a good hatha session is an opportunity to make a tiny practice about how we would like to leave this existence. It’s normal to resist death but the miniscule and regular practice of accepting it peacefully builds a reserve in our mind. We can call on those peaceful reserves when faced with stressful expectations and the results will be better for all concerned.

According to Stone, “Yoga teaches us that the dance of all we perceive happens in front of awareness, not inside or behind it.” Yoga helps us practice the dance in front of the audience and with repetition we are not afraid. About the two arenas of life and death he adds, “The ‘practice of dying’ is a matter of learning to live the tension ‘in between’ these two dimensions of existence.” Corpse pose enables us to experience a small death with appreciation for living because after the pose we are graciously given the opportunity to stretch our arms and legs, take a deep breath, and go back to our world. The idea is to take the appreciations learned on the mat in corpse pose and practice those lessons in our lives off the mat.

Visit Michael Stone

http://centreofgravity.org/

Learning to appreciate corpse pose as more than a physical relaxation is learning gratitude for life. Don’t be afraid.

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous. 

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook 

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb 

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

 Be well, write well.