Meditate

 

 

 

Several of the main causes of death in our society are rooted in low-level continual stress.  Meditation has been proven time and time again to alleviate stress.  It keeps you feeling even-tempered and you’ll find you resolve problems before they become “high-stress.”  Wouldn't it be nice to not freak out over something because it never became an issue in the first place? Rest. Get enough sleep.  Take days off and just laze around.  Make sure you get breaks during the day.   Your body needs it to function optimally and without enough, those stress triggers start and health problems can crop up.

 

How-To: Walking Meditation

 

"Exploring the world is one of the best ways of exploring the mind," writes Rebecca Solnit in Wanderlust: A History of Walking.  One of my favorite "alone" things to do is to walk and meditate.  I have one of those "monkey chatter brains" (only  those of you who have the same issue will understand that term!). Walking is the best way to get you out of your  head and to bring clarity to life. Here are a few steps that will help you walk & meditate.

1. Begin your walk with 5 deep inhalations and 5 strong exhalations. Continue this breathing pattern every 5 minutes or when you think about it. What does the air smell like, can you smell freshly laundered clothes? lavender? wet leaves? freshly cut grass? ...

2.Focus your attention on something you see, a beautiful part of  nature like  a ladybug, or a spiders web. Think about that spiderweb and how it came to be, each beautiful silky strand and the beautiful pattern... how does it feel when dew attaches to the web...or when a spider crawls across the web...

3.As you continue to walk, think about this beautiful web.

4. When the thought of the web leaves your mind, find a new object to think about or begin a chant, a song, a poem, a prayer or your favorite mantra, "I am grateful for all the beautiful things in my life...". If I have reoccurring thoughts of a problem I visualize my problem blowing away like a leaf in the wind, or flowing with the current in a stream, and I let it go. Breathe.

5. Hold one hand behind your back. If you find yourself walking too fast, this will help you slow down.

6. Listen to the sounds around you and the sun on your face.

Life is wonderful!