Monday, February 4, 2013
Solar Power
If your mind is anything like mine, you know that trying to meditate can be a bit like trying to tame a cowlick or coerce a fly to go out your back door instead of buzzing in your kitchen. The mind wants to do its own thing even when you diligently try to steer it in another direction. Between to-do lists and fixating on the fact that you're supposed to be clearing your thoughts, and the random songs that pop into your head when you're trying to be still, meditation can make the cowlicks seem like a walk in the park.
Which is why I got so excited last week when I discovered a new trick for short, simple meditations.
I think the Universe may have been conspiring to bring me the lesson, because several of my coaching clients mentioned a common theme when walking through an exercise based on their "ideal days," and I remembered Elizabeth Gilbert mentioning it during the Oprah interview I recently watched, and then I wrote about it a bit on my other blog.
The feeling of the sun on your skin.
The power of this finally sunk in when I saw my cat sprawled on the living room rug, and I decided to sit next to him and let the morning light warm me.
I closed my eyes and immediately saw a vibrant flood of golds and oranges and reds behind my eyelids. It stunned me into mental silence. I could feel the heat coming through my blinds and quickly began to get a sensation like the light was filling my entire body, invigorating me with some sort of powerful energy source. I felt clear and still and blissfully comfortable.
And then a John Mayer song started playing in my head.
I may not be a skilled, enlightened, meditation pro, but I think I'm on to something with this whole sun approach. And I'm not the only one.
Do you have any special tricks you use to find moments of calm throughout your day? And when it's available, do you find yourself drawn to the light and warmth of the sun?
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Whoa. I just did this yesterday. I was babysitting for a friend and when the baby was napping I was trying to find a place to sit and read and meditate, but I just couldn't get warm. The heat was on, the house was fine, but I was cold. Finally I found a patch of sun on the wood floor, so I moved a rug there and sat. It was lovely. I was there until the baby woke up. I knew I was a sun person, but it is more serious than I thought. :)
ReplyDeleteLesley - I think something is afoot in the Universe. I'm glad you're on board. ;)
ReplyDeleteWahhhh no sun here. But when I do see it, I lounge like a Monty (or Zoey) at Melissa's for as long as I possibly can!
ReplyDeleteEm - You make me wonder about those special lamps for people with seasonal affective disorder. I wonder if you could meditate under one of those!
ReplyDeleteSun, what's that? Oh wait, maybe I saw it ... four months ago! hahaha, welcome to winter in Chicago!
ReplyDeleteI'm by no means a meditation anything. In fact, I'm pretty new to it and don't do it consistently. But, I found a guided meditation app that I really like and one of the prompts seems to refocus me every time: [calm, soothing voice] "Thoughts will come and go, but always come back to focus on your breath." I like that line, because it's like I'm getting permission to have thoughts running through my mind while meditating ... it doesn't make me feel like I'm failing if I do ... but, it's also gently reminding me to push them to the side in favor of the space between me and my breath.