3 blogs pretty close together eh?
I have been meaning to write about this but as with anyone, life happens.
A few weeks ago - pretty much the Month of March - I did the Oprah/Deepak Chopra 21 Day Meditation Challenge. I had seen a couple of my friends share the link on FB and when I looked into it, it sounded pretty cool. It was free and I'm always looking to improve my body, mind and soul. I also have more time on my hands so I figured - why not!
I did quite well too. I only missed maybe 2 nights, but actually made them up at different times. What it basically was, was you signed into your account and Oprah yapped for a minute then Deepak Chopra comes on. He then talks about whatever subject is that day. These ranged from diet to exercise to soul searching to kindness to all sorts of things. There would be the phrase of the day, the yogi/meditation and then what the meditation means or symbolizes. I wrote them all down each day, so I do have record of them. Then Deepak would begin a guided meditation with you with trippy yogi music playing in the background. He would then talk briefly, getting you "centered" then leave you be with the music and your own meditation. A soft gong would ring about 10 minutes later, he spoke for a few more seconds then you were done. Afterwards there was a little daily journal you could fill out. I missed the deadline to print this out, but I don't recall writing anything too deep.
I really found myself enjoying these. There were nights I didn't want to do it, but more often than not I would happily dive in. I always did mine at night before bed. I would have my face washed, PJ's on and ready to crash. I would then pop on my laptop, throw a hankerchief over it to dull the glow and curl up on the couch in the best criss-cross position I could muster with my screwy hip and angry knee.
I am not a good meditator. I'm sure you all find this shocking. My mind wanders a mile a minute and having 2 cats doesn't help. (One night Tweaks leaped up on my shoulder scaring the shit out of me and giving me a mild heartattack. Needless to say my meditation was shot that night). I also found I always seemed to try this when Disneyland was shooting off it's fireworks. My new place - LOUD.
But - I did my best. I was pleasantly surprised to find a few nights where I actually got into a pretty decent calm. Those were the nights that the meditation actually seemed too short. It was like "Damn - I was just getting there!' This gives me hope though that I may actually be able to pull this off once in awhile.
What did I learn? Not too much, but I did find I seemed to sleep better at night. I also have decided I want to try to incorporate meditation into my life on a more regular basis. I know I won't do it every night, Hell, I haven't even tried once since the challenge ended but I'm going too, tonight, and I'm going to try some different methods. I have an album on my ipod that a yogi friend of mind loves and it's yoga like music. So I want to try and just sit in silence with that music and see if I can do this. I'm not sure it will help but I'm confident it will do something.
I was pleased to hear one of my friends who did it is still doing it. She said she has found she's calmer and more focused in life. One of the days had this mantra: My little changes amount to big benefits. The meditation is Ram, Ram, Ram which was one of my favorites. That mantra has really stuck with me lately. I've been keeping up with my metas or affirmations in the shower in the mornings, I'm trying to eat better - no diet - just small changes, I'm keeping active and trying to do things I enjoy, not that I HAVE to do. Nothing major - all small. I am noticing little differences. I want to start noticing big changes and I think I will if I keep trying new things. I really want to find my balance and live a life of perfect health!
SO - in conclusion - I'm really glad I did it. I truly do believe if you sit in silence, whether meditating or not, but just chill for a little bit, once a day - you will be happier.
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