Hello,
As some of you may know, I was very hung up on aspects of loving kindness. For the most part I was able to follow along with it until the idea of opening up to strangers. I had to redefine who strangers are to me. Initially I felt that a stranger is anyone I hadn't met. Are classmates strangers, no I've met you on the discussion boards and in the introductions. Are patients strangers, no, I've researched their histories and have also had introductions. So who is a stranger? To me a stranger is the random person I share space with in public. I can share. I can be open to new ideas, but I have modified my personal practice to something I can live with and flourish with.
The subtle mind exercises are the opportunity to bring awareness to your breath and body connection. The only trouble I had was the random thoughts that I usually like to run with. Specifically during the instruction to take 10 deep breaths, I lost count and my focus went to the sound of the water and the distant flute, but wait, It was familiar. It reminded me of the movie The Titanic and the instrumental song of My Heart Will Go On by Celene Dion. By then I was out in left field with no idea of my mind body connection. This is an exercise of focus. I need to work on it. I have never been diagnosed with attention deficit, but know it is present in myself and in my kids. My family has ingrained in me that ADD meds are not part of our health routine and I have raised my children this way as well, with focus on dietary needs and mind calming activities at opportune times. These exercises take that concept one step further. It is more structured, and when instructed it may be easier to follow completely without distraction once the mind has gained strength. It is something that once I feel I have developed a skill for, I will teach my sons.
When mental and physical wellness are being addressed, It will open doors for greater understanding and connection with the spiritual aspects of your life. Perhaps having little to do with religion but greater awareness of the universal life force, ones soul, or the ethereal being.
Jenifer,
ReplyDeleteFirst - did you guys sent us that duststorm the other day??(I live in Mesa, lol!) That thing was HUGE! Anyway, I have said this to people for years - ADD and ADHD were not diagnoses made when I was a kid. While I do care about people, I really think that short attention spans and inappropriate behavior out of boredom should be laid at the feat of parents, and technology. We didn't have an X-box, or a computer, or phones with 800 apps, or a television in every room; we played outside, got lots of sunshine and exercise, and we were ok. I am glad that you have raised your kids with a focus on healthy eating habits, and if you can get your kids to practice some of the things we'll be doing in this class, you have some pretty awesome kids! Cheers!
Chris
Hey Chris,
ReplyDeleteThat was a wild haboob! I had seen video of it on facebook, pretty scary.
I agree about the mass technology that was not available to us, being such a distraction and convienience to them. It is pretty funny how the conversations we had with our parents and grandparents about how hard they had it, like, I walked uphill in the snow everyday to get to school ect, has turned into I never had a cell phone or the internet as a kid, we never had spell check, we had to look it up in the dictionary. How the times are changing right! My boys are older and are slowly getting the concept of how quieting the mind is a powerful tool. Yes, they are extremely awesome boys, Thank you!