In general,
We get better at doing things that we practice.
Hi,
My name is Lori Wald and for the next 20 minutes,
You have nothing to do.
So there's a really great story that Shauna Shapiro,
A well-known meditation teacher,
Tells.
And she had gone off to an ashram,
I believe,
Because she wanted to deepen her meditation practice.
And she got there and no one spoke English.
That was one frustrating aspect.
And then as she was there for some time,
She was really having a hard time.
But when she looked around at all the other people who were there to deepen their practice,
They all seemed to be sitting effortlessly in tranquility,
Looking very serene,
And they were all getting it.
But she wasn't getting it.
So finally a monk arrived who did speak English and she had a conversation with him and she said,
You know,
I want to leave.
I don't get it.
I'm not getting it.
I'm just no good at this.
I'm done.
I'm quitting.
I'm out of here.
And he said to her,
Well,
I can see that you're practicing frustration.
And I see that you're practicing impatience.
And you know,
We get very good at what we practice.
So if you are a world class worrier,
If you are someone who has gotten very good at being your best critic,
Strongest critic,
If you've practiced these things for however many years you've been on this earth,
You've probably gotten quite good at them.
But here we practice something else.
We practice being mindful.
And what is that?
We practice being aware of our present experience as it is with compassion,
With curiosity,
And with courage.
So I ask you to get into your comfortable yet dignified position.
Eyes open or eyes closed.
And just sit for a moment and see if you can notice your breath.
You might want to place a hand on your belly and notice the rise and fall.
You can place a hand on your chest.
Notice as it expands and contracts.
Or place a finger under your nose and see if you can notice the air that comes in warm and goes out cool.
And we just practice noticing our normal breath.
Because through this focus on our breath,
It requires deep inner focus and helps us not get entangled with the thoughts that are constantly coming through our brains.
Helps us tolerate some of those uncomfortable feelings that may be passing through.
And helps us notice pleasant feelings that arise.
So we practice this deep inner focus.
Not because we're going to become perfect at doing it,
But because we're going to become better.
We'll become better at noticing the repetitive thoughts that keep coming around.
Loop de loop over and over again.
Huh,
There's that thought again.
Back to your breath.
You might even notice if you're in a sitting position and your feet are on the floor.
Just notice the feeling of your feet pressing against the floor.
Just a neutral place.
We focus on something neutral.
As thoughts arise,
We notice and come back to that place of neutrality.
We get good at what we practice.
We practice here so that when we're out there,
We're more acutely aware of when our feelings arise,
When our buttons are getting pushed,
When our thoughts are distracting us.
And when we notice these things out there,
We have a new way to regulate what's happening inside of us.
We notice it.
We can be curious about it.
We don't have to judge it.
It's not a bad reaction.
It's simply a reaction.
We can ponder it.
We can save it for later.
We don't have to react immediately.
We just notice.
We come back to this balanced place.
Equanimity is that place of being in balance.
It doesn't mean you never have strong reactions.
It means you notice them.
And can more quickly come back to a place of equanimity.
Notice your feet on the floor or your breath.
The neutral place in your body.
Even if what you're experiencing now is not neutral,
Maybe you feel restless.
Or frustrated like Shana Shapiro.
Or excited.
Or your to do list won't leave you alone.
It keeps coming back to pester you over and over again.
Just notice without judgment.
Maybe with a little curiosity.
That's odd.
I haven't thought about that for a long time.
Where did that thought come from?
And instead of getting entangled with the thought or the feeling,
Come back to your breath or the feeling of your feet on the floor.
We practice equanimity.
You're teaching yourself that you can tolerate discomfort,
Uncomfortable feelings.
Positive feelings.
If you've gotten distracted,
It's okay.
Start again.
You're going to get it.
I believe in you.
Encourage yourself to try again.
If you've drifted off somewhere,
You've gotten involved in a thought or an emotion,
It's okay.
Start again.
That's the meditation.
The meditation is the noticing and coming back.
Again and again.
We practice.
We practice.
Do you regularly practice frustration and aggravation?
And self criticism.
So easy to do.
Here we practice awareness and focus and non-judgment and curiosity.
What can you notice about you?
Start again.
Start again.
Start again.
For the last minute,
Just stop trying.
Okay.
Let's go.
Let's go.
My name is Lori.
Thanks for meditating with me.
