2011.09.06 _ 5

Formal spot, short sitting. It makes so much sense, closing the curtains of the day this way. It would be a great gift should this take root as a habit. :)

::: Walking up the hills
::: A bear bell at the belt
::: Droplet of being

Busy day, didn't get to meditate until the evening. Meditated in the dark, which made surprisingly little difference once my eyes had adjusted a bit.

Ten minutes is a good length for the mediation, as it is short enough to fit into unplanned moments, and so makes me more aware of opportunities to meditate, and so makes me take more 9-second pauses.

Sat before bed, surprised to find how calm and steady my mind was (after a stressful and very tiring day). Images came and went, some memories and others daydream-like.

May miss posting in next while, but will try to stay with the practices, here and otherwise. Last night, so tired, I read a maitri prayer adaptation. Outloudness penetrated the mental lethargy, and the message was easy on the ears. Just sat up in the morning before opening my eyes. Basically still asleep, but an outloudness about sitting up. Verticality, and I noticed thoughts and sensations. A meal later became inspiration to slow down and be present and bodied. [feel support of others supporting their paths]

I was struck by Paradise's description of the magic of the moment, the magic of all things, the fairy tale nature of ordinary reality. I stopped what I was doing for a while, and just looked around, turning everything on edge, so to speak, viewing how thin all phenomena are when seen as arising in space. Then, when going back to the business at hand, the sense of magic lingered, as if everything went more smoothly, more naturally.

Another hour's sit in the recliner. Everything around me came from the same source that I did and will ultimately come to the same end. That's the science. For this hour we share the same room. I choose attunement with these objects and invite the synchronization of their tones, textures, and rhythms with my own. I appreciate the appearance of their presence. edited 01:19, 7 Sep 2011

Felt a peace as I focussed on reds and greens, the flatness of the surface of the paper, the depth of the leaf folds and profusion of petals. My hand connected to the brush connected to the paint connected to the paper connected to an image in mind's eye

I also feel a deep connection with those who contribute to this page, Bruce's appreciation, Pema's magic, oO0Oo's vertical somnolence, wol's steadiness,Wester's awareness, Eden's walking and Eliza's taking root. Thank you. edited 03:36, 7 Sep 2011

/me makes beautiful painting into her desktop wallpaper and delights in such heart-felt sharings. _/!\_

/me feels honoured! _/!\_ edited 03:44, 7 Sep 2011

Today I realized I missed doing active meditation (Tai Chi), but there is a visualization technique that I will allow to count for today even though it was after midnight... the technique is to think through Tai Chi, the steps, the hands the feet, the movement, in my case while in bed before sleep... it's actually harder work than actually doing it. Then I thought... can you meditate about how you meditate? try it, seems to work easier with movement than with thinking about not thinking :)