It was a chilling -9 degrees this morning as I began my Winds of Change, a low sun reflecting off a pristine hard-crusted snow cover, with elongated shadows of tree trunks patterning themselves amidst the sparkle. I offered a prayer of gratitude for the beauty surrounding me both outdoors and indoors, the warmth of propane heat, the coziness of my living room, the comfort of a thick rug on which to stretch and meditate, the awareness of our shared time together. Knowing where some of you were, I pictured you in your own spaces, walking, sitting, gathering together, driving.
I wanted to skip my stretches, a good indicator that I should indeed do them, which I did cautiously, having experienced a bout of vertigo yesterday, not the debilitating dizziness, but the feeling of being top heavy in my head, as if I would topple over at any moment from the imagined weight. Though none of it lingered this morning, I felt light headed and nauseous. I invoked the healing presence of each of you to steady me through my stretches, each movement a prayer of thanksgiving for your "presents."
I then decided to lie on the floor, knees bent, hands resting on my solar plexus. I chose not to listen to any soundings or music, but simply to feel presence deep within, as my mind wandered in opposing directions. It was an exercise in ebb and flow, wandering and centering, breathing in and breathing out, being aware of stiffness in my body and letting go to relaxation, hearing the Rinnai heater turning off and on and listening to stillness within, listening with my ears and listening with my heart, holding the image of my spinning chakras and not holding any image at all.
In the past, I would have struggled through this meditation, considering it a failed attempt. Today, as I experienced the differences in my state of being, I remained calm, accepting each occurrence as part of my meditation, with gentleness and nonjudgment. There were no visions and sensations, no quivers or sounds. My meditation was quite ordinary, and yet there was an underlying extraordinariness (extra: outside of; ordinary: commonplace) about it, a genuine joy and an all encompassing peace.
I know that bringing all of you along through the Winds of Change enhanced my meditation, which I experienced as a collective meditation, and as a result, I was able to find wonder in my meditative wandering. Thank you for participating in the Winds of Change.
I invite you to share your response or your own WoC experience by posting it here. I would love to hear from you. Namaste.
I began today’s WoC at around 9:30 EST, since that was when I arrived at my cushion for my morning meditation. I only remembered our “date” a few minutes into it and sent you all an anticipatory hello. I spent the first 15 minutes listening to Tom Kenyon’s Heart, Pituitary and Pineal Attunements and finished in silent meditation.
ReplyDeleteI then did some gentle stretching before going downstairs to snuggle with my husband, who sleeps later than I and was just then waking. Our snuggling moved into sweet love~making, which seemed to me a fitting way to celebrate the LOVE that comprises the NOW, even though it might be a first during WoC~~the first one disclosed, anyway! (Hopin’ ya didn’t picture me in THAT moment, Claire!)
I came back to my cushion to say goodbye to you all. This day is an Awareness Day, one in which remaining open to All That Is takes priority over any tasks or want~tos. I have Tom Kenyon playing quietly in the background, helping me weave awareness throughout my activities~~making breakfasts for my work week, writing a letter to the psych nurse who will be meeting with my 92 yo father on Wednesday, writing my column for next weekend, talking with our neighbor, typing this to you all.
I will likely take a very hot jacuzzi bath a bit later, cook some tortilla soup for dinner, and have a couple more sit~down meditations before the day is done. Thank you for beginning it with me.
A cyber~hug to you all!
Loanne
PS. I highly recommend the Kenyon Sound Gifts for those of you who are a bit hesitant to meditate on your own. While they have no words, the sounds and instructions on how to use them create a kind of guided meditation experience, an easy entryway.
PPS. My columns from the Faith and Religion section of the regional newspaper here are republished on my blog. If you're interested, you can find them by, I believe, clicking on my name above this comment. Not intended as self~promotion, just an invitation~~which is fine to ignore!
Thank you for sharing your LOVE-ly WoC experience, Loanne. And for the Tom Kenyon recommendations as well as your own column, all WONDER-FULL resources in the great leap in consciousness evolution. Our days are filled with moments evolving us to our highest potential, whether it be love-making or soup making. There is no ordinary - it all becomes extraordinary when we bring our awareness to the moment we are in, which is All That Is. Namaste.
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