Day 4
So I didn't write a blog post for day 4. It was a really really long day. Like a 16 hour day. I barely had enough energy to eat. But I did meditate! Day 4 was using counting as part of the meditation. It was different for me because I use counting, but I count as I breath in and count as I breath out for a variety of reasons. This method had you note the word "in" on the in breath and count the number as the out breath. It went like "in, one, in, two, in, three, in, four, in, five," etc. This was very different for me. I think it helped me focus because it wasn't familiar. I can't say it was as comfortable as the other methods so far, but hey, everything isn't for everyone.
I did enjoy the sentiments in Needlesandherbs post counting and verbal noting. I appreciated SueB's point in #RealHappinessChallenge - Day 4 - numbers that because something doesn't do it for you one time, trying something else and maybe coming back might have a different result. Johnnie_the_poet's honesty in his post Daily Practice Day Four was a refreshing reminder that we are yet still human. My favorite of the day was Victoria Liebertore Sneaking a Prayer.
Day 5
To be honest, I had to do this meditation twice. I did it earlier in the day after a 90 minute yoga practice and I honestly cannot recall what the heck happened! I don't remember falling asleep or waking up. Just that 12 minutes had passed and I needed to clean up my yoga mat and accessories.
On my second time around it took me several minutes to get settled into a comfortable seated position. I think I fell asleep 2 or 3 or 4 times during a total of 20 minutes. I found the guided portion of the meditation to be very very distracting. Once the guided portion was done I felt more settled into the meditation. I see colors and shapes during meditation generally and today was no exception. I appreciated the transcript the most today. Loving kindness as a practice has been life changing for me. It's not difficult to show loving kindness to myself, but to implement the practice for others has made me more humble.
Today I was reminded that I can show loving kindness to myself for my own commitments in Day 5 of 28: Loving Kindness by Edith. I enjoyed Dariene's account of the start of her day with the meditation challenge in Day 5 - kindness. Cher's post Day 5 and Buddhist principals resonated with me deeply. Recently I've been pondering and ruminating on the similarities in various practices and the resistance by some to very helpful practices simply due to the language. This was an opportunity to give thanks for variety. Denise E shared Magic Moments - in Schools which provided a great opening to see meditation from several different perspectives.
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