In a Moment - Issue 19

I've been experiencing a steady hum of anxiety for the last 10 days or so. Maybe you have too?

It lingers just below the surface.

Coloring the conversations I have.

Shaping the thoughts that bob around my awareness.

Influencing my feelings and emotions.

And every so often it crests like a wave at the shore - washing over me and bringing with it fear.

I try not to succumb to the power of fear and yet, I'm only human and it's inevitable at times.

I try not to react. I try to stay grounded, patient, compassionate.

These are difficult and uncertain times and we are all navigating it differently. And I genuinely believe that each of us is coping the best way we can with the tools we have available to us. Tools that we have gathered from past experiences, from friends and family members, from teachers or books, from a myriad of resources.

At a time of social distancing and quarantines, we still need to be close to each other. To remember that we're all wading through the muck of it all together and need each other’s love & support.

I've been incorporating a loving-kindness meditation in my daily practice. When I'm not able to be close to those physically, it can be helpful to be close mentally & spiritually. If you haven't practiced a loving-kindness meditation before, it's pretty simple. It involves bringing to mind a series of people -- someone you are close to and love dearly, yourself, someone you have neutral feelings about and someone you may have a difficult relationship with -- and send them thoughts of compassion, safety, protection, love.

Start by finding a space where you can be quiet and possibly close your eyes for a few minutes.

Make yourself a comfortable seat, maybe pour yourself a fresh glass of water or a cup of tea.

First, take a few deep breaths. Maybe even exhaling out of the mouth and feeling the body begin to soften & relax a bit.

Begin to bring to mind someone you love -- see them in your mind's eye. Their eyes, their smile, their laugh. Imagine them with you, sitting alongside you. And then send them a message of loving-kindness -- may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you be happy, may you live a life of peace.

Sit with that feeling.

Now begin to bring your awareness to yourself. See yourself in your mind's eye. Your smile, the warmth of your heart, maybe even bring your hands to your heart. Send yourself that message of loving-kindness -- may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you be happy, may you live a life of peace.

Sit with that feeling. Notice if you begin to radiate that feeling.

Now bring to mind a neutral person. Perhaps someone you see on your way to work each day, a neighbor you encounter on occasion, a coworker you don't know as well. Hold them in your awareness. Send this person a message of loving-kindness -- may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you be happy, may you live a life of peace.

Sit with that feeling. Notice what you feel.

And now bring to mind someone who you have a difficult relationship with. Be gentle with yourself if you're just starting out with this practice -- this can be a person in which there is a mild tension or irritation. Try to avoid a relationship where there is trauma present. Hold this person in your awareness. Send them that message of loving-kindness -- may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you be happy, may you live a life of peace.

Sit with that feeling. Notice any feelings that arise.

Now bring to mind all folks, the whole planet, all the living beings, and creatures. Fill your awareness with the sense of all life. Feel the abundance, the expansion and the interconnectedness of it all. Send the whole world and all living creatures a message of loving-kindness -- may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you be happy, may you live a life of peace.

Sit with that feeling. Notice if you feel a sense of connection.

Begin to take a few deep breaths. Come back into the present moment.

See if you can keep some of that connection as you move through your day.