When the Going Gets Tough, Go Deeper

Meditate Deeper


What I mean by that is that when you just aren’t feeling the love for your meditation practice, your tea or other relaxation methods may seem to fall short. In times like those, reach for an deeper relaxation so that at least you get something out of it.

When I didn’t do that, I sometimes found that I felt as cranky after the meditation as I did before. So if you start with tea and that doesn’t calm you, go deep.

Countdown to Meditation Bliss

Your homework for today…

Here’s one technique for creating a deeper induction as you meditate. Countdown from ten to one, slowly. You can picture the numbers in your mind, or imagine being in an elevator and watch the numbers light up as you go from tenth floor to the ground level. Or you can imagine walking down ten flights of stairs.

If you try it, let me know how it goes.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Tea is the Warm-Up

When I don’t feel like meditating, I find that it feels like a chore that I just want to get over with as quickly as possible. So it was in that spirit, last week, that I decided to combine my tea with meditation so that when the cup was empty, I could count myself done.

When to Drink Your Tea


Usually, I drink tea first, reflectively, and begin the process of slowing down my thoughts and easing into a more relaxed state. And then I meditate. But this time, I tried to do the whole thing while sipping tea. And it might have worked, if I hadn’t been so impatient to be done.

But I think for my own best experience, it’s better to slow it down even more than that and make tea the warm up to my meditation experience.

Homework

Your homework: try it both ways and compare. Let me know which way works better for you.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Meditating with Mantras

“Focusing on one word reaches down into the spiritual, emotional, or mental desire and pulls it up through the physical, and it gives you energy. A mantra lines up your deepest energetic intentions, which are very subtle, with your gross intentions out in the world.” –Patton Garrett Sarley, CEO of the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health

Healing Mantras


There were some days last week when I did not feel like meditating at all. And I hardly cared what happened during the meditation, either. I just wanted to check it off my list!

So I thought I would make it easier by just planning to repeat a mantra. Then, I thought I might as well make it a healing mantra and chose affirmations I wanted to embrace.

What I found was that I felt discomfort as I repeated the things I don’t yet believe. So I altered the words to reflect where I am now.

“I intend to believe…”


“It is my goal to let go of…”

And it was very empowering to support myself in that way. So if you want to work with affirmations as mantras, make sure the statement or phrase is encouraging (be courageous) or reflects where you are now (I am becoming ready to…).

Homework

Your homework: create an affirmation mantra and try it out for five minutes or so. Let me know in the comments how it goes.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

What I Know for Sure after a Week of Struggling w/ Tea & Meditation

Experience Leads to Wisdom


I spent last week sharing some of the struggles I have been having as I try to make all these “contemplative tea lifestyle” changes. What I would like to share this week is what I am learning as I persist. Here’s one thing I am learning to do…

Embracing Imperfection

Or at least, allow it. Then, try for actual acceptance. After a while, you might find you can embrace it. I’m not sure I am there yet when it comes to meditation. I still feel disappointed when it doesn’t go the way I want. But I’m getting there. The more I encouraged myself to let go of the demand for perfection last week, the better I felt about my days as they ended.

Your homework: pick something imperfect in your world today and make a decision to allow it. That’s it! If you decide to reach for acceptance or to try embracing it, that’s extra credit! :)

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

A Sea-Infused Shamanic Journey

Preparing for the Journey

In yesterday’s post, I shared my intention to do a shamanic journey motivated by concern about my son’s need for healing beyond the normal healing techniques we use, and described all the things I did to prepare for it, trying to quite my active mind and get very deeply relaxed. It sounds, I imagine, like I must have spent a great deal of time leading up to it, but I think the tea time was about 20 minutes or so, and the shamanic reiki process was another 20 minutes, including deep breathing, crystals, hypnotic induction, etc.

And I may not have needed as much time. But I trust the process more when I know I am very deeply relaxed!

The Journey

Remember the really clear blue water I was swimming in during my meditation the other day? Well, that’s how it started. So I just swam around for a while wondering if anything else would happen when suddenly, there was my son.

I asked him what he needed and he began to talk to me about spending time together and playing games and watching movies and other things we need to include in our family time. Suddenly, a big monster appeared, which I killed. One of my arms became a weapon and I knew what to do without having to stop and think.

Another one appeared, this one more shadowy, and I took care of him, too. Now I know at least one way to interpret who these monsters represent. But I believe that in journeys, just like in dreams, symbols can have more than one meaning.

After the second monster-like being was taken care of, I began to build a protective structure all around him. It seemed to happen in slow motion, one wall at a time. Then I made it big enough for both of us, then our whole family of four (my partner and stepdaughter weren’t there right then but I knew they would be soon).

Then, I thought of creating a door so we could let other friends and family in, and saw them coming in to be with us.

Then I saw us moving about in the world still surrounded by this protective covering. I saw my son in college, I saw my future home, I saw myself teaching at a retreat center, I saw my family swimming together and many other brief flashes of future.

Coming Back

And as usual, I just sort of knew when it was complete, and began the process of returning, which I have to do slowly or I get disoriented.

What was unique about this return is how empowered and energized I felt! And how safe. And hopeful about my family’s future.

Homework

You may not have much experience with shamanic journeys, but you could try your hand at creating your own guided meditation.

What kind of experience would you want to create?

Give it a try if you dare! :)

See you Monday!

Jeanine

Of Tea and Shamanic Journeys

Today, I decided to do shamanic reiki during my meditation time, using the same music as usual, instead of the drumming that can make journeying easier, because I knew my son would have a harder time relaxing with drum sounds. My son, incidently, was the reason for the journey. I had been concerned about him for the past day or so, and felt like I was getting some intuitive impressions that he needed my help with healing something.

Tea First

Because journeying calls for an even deeper level of relaxation than guided meditation, I decided to drink more chamomile tea beforehand and to wait a little while after that before doing the shamanic meditation.

Crystals

I also have been using crystals lately as I meditate and for this journey, I decided to hold them for a while before beginning the journey. I don’t know if this is a problem for others but my mind doesn’t just wander, it jumps around like a whirling dervish and sometimes, does a little creative writing when it is supposed to be quiet and receptive.

Does that ever happen to you?

So I knew, already, that holding a rose quartz crystal in one hand and an amethyst crystal in the other is amazingly soothing and deeply relaxing. I have used them before when I am stressed out or irritated by something my little darling son has said or done. I also have used them for guided meditation in the past when I wanted to do a spirit guide meditation and wanted to make sure I was relaxed enough to hear or see clearly.

Well, it occurred to me about a week and a half ago that I had forgotten about them and their use for meditation and I immediately began using them again. Isn’t it weird how you can forget something like that and then have it suddenly pop back into your head?

Anyway, once I knew I was plenty relaxed, I decided to load the deck by adding one more thing: a hypnotic induction technique I have been throwing into the pot from time to time.

And then, I did a 20-minute journey, which I will tell you about in tomorrow’s post.

Announcing: Homework

Thought I'd change things up a bit and start making homework suggestions.

If you aren't already participating in my 30 Days of Tea and Meditation challenge, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is either (1) to have a cup of tea and take a few minutes to savor it and let go of today's stress ~~ maybe a soothing cup of chamomile tea while you observe the full moon? Or (2) to take five minutes to meditate tonight (while staring at the moon?) and either way, let me know how it goes.

If you are participating in the challenge, grab your journal and leave it open beside you as you meditate. After today's meditation, jot down anything that seemed significant about your meditation experience.

Any subtle invitations, gentle nudges, creative solutions or other kinds of intuitive guidance? Write it down. And I would love it if you would share it here, too! (I adore comments).

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

The Saga Continues! (How's It Going for You?)

Picking up where we left off yesterday, I have been talking about all these changes I have been making. Maybe too many!

What about you? Do you ever feel like you have taken on too much? What do you do and how do you handle it? Let me know in the comments!

Are We Having Fun Yet?

When will these fabulous changes become fun? Well, there is the pride of accomplishment. The awareness of what “enough sleep” feels like. The thrill of noting that I want nothing more than to go to bed when it is not yet midnight (although that doesn't happen every night, I confess).

But I am still not getting enough done and my family is still not getting enough of my time, according to them.

Also, I am bored! So I am having some withdrawal, and probably, attempting too many changes at once.

I am not sure how I got from adding one cup of tea a day to adding tea plus meditation to tea lifestyle to getting up while the sun is still stretching.

But you can be sure I will continue blogging the good, the bad and the ugly about my experience!

How Is It Going for You?

What about you?

What changes have been a challenge for you? How’s it going? Leave me a comment and let me know what changes you're working on and how they are working out for you!

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Too Many Changes! (Can I Just Go Back to Bed?)

In this blog post, I want to continue the saga of too many changes at once!!

Here’s what I have been doing: morning tea and meditation, and whenever I can, afternoon tea. But before I was used to that change, I got inspired to make some more changes. And since the fall season is my most energetic time, I figured I better make use of the motivation before winter hibernation sets in!

More Sleep?

So I decided to start implementing some sleep changes, going to bed earlier and getting up earlier. The way I planned it, this would guarantee many, many wonderful things!

Enough sleep, enough time for both homeschooling and work, morning and afternoon tea, morning meditation, family time and that whole slowing down thing I’m trying to accomplish.

At night, instead of working, I am sitting on the couch with a Jane Austen sequel, keeping an eye on the TV and trying to read at the same time so that I won't (1) be bored and (2) worry about the work I still haven't done.

In the morning, far earlier than usual, I "yawn and stretch and try to come to life!"

But How Is It Going?

Well, I'm bored and on some nights, I have refused to play along, staying up late again and getting up later than I planned.

Any suggestions for making peace with all these changes?

I will feature your comments in an upcoming post.

And the saga continues tomorrow!

Jeanine

And So It Goes! More Tales on the Journey to 30 Days of Tea & Meditation

As you may have noticed if you have been reading along, my tea and meditation changes have led to more changes in lifestyle! Now I am trying to change my sleep and work habits so that I actually get enough sleep and have more time for rest and family. It is a part of the whole "contemplative tea lifestyle" change I have been angling for but I hadn't expected to decide to go crazy.

And I mentioned in my last post that the first day did not go so well. It is getting easier each day in some ways, but I would not yet say that it is "easy!"

As a night owl trying now to sleep like a lark, I am running into some difficulty. For one thing, I am naturally foggy in the morning and part of the reason for that is my allergies.

The other part is that it's too blankety-blank early!! But I chose to try it because it seemed like the only way to get enough sleep and have enough time for both work and homeschooling.

Following my natural rhythms made my days and my nights too short! So I rearranged my schedule somewhat and now, have more time for tea and meditation, and for everything else. Still not enough time! But more time.

More, tomorrow, on how it has been going!

How has it been going for you? Are you participating in 30 Days of Tea and Meditation? I would love to hear about your experiences!

If you want to know about someone else who is meditating with tea, check out A Girl with Tea.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

More Time for Tea

As you know, I am doing all I can to create a slower, contemplative tea lifestyle, and for the past few days, have tried changing my schedule a bit to see if that would give me more work time without losing the slower feeling I am trying to create. My hope was that it would give me more time to play with so that there was less rush and less loss.

So far, it seems to be working!

First Day

But the first day did not start off as well as I had hoped. Though I went to bed much earlier than usual, it was about an hour later than planned. So, I was still tired when it was time to get up. And I was a bit foggy so at first, it seemed like I was moving through molasses.

Because of that, I started working a couple of hours later than I had planned and only had an hour or so before I needed to get into the meat of our homeschooling day.

Tea and Meditation

On the other hand, the morning tea ritual was wonderful!! I loved the whole tea and meditation experience
and my son enjoyed it, too. We had a slow morning and a good one!

Next week, I'll tell you more about how those first few days went.

See you Monday!

Jeanine

Meditating about Transformation and Change

As I’m sure you remember from the past few days of this blog, I have been concerned about how to find the time for work and homeschooling and morning and afternoon tea, and meditation. And I received some intuitive guidance that led to making some changes in my schedule.

But I wanted to do that day’s meditation, too, to see if I would get any additional information because the advised changes seemed a bit extreme!

The Guided Meditation

The meditation was deeply relaxing and did include guidance from animal spirit companions. I saw myself swimming in beautiful, clear blue water, and I could see everything around me and was swimming easily in a kind of flowing motion (like a mermaid, it seemed).

Mermaid?

I asked what that meant and the message I received was that I was going to be able to see clearly what I needed to know and see. And the changes I wanted to make would flow easily into my life.

I also was reassured, again, that I was not alone and would have all the help I needed.

In tomorrow’s post, I’ll tell you how this week’s changes have been going…

See you then!

Jeanine

Transformation: Changing & Shifting Priorities

At the Beginning

In this blog post, we pick up my story with the next piece of intuitive guidance that came my way.

So, in my search to find the holy grail, which really means the time to do the work I believe I am supposed to be doing, without losing the other things that are important to me, I was reassured when I did my intuitive reading that all is well, that I am being guided into the changes I am making.

A second message was that I am on the cusp of transformation of some kind. Something new is happening.

And right now, I need to choose my priorities and then, get rid of whatever might distract me from them.

A Shift in Priorities

I was encouraged to look at all the good choices and pick the ones that are best for me right now. Once I have selected them I will be helped to make them happen. More good news, right?

So I did that and created a whole new schedule around it which would make time for getting enough sleep, getting a lot of work done, homeschooling, morning and afternoon tea, and meditation.

Speaking of Meditation

But I still wanted to see if there was anything else I needed to know that would be revealed during meditation. Especially since this new schedule involved some fairly radical changes, like going to bed a good deal earlier than this night owl usually does.

Tomorrow, I’ll tell you how the meditation went!

See you then!

Jeanine

Intuitive Guidance about Playing Hide-and-Go-Seek with Time

Playing Hide-and-Go-Seek with Time

When last we left off in this story, I was distracted in church by all the things I haven’t had time to do in the past several weeks and was planning to try to find the missing time by doing an intuitive reading and addressing it in meditation. We hadn’t meditated that day because we were in a rush to get to church (no slowing down that morning because I knew how crowded the parking lot and seats would be).

So when I got home, the first thing I did was the intuitive reading. Here’s the message I got from it…

Intuitive Reading

The most important message was a reminder that this process I’m in of trying to slow down, not work at night or on weekends, and make time for morning and afternoon tea, has been six months or more in the making and that it began with gentle nudges that did not originate with me (or not consciously, anyway).

Which means it’s not just me in this game; I have help! Good news!! I am really reassured by this because it tells me that it will probably all work itself out.

But there was another encouraging message before I meditated. I’ll tell you tomorrow…

Jeanine

Finding the Missing Time

Misplaced Time

On Sunday morning, while listening to the sermon in church, my mind wandered just a smidge and I thought about how I seem to have misplaced time for some of the things that are important to me. They are mainly work-related things. They may not be as urgent as they feel. I mean, I’m pretty sure I have some workaholic tendencies.

Missing in Action

Still, I was wondering where that missing time is hiding and whether or not I would be able to find it. I was never very good at hide-and-go-seek! If not, and here’s what I decided to meditate on, I wondered how I will live out some of the possibilities revealed in one of my recent guided meditations.

Once I got home, I decided to do an intuitive reading, too, to get as much helpful information as possible.

Tomorrow, I’ll tell you what I found out in the intuitive reading…

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Creating Contemplative Weekends & Weekdays

Weekends Off

I had such a great weekend this past weekend that I decided to try to do it every weekend from now on, to take the weekends off and to try not to schedule so much work-related stuff that I find myself working in spite of the plan.

When you work at home, there is no easy demarcation between work time and time off. You have to create that yourself and I have not been so good at stopping!

Guidance During Meditation

So I decided to get some help during meditation. As I drank my tea and then, later during the meditation, I tried to picture myself having an ideal weekend and an ideal workday. I actually asked for guidance during the meditation: "show me an ideal weekend...", etc.

What I saw first was me sleeping!! I know I need more sleep than I have been getting and part of what was so wonderful about this past weekend was sleeping in each morning.

I also saw myself reading, watching movies, hanging out with my family, etc. What I did not see was the computer!

Same thing for weekdays. At night, I saw myself watching TV and reading. And laughing!

How are these 30 days of tea and meditation going for you?

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

New Guided Meditation from Deepak Chopra...

Speaking of Guided Imagery...

In yesterday's post, I mentioned that I have been noticing that I seem to have the bext meditation experiences when I include some sort of guided imagery in my meditation. Sometimes I make it up myself, sometimes I use something I have acquired somewhere else. Doesn't seem to matter as long as I take the time to relax deeply first (and that cup of chamomile tea beforehand loads the deck in my favor) and then, go into guided imagery.

A New Guided Meditation

Well, I received another follow-up email from the 21-day meditation challenge and, in addition to promoting their upcoming gatherings, they offered a brief meditation from Deepak for all the meditation challenge participants.

To try it out yourself, click here. Let me know what you think.

Warning: it is quite brief. When it was over, I turned on the meditation music CD I bought and continued with deep breathing and my own made-up guided meditation.

And what type of meditation works best for you? Does it help when you combine meditation with tea?

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Spirit Guide Meditations

Movie Theater Surprise

You know how after you have seen a movie, you "come out of it" slowly and maybe even move a bit sluggishly toward the doors, not fully back yet from the world you just inhabited? And when the doors are opened, and you look outside at bright sunlight or the brightly lit parking lot, it's a bit of a surprise to see your ordinary reality again?

That is how I feel after a really good meditation experience!

I open my eyes and am surprised to be in my home, seeing my furniture and windows. Even if I was imagining myself at home during the meditation, it feels different to see it all for real.

Not All Meditations Are the Same

Well, I have noticed that that does not happen every time I meditate. Sometimes, I relax but don't lose any awareness of where I am.  Sometimes, it feels like a struggle even to relax!

Although I notice that if I drink my cup of chamomile tea slowly and give it time to relax me even before I start the meditation, that helps! Sometimes I have sort of gulped it down because I wanted to hurry and get to the meditation. That does not work so well.

What seems to work best for me is some form of induction or progressive deepening of my experience followed by some kind of guided imagery. And the deepest experience happens when I do spirit guide journeys.

What works best for you?

Seems to be I need at least 10-15 minutes but the best ones are more like 15-20 minutes long. So I think I will intend to spend at least that much time each day and see what happens.

That's what I did today and it was wonderful! After it was over, I decided to really come back slowly by adding reiki. I still feel the effects of it as I write this post.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Anatomy of a Contemplative Weekend...

Taking the Weekend Off

As part of my quest to slow down, and create a contemplative lifestyle, I was determined to take the weekend off, and I succeeded!!

I slept in on Saturday and woke up full of ideas that were work-related. So I did spend about an hour writing them down so they would not be forgotten, but after that, I was done for the weekend.

I slept in each day, I meditated each day, and drank quite a bit of tea. I watched movies, I cooked, I invited a friend over for lunch on Sunday, I made a special family meal for Labor Day and had a wonderful time!

Making Time for Contemplation

What I’m most pleased about, though, are the times I spent relaxing, reflecting and not doing anything more complicated than staring out the window as the wind blew the trees around. I spent lots of time contemplating the golden glow covering the trees as the sun gently began descending.

I finished a Jane Austen novel and started a Jane Austen sequel!

Every time I was tempted to get something done, I would ask myself what would happen if I didn’t get it done. Each time, I found I could live with the consequences.

Now, I need to work on doing that every weekend!!

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Back to School Blog Tour: How My Ritual of Tea & Meditation is Helping My Son

 

This back to school blog tour is brought to you by the women at http://www.livingmymoment.com/ and http://www.theworkathomewoman.com/ . Jump in and participate with your blog! It's not too late...

Creating a Tea Lifestyle with My Son

I decided a while back that I wanted to make a change, slow things down, drink more tea and create a tea ritual for myself that included meditation. I had no expectation that my 9-year-old son would join me but of course, I hoped he would!

And I should mention that I am part of a family of four, but my stepdaughter does not live with me and my partner declined my invitation to join in on the meditations and does not really like tea.

It Started with the Meditation Challenge

When the Chopra Center meditation challenge began, he wasn't interested. But along about the third or fourth day, he decided to try it. From that day on, he began doing the meditations with me. I'd make myself hot tea, always chamomile (SO soothing!!), and I'd pour him whatever iced tea was in the fridge.

We'd sip and chat quietly, and then begin the meditation. As the 21 days drew to a close, he seemed just as eager as I was to continue after the challenge was over. And he loved to tell me all about his experiences during meditation.

How It's Helping

Just his enthusiasm alone encourages me but I have noticed other changes in both of us. We are both Enneagram fours (flair for drama) and I notice that neither of us reacts as strongly to things that bother us. When we do, we return to calm more easily.

Just this morning, before meditation, he was angry with me about a decision I made that was not to his liking. He stomped off to his room but came when I called him to meditate. By the time it was over, he still looked a little pouty but gave me a hug and wanted to sit near me.

I have seen that kind of thing happen again and again in the past three weeks and I hope it continues!

30 Days of Tea and Meditation

By the way, I decided to support my decision to continue meditating after the challenge, by starting one of my own. I'm challenging myself and anyone who wants to join me to have 30 days in a row of tea and meditation.

I started on Thursday (the 2nd) but it's not too late to join us! Just take five minutes out of your day for a cup of tea and a brief meditation. That's it!

For more information about it, go to my blog post here and my "tea and meditation" Squidoo page here. I'll even send you a free sample of tea if you fill out the form here.

Thanks so much for visiting!

Jeanine

Chopra Center Bonus Meditation! (a gift for day two of my meditation quest)

An Email Surprise

I was delighted to receive an unexpected email from the Chopra Center last night offering all sorts of resources for those of us who might be feeling bereft at the end of the three weeks of meditating with 20,000 others.

"You didn't think we'd just go away after 21 days, did you? We're going through the same withdrawal you are." ~~Chopra Center

They created a meditation for "day 22" and offered a library of guided meditation podcasts available for download. In the email, there also were links for purchasing guided meditation CDs and registering for other things they've got going.

Chopra Center Offerings...

"What else do you desire in your life and what's your next step to move closer to it? If you continue to meditate, your life will continue to blossom and bloom. Are you ready for that?" ~~Chopra Center

"Setting Your Intentions" meditation

Guided meditation podcasts
Guided meditation CDs
Retreat in Sedona

30 Days of Tea & Meditation

"If there's nothing out there, is there anything in here?" ~~Davidji, Chopra Center

There were a few new mantras and a focus on the heart during this meditation and it felt significantly longer than the ones we did for the challenge. I listened to it last night and it was a great way to let go of tension.

Though not directed to do so, there were moments when I felt entirely connected to myself and fully aware of my strength. It felt really good!

But since it was so long, I decided not to do it for today's morning meditation because I didn't think my son would be able to focus for that long a period of time. He asks me each time how long I think it will take :).

Instead, we listened to that meditation music CD I bought and did our own thing. Great day 2 experience!

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

30 Days of Tea and Meditation

Creating My Own 30-Day Challenge

I got inspired by the 30-Day Project, which does something different each month (this month, it's 30 days of learning), to consider this next little period after the challenge my own "30 days" project. At first, I was thinking 30 days of afternoon tea, because I am still struggling to get that in each day. My afternoon tea is often evening-tea-after-my-son-goes-to-bed.

But then, I decided that for this month, what is more important is my morning tea and continuing to meditate each day.

My First Day of Tea & Meditation

Speaking of continuing to meditate, I want to tell you how my first day went. About a week ago, I bought one of the meditation CDs that played in the background for some of our meditations...



So I knew I would have that playing in the background and set it aside to play right after my morning tea. By the way, it was beautiful!! Almost achingly so! I like the beginning of it even better than the part I heard during the challenge.

My son and I had talked about doing one of the meditations for children I learned during my child meditation facilitator training, but this morning, we decided to add a power animal meditation from a Cherokee meditation book I have.

During the meditation, I had two animals show up to guide me and I got some wonderful intuitive guidance!! I was so relaxed, I didn't want to open my eyes.

Join Me?

I'd love to have you along for the ride during the next 30 days!

All you have to do is find at least five munutes a day for tea and meditation. I'll even start you out with a tea sample if you go to my tea-for-one retreat kit page and give me your address. For more brief tea ritual information, check out my Squidoo page at http://www.squidoo.com/tea-and-meditation .

I am going there now to create a place where you can add your blog links if you'd like. And I will be blogging about my experiences here.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

Finishing the 21 Day Meditation Challenge...

"For thousands of years people have used meditation to move beyond the mind's stress-inducing thoughts, emotional upsets, and delusions - into the peace and clarity of present-moment awareness. The variety of meditation techniques, traditions, and technologies is nearly infinite, but the essence of meditation is singular: the cultivation of mindful awareness and expanded consciousness."
--Chopra Center

This challenge has been wonderful for me! I really hope I continue to meditate every day.

If you missed part or all of the challenge but would like to develop a daily meditation practice, here are links for each of the 21 days…

Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
Day Five
Day Six
Day Seven
Day Eight
Day Nine
Day Ten
Day Eleven
Day Twelve
Day Thirteen
Day Fourteen
Day Fifteen
Day Sixteen
Day Seventeen
Day Eighteen
Day Nineteen
Day Twenty
Day Twenty-One

Give it a try and then, share your experiences with us!

Celebration and Gratitude: Day 21 of the Meditation Challenge

Celebrating the Creation of a Tea Ritual

"Here we are at Day 21. If you started on the first day and are at this point, I have only one word for you: Celebrate!!! You have strung together everything it takes to have a daily practice and now all you have to do is choose it each day. We suggest 30 minutes twice each day . . . once in the morning and once in the afternoon or evening – you choose." ~~Chopra Center

Celebrating the accomplishment of being here for all 21 days of this challenge -- that was today's theme. And I truly excited to have done it each day and to have grown so fond of this new practice.

Though I had meditated in the past and even had tried to do so daily, it was always haphazard. And usually unplanned. Now, I will make it a part of my morning and hopefully, my evening, tea ritual.

Gratitude

Gratitude was another theme of today's meditation experience. Though we began with the familiar questions, who am I?, what do I really really want?, and how can I best serve or what is my purpose?, we soon moved to asking ourselves what am I grateful for? and I was reminded of how grateful I am that this meditation challenge came along when it did, just at the right time!

Next, I have to figure out how to do it on my own. I bought one of the music tapes that was sometimes playing in the background and probably will start by creating meditations for my son and myself. Brief ones.

But in the evening, I may listen to some of the guided ones you can find on YouTube. I have one of them on my Squidoo lens and may add more.

Where to Find It

How did today's meditation go for you?

If you haven't listened to it yet, you can find it right here.

See you tomorrow!

Jeanine

To find each of the meditations in one place and leave your blog post links, go to my Squidoo page at http://www.squidoo.com/21-day-meditation-challenge. You also can find links to all of my blog posts about the challenge here.