Day 4 - Meditation Invitation

Welcome to Day 4! 

I can’t believe we’re almost to the end of our time together. I know this invitation was only a mere 5-days, but you might already be encountering some road blocks or pretty good reasons as to why you don’t have time for this. 

Have you ever heard the parable that goes something like this?:
The student goes to his teacher and asks, “How long should I meditate for?”
The teacher replies, “If you have time, 20 minutes. If you don’t have time, an hour.”

If you’re anything like me, this story might make you chuckle, or roll your eyes, but have you ever found this to be true? I know I have. In those moments when I feel frantic, overwhelmed and distracted, what I really need more than anything is space and some serious time to regroup, but it might also be the hardest thing to give myself.

So my question to you is, in those times when you feel overly distracted and uninspired, how you can you stick with it? How can you allow those emotions and thoughts to be present, without hijacking your need for daily refuge? 

A side note about today’s practice: I’m sharing one of my favorite guided meditations - yoga nidra. This practice has the side benefit of deep relaxation. So with that, you might choose a reclining position over a seated posture, and make sure the body is warm and comfortable.

From the cushion,
Sarah

Poem(s) of the Day:

I couldn’t decide between these two so I’m sharing both. Clearly, I love Mary Oliver :)

Invitation by Mary Oliver

Oh do you have time
to linger
for just a little while
out of your busy

and very important day
for the goldfinches
that have gathered
in a field of thistles

for a musical battle,
to see who can sing
the highest note,
or the lowest,

or the most expressive of mirth,
or the most tender?
Their strong, blunt beaks
drink the air

as they strive
melodiously
not for your sake
and not for mine

and not for the sake of winning
but for sheer delight and gratitude –
believe us, they say,
it is a serious thing

just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in the broken world.
I beg of you,

do not walk by
without pausing
to attend to this
rather ridiculous performance.

It could mean something.
It could mean everything.
It could be what Rilke meant, when he wrote:
You must change your life.

Swimming One Day in August by Mary Oliver

It is time now, I said, for the deepening and quieting of the spirit among the flux of happenings.

Something had pestered me so much
I thought my heart would break.
I mean, the mechanical part.

I went down in the afternoon
to the sea
which held me, until I grew easy.

About tomorrow, who knows anything.
Except that it will be time, again,
for the deepening and quieting of the spirit.

Daily mantra:

Never pass up a chance to do nothing.