The Monkey Puppy Mind

Thanks for joining us again to learn more about meditation. Last post, we talked about the most common stumbling block of developing a mediation practice, which is how uncomfortable and unbearable it can feel when your mind is all over. It is at this moment that you’re actually doing it, just as it was intended.

But maybe you’ve never tried it. Maybe you are one of those people who feels interested to try to meditate, and who has thought about meditating, but you just don’t have time. In your mind, in order to meditate, you need to set your alarm to get up early before anyone else in the house. You need privacy and quiet. You need to lay down. You need at least half an hour. It seems like it is just one more thing to do.

There can be so many barriers we unintentionally put up. It can be easy to feel like meditation “takes” a lot from us to organize or to set up. Here is the hopeful part. Meditation does not require a specific location, or a specific amount of time or any other outside thing. You can practice meditation for simply one breath, as long as you stay present to it. It can be singular moments that you enjoy. If getting a chunk of time, or privacy, or enough space without distraction feels impossible to do, let’s start even smaller than that.

One moment of mediation is better than no meditation at all. So right here, right now, take one long, slow, breath, breathing in while you slowly count to four, and breathing out while you slowly count to four. The counting can help you give your brain something to do, and that can offer some relief to the racing thoughts of your ‘puppy’ mind I spoke about in our last blog post. All you have to do is notice yourself taking this breath and stay as present as you can to that single breath. This is less than 10 seconds.

Here is another less than 10 second meditation practice I like to do. When I sit down at my desk in the morning with my tea, I close my eyes and take a sip of tea. I let my attention follow the warmth of the tea going down my throat as long as I can follow it. Then, maybe I have to open my eyes and move on with my day. Maybe I can create a bit more space, so today I pause and allow myself a second, or third, or fourth, mindful sip of tea.

Another favourite 10 second meditation of mine is when the air turns cold and crisp in the fall. I close my eyes and notice the cool air of my breath coming in for 4 seconds. I pause for 4 seconds. I breathe out for 4 seconds. I pause for 4 seconds.

If you’re interested in a quick video that outlines easy mediation practice, stay tuned for our next post.