Being in the moment

I used to occasionally, usually while washing up for some reason, become aware of me: me at this point; me rinsing a cup, staring out at the woodpile - this is me, doing this in this present moment. Now, having explored mediation ( a very basic exploration so far) for a few months, I get what that was about. We're always so busy thinking ahead to what has to be done next; planning, even if it's just, what's for lunch, or oops, must put a wash on, or worrying about the past - things we might have done or said or completed inefficiently or not even started that we forget to appreciate the fact that we are alive, experiencing being alive, and all the associated sensations however small or overlooked.

I started trying to meditate during the first throws of our house moving project when the lists, packing and endless arranging of everything became overwhelming. At first I could never switch off sufficiently from the to do lists, the phone calls, solicitor stuff, etc, but after about five attempts with the help of a guided meditation channel on Youtube the quiet mind thing gradually seeped in to my overloaded person. If anyone reading this has never tried meditation I would recommend it, especially in our current bewildering time of this century - all centuries have had their own varieties of bewilderment but I imagine most humans would find 2020 to have been somewhat challenging...

A successful meditation is almost as good as a calming massage, and free! especially if you can get to the particular ultra relaxing state of body heaviness - being grounded I suppose. I can't cope with the guided mediations that feature 'calming music' just the spoken word seems to work for me, or possibly a bit of gentle sea on pebble beach sound, or something similar. I can just about get myself into a mediative state now if I recall one of the guided meditations I have used many times, and am becoming more aware of the general 'me being in the moment' and worrying less about what must be done later, tomorrow, next week, etc as I go about my day.

Here's a small youtube of Martin Scorsese talking about his own meditation practice and thanking David Lynch for his work in creating - The David Lynch foundation for transcendental meditation. Clint Eastwood meditates too . . . has done for the last 40 years . . .

Martin Scorsese on Transcendental Meditation and the David Lynch Foundation