Things Your Yoga Teacher Says: “notice the breath right at your nose.”
Did you know that if you received all of the Twelve Days of Christmas gifts, you would actually get 364 gifts. I don’t know about you, I’d take the 5 golden rings…but like the geese of laying? You’re telling me you’re giving me birds that are about to give me more birds? Hard no on those.
Newsflash, today is December 1st - just in case you’ve been living like Patrick under a rock at the bottom of the sea, and supposedly it’s the day that’s socially acceptable to put up your Holiday lights and decorations…we always put ours up the weekend after Thanksgiving.
This week I’ve already started feeling the “Holiday Pressure.” Not just because of Christmas and surrounding holidays, but also because both of my kiddos have December birthdays…yup, BOTH! So along with Holiday parties and presents, we’ve got birthday parties and presents to plan too.
Here’s the thing, what I know I need most today, this week, this month…is not geese of laying, but actual presence. I’m recommitting this month to sitting in meditation for at least 5 minutes a day every single day.
There’s that old saying if you don’t have time to sit for 5 minutes, sit for an hour….but I’m going to start with 5 minutes.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there is study after study discussing the impact of meditation on the brain. In a groundbreaking study conducted by Harvard neuroscientist Sara Lazar and her team, participants who engaged in an 8-week mindfulness meditation program exhibited significant changes in brain structure. The study, published in the journal “Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging,” revealed increases in grey matter density in the hippocampus, a region associated with self-awareness, compassion, and introspection.
So, I can remind you of the stress you’re under, remind you of the “fast-paced world” we live in, or you realize how tired you probably are reading this email, happy that it’s Friday, and ready just to have some weekend time…I’m not just physically tired, I’m emotionally tired, and meditation always helps brings me rest.
So, why wait until January, why wait until tomorrow, why wait until “the time is finally right.” If you don’t start now, you never will.
SAY YES, and decide today is the day you gift yourself presence…because there is clearly no need for more birds.
PS if you need some help, here’s a Mindful Meditation to kick things off.