Vacation or time away from home and the day to day routine is very healing and much needed in our overly scheduled lifestyles. It can can also be challenging just to carve the time out and make the preparations but then you can breathe…the holiday has begun! Or has it?  Read more “Reality Bites”
It was rather a serendipitous happenstance that I found the gift of Yoga. I was aimlessly browsing through some ‘close-out’ items just after Christmas at a bookstore and a Yoga dvd with instructional book caught my attention. After a very brief consideration and on a whim (at least it seemed at the time) I purchased the item. I really had no knowledge of Yoga other that it was a mysterious exercise practice from a world far removed from mine. My best explanation for this purchase was that as a child I had taken traditional tap (my favorite!), ballet (because it was good for me) and jazz (just for fun!) dance classes and despite wanting to return to them as an adult had found my obligations to my family out weighed my obligations to myself. I rationalized to myself this purchase was my way of filling that desire.
Something I have been challenged with in my relationships more often than not, are not responses of a nature I didn’t expect like anger, judgement or not understanding, but rather the lack of response. The silence. The non-acknowledgement. The lack of follow through on a commitment made and then no communication.Â
To anyone that will listen, I have championed the practice of meditating daily after discovering for myself how healing and peaceful it can be. Mindfulness meditation, the type of meditation I had stumbled on, leads to living a more mindful life, experiencing the present moment for what it is thus leading to less anxiety and more understanding. However, the question came up recently from one of my friends and a recent convert to meditation, what is transcendental meditation? I knew there were different forms and while familiar with Yoga and Tai Chi (both moving forms of meditation) as well as the type of practice I so enjoyed, I wasn’t sure how to answer. So in true Robin fashion I told her would find out.Â
Have you ever not joined a class because someone you don’t like or don’t wish to associate with is in it? Perhaps you have chosen not to go to an activity with friends because of one person or made a decision to not do something because the person that drives you crazy every time you see them loves that exact activity. I know I have and with conscious thought and awareness behind the decision. More recently, however, I became aware that I was making others without any conscious thought, almost a knee jerk reaction of sorts. This was brought into focus for me after experiencing an unique set of circumstances. Read more “Who is in the Driver’s Seat?”
Picnics with family under a summer sun, watching community parades during the day and firework displays at night, or just having the day off, the Fourth of July represents a time of joy and celebration for our country. A day many of us look forward to with anticipation of fun and warm memories. But do our expectations lead us astray?
Oh the inspirational, mystical image of someone sitting, beautifully at peace, eyes closed, legs crossed, hands resting on their knees, palms up with index fingers just kissing the thumbs! What a great way to achieve tranquility! Or perhaps a sore knee as I found out when I first embarked on this leg of my journey. Meditation was something I had heard about and thought I should do. So with no instruction, no research, Read more “Lotus Position”