Meet Yourself Where You Are

I hope you all had a nice weekend. Usually at some point during my week, my message for the next week shows itself; sometimes it’s through meditation but more often it comes from mindful attention in my life.

Last Monday, as I was getting ready to teach, I realized that nothing had come to me to share. With a house full of visitors for the previous five days, I had not made any time for my practice. I was angry at myself and my head felt very cluttered so I sat in meditation for a few minutes.

Meditation is often about observing and I was definitely observing my scattered monkey mind. In an attempt to settle the mind I did what I sometimes do; I visualized my monkey jumping from branch to branch and as I did that he gradually began to slow down (yes, my monkey is a boy for some reason). Just the act of paying attention…even if it was on my cluttered mind… helped my focus overall. As my monkey settled down so did my inner critic and I met myself where I was. I had found my inspiration. 

Often we arrive on our mats with clutter in the body and monkeys in the mind so I asked students this week to practice “meeting their monkeys” with acceptance and offering the same acceptance to their bodies.  This practice leads to a softening and an opportunity to meet ourselves where we are. This is the practice that we can take with us off the mat. 

And that is what I found myself doing often last week. When I needed to recharge, I rested and by the end of the week I felt much clearer, focused and productive. I even was inspired to start developing my workshops for my next retreat and am excited to share more as they take shape. When we put the pressure of perfection on ourselves we lose the true goal which is perfect practice. I am truly grateful for the chance to practice and I offer the same to you. Settle the monkey and meet yourself where you are. Remember; practice makes perfect practice.