I have to admit that this week I wasn't as consistant with my meditations as I might normally be. Each day this last week I've been out either with my kids or my husband doing errands or other running around so that by the time I'm home again, I'm really too tired to think much less meditate! (I know it's a terrible excuse - but that was my life last week.) When I did get an opportunity to sit down and focus, I found that my meditation time was not of the quality that it has been in the past. My mind wandered all over the place like a drunken driver on the highway. The voices that I would normally be able to send to the back of my mind were refusing to budge - in fact they often remained in the forefront of my thoughts, screaming rather loudly for attention!
I did however do the meditation for Unit 7, "Meeting Asciepius." I found the narration to be quite interesting. At first - I had a difficult time picturing a "wise person" within my life; in fact I had to run the meditation through twice before I could sit down and develop a picture that I could work with. I finally settled on a Native American Medicine Woman that I once knew. She was in many ways very traditional, and in other ways she was very modern... yet in all ways, she was very wise. I hadn't thought of her for a long while. Using this particular meditation and focusing on her made the meditation that much more profound for me.
I think that for the next few sessions that I do in terms of quiet time, I will use my friend as the focus. Her presence enabled me to quiet down and go once again into that quiet space that I hadn't been able to access very well this last week.
The saying "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" has a small bit of truth to it... certianly knowledge is the key... also having a good roadmap helps too! I think that it is important to realize that we are all on this planet together and that we are all journeying through life together. And while I might have extra weight, that doesn't mean that the knowledge I have is any less valid than the individual who might not have that extra weight. The key is that I'm aware of my condition and that like my client I'm working to take care of it!
If we wait until we have the "perfect bodies" or the "perfect set of knowledge" then we might as well never bother - we will spend our entire lives waiting rather than being on the front lines working with people and sharing what we do know. Remember that as teachers we are more often than not in fact the students. We may do the teaching, but we are also doing a lot of the learning as well!
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Hi Carol,
ReplyDeleteI have to say I loved reading your post! I especially enjoyed the last part about learning. So many people go through life thinking they have learned all they can, and while it is true, the most important stuff about life was learned in kindergarden, we still have learning opportunities everywhere we look. My eleven year old is in the "I don't want to go to school because I'm never gonna learn all of this" phase and I love reminding him that even at my age I am still learning new things every day, so he shouldn't be so worried about learning it all at onc- it's an ongoing process:) Life really is a learning experience and sometimes the lessons are more painful than others but hold important reminders as well.
Like you this last week has been rather active. It seems like someone got my calendar and overbooked me for everything. So here I am on Tuesday morning trying to finish up my homework- which for me is a stressor because I despise waiting until the last minute to finish things- but my son is at school, my hubby is at work, the cat is napping and I finally have quiet time! :)
I hope the upcoming week is a bit more leveled out for you and kudos for not being one of the ones that sit back and wait for life to happen while missing all the best parts of it.
-Jen R.
It's interesting to hear about people's views or thoughts of the word "wise" or someone who is "wise" to them. I appreciate your honesty about not being able to think of someone wise at first, because sometimes, it's hard to find!
ReplyDeleteI also appreciate your last paragraph about waiting for a "perfect body." That is definitely something I have to teach myself.
Carol,
ReplyDeleteI have to say that your post made me think. I too had some difficulties finding my guide for this exercise and in the end I did not use someone who I knew personally, but that is okay.
I do have to say, for the second part, I used a weight example. My doctor told me after I was diagnosed with Celiac and had to eat a restricted diet that it was great it was like I could "...be on Atkins all the time. You need to lose some weight anyway." This from a Doctor who was easliy 100 pounds overweight. I stopped seeing that Doctor. She was not being a guide, and while she may have been working on her own weight struggles, she gave no indication to me that she had been down that path and that I should follow her roadmap. I wanted to get as far away from her roadmap as I could.
Reading your take on it though, was very enlightening. Had you been my practicioner and said something to the affect of "hey, I know weight can be a struggle. I have my own struggles, but this is what I have found that has helped me, maybe you can try it...." I would still be using you as my practicioner. I think that it is important to share with our patients that we are not perfect, but a work in progress, jsut like they are - and if we tell them to do something, share with them our own insight from our own experience with it instead of just dispensing advice in a vacuum.
Great post.
Sarah