Sometimes a whole ‘way of being’ passes you by, because you are simply not aware that such an experiential state is possible. The classic illustration is HG Wells’s short story, “The Country of the Blind,” in which a man with vision fails to convey to the blind that there is a fifth sense, and that he can see. Instead, he is thought to be ‘unstable’ because of his ‘obsession’ with sight....
As a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teacher, I walk around this relatively small town and run into people who know what I do for a living. Often the first thing I hear is, “Oh but, I don’t need training in mindfulness. Running/skiing/climbing/biking is my moving meditation.” For the most part, I believe that answer. The self-awareness and mental precision I learned from my years as a competitive skier and mountain biker were my doorway into contemplative practice....
As well as the traditional egg roll across the lawn, guests could participate in a variety of physical activities with professional athletes, including yoga in the “Yoga Garden.” Participants could also dance and play tennis and basketball. This year the event drew 30,000 people and was based on the theme “Get Up And Go” in support of Mrs.Obama’s nationwide campaign against obesity. Mrs. Obama said,“I’m a big proponent of getting up and going, making sure we’re moving and eating healthy, and this Easter Egg Roll reflects all of that....
“It’s about how do you stay sane in our busy, desire-driven lives. Here you are in the middle of Times Square, all this advertising telling you all the things you desperately need, this is a chance to take care of one’s spirit and to practice staying serene in the midst of all the distractions of modern, busy, city life.” Thousands of New Yorkers participated in the event, called Mind Over Madness and led by a professional bikram yoga instructor....
If there is one thing that makes my home feel like it is actually working and running smoothly, it is when I am organized. If we get out of sync, the house gets extra messy and things just feel SO much more chaotic!! SO…. the big questions is: how in the world do we get organized? How do we get our families to a place that we feel like we have a little bit of a system and where do we start?...
