Yesterday, I celebrated a different kind of 'birthday' ... for 1500 days in a row (about 4 years 1 month - to save you getting out the calculator), I have meditated every single day without fail - come rain or shine, through travel, sickness, tiredness and health.
Some days I've meditated sitting up, others lying down, some sitting cross-legged in a cramped economy seat on a plane but no matter what has been going on I've taken some time each day to consciously turn my attention inside. (The photo shown is the view from the pillow on my yoga mat in my hotel room in Bulgaria).
Although I started meditating over 10 years ago (on a 10 day silent meditation retreat ... yeah... I know ...) and have been on a number of silent retreats since, sitting every single day has changed my life and brought a deeper quality to my experience of it. Far different from when I would sit more sporadically but generally for longer periods of time.
Most of you who know me, know that I take commitments seriously and believe in only making commitments that are meaningful and that we feel confident we can keep - to everyone - but particularly to ourselves. If we make and break commitments to ourself, our self-esteem suffers. Promise by broken promise, we chip away at our self-trust, endurance and spirit.
There are two quotes that I love about commitment which show why:
"There are times when even the best of us have trouble with commitment, and we may be surprised at the commitments we're willing to let slip out of our grasp. Commitments are complicated. We may surprise ourselves by the commitments we're willing to make, true commitment, takes effort and sacrifice. Which is why sometimes, we have to learn the hard way, to choose our commitments very carefully." Grey's Anatomy (yes, really!)
and
"If you're interested, you'll do what's convenient; if you're committed, you'll do whatever it takes" John Assaraf
But really ... how many things can there be that you're willing to do 'whatever it takes' for? And how hard should they be? How much space can there be in your life for those things? Whatever they are, it is important that they are meaningful and enrich your life.
Around my actual birthday (August 5th), I am teaching two workshops - or more precisely, a workshop and a course.
A meditation course which begins on Monday August 3rd at 7.45pm and a 2 hour workshop about Core and Core Values, 'Core Matters' on Sunday August 9th, 2-4pm.
Your Core Values are essential for your life, as is the core strength that supports them. In my experience, the more in line I am with my core values, the easier and more effortless life becomes. And the more I meditate, the easier it is to live my values and feel fully aligned. For me, being clear about what's important to me is key to building self-trust, endurance and spirit.
For more details of the course and workshop, click here.
Looking forward to seeing you smiling more on the mat, on the cushion and in life 🙂
With love,
Mia
