By Michelle Morrison

In This Meditation, Recorded The Day After The Start Of A New U.S. Administration, we take time to envision a future of safety, peace, and happiness for our fellow Americans.

By imagining a bright future for our neighbors, we may come to see that our happiness is not separate from their happiness.

Finally, we reflect on what steps we might take towards making that future a reality.

This was offered as part of the weekly "Free Friday Mindfulness at Noon" sessions. To join, visit: https://learnmindfulnessnow.com/free-...

-Michelle Morrison Michelle’s Website

SEE THE VIDEO: CLICK “READ MORE”

“The quality of our day is directly related to the quality of our thoughts”

By Annie Shackelford

A powerful statement that had me thinking for awhile; how does this relate to my own experience? Am I spending too much time on any one thought, unaware of my current experience? Now, a year (of unimaginable events) later, I am once again reflecting on this message. Our ability to connect with awareness to a thought is one of the best ways to ground ourselves to the present. Once grounded, we then have a choice in following a thought or letting it go.

By Angela Babin

I have described to clients “My Grandmother’s Good Pearls.”

When she was in her 80s, and struggling with aphasia – she and I would walk together at an outdoor flea market in New York. She would hold up items to me and point out the good things – like a correctly rolled hand-stitched hem on a vintage scarf or – the way that the silk thread was knotted in between each pearl on a necklace.

…. these knots prevent grave loss and accidents. Imagine your strand of pearls suffers a break. In the case where there are no knots, all of the beads cascade away following the first bead that got wrenched off. Some of the beads may even get lost as they roll away, on the floor, on the street.... However, with a knotted strand - in time of accident, break, injury – exactly a single pearl is lost.

Let is apply this image to our experience with mindfulness…..

The act of giving and receiving is a tightly interwoven phenomenon. So much in this universe operates through simultaneous give and take.

I was inspired by a recent teaching by Tara Brach on mindful listening. A link to her 12-minute video is here and also below. I recommend it..

Here is what Tara inspired in me:

It has been said that "Hearing is through the ears, but listening is through the mind and heart.”

Even when we do pay attention, we often hear rather than listen.

Is there someone you have a hard time listening to? Perhaps a colleague, friend, or family member?

Have you developed strategies to avoid listening to this person, like doing the dishes while you hear, or going through your least essential emails?

When a person isn't listened to, they can become irritable and reactive.

One of the things badly missed in these times of pandemic is Human Touch.

No matter how much we get used to machines and technology, we as humans need human touch.

One of the most underrated yet influential human touches is ”A HUG”.

A good hug has the power to uplift our mood, cut down stress, reduce depression, and a lot more.

But the million-dollar question is, can we hug each other when social distancing has become the new normal?

The good news is: Yes, we can, but mindfully.

Still, there will be some degree of risk as long as the virus is around. Please consider your personal risks.

Perhaps it’s helpful to balance the risk against the emotional gain.

We’ll have a 15-20 minute meditation followed by sharing about mindfulness practice. 30 minutes in all. It’s free. It’s Fridays at noon. It’s on Zoom. It’s intended for people who have learned mindfulness but want some more practice. Taught by Donald Fleck and Michelle Morrison.

Are people self-centered if they think about themselves all the time? Is it being selfish?

Sigmund Freud, Austrian neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis, introduced the idea of ego as a part of the self that regulates between the wild person that wants everything without delay (the id: libido, envy, desire) and the very restrictive self that says: don’t do anything terrible, you’ll get punished (the super-ego). For Freud, the ego was always trying to make peace between the two other forces.

Are you afraid of intrusive thoughts while meditating?

Do you often feel "I just can't concentrate, I'm no good, I can't do this." And that story often is unsaid, as it feels too imperfect to say out loud.

What if I, as a mindful teacher, say that having intrusive thoughts while trying to concentrate is normal and all right?