Archive for March, 2007

03-26-2007

How do you handle every day “blunders?”

I’m facilitating meditation circles via telephone.  Today, March 26th, was the first day of my third meditation circle. I was using a new conference call service.

Anyway, for the first 10-15 minutes I introduced the format of the calls and other information and we had introductions of people participating in the circle.  Then the plan was to do a 10 minute facilitated meditation.  So in other words, I would guide the participants through a meditation for 10 minutes. 

Well when I muted the participants (to keep anyone from hearing any distractions) I muted MYSELF.  Of course I didn’t know this and I was going on…”Take a deep breath, etc.”  After the meditation I took the participants off mute and found out that we were ALL on mute, including myself.

I LAUGHED so hard.  Of course, I apologized to the participants and assured them that it wouldn’t happen again.  I also told them to rest assure that we would move forward and they didn’t miss anything. 

Even when I got off the phone, I couldn’t control my laughter.  It was so FUNNY.  I was snorting and laughing.  I still start cracking up when I think of it.

The reason I share this experience is because there are two very important realizations:  One for me and the other for the participants.

First, I realized that had this sort of thing happened to me before I developed the “habit” of meditation, I would have been traumatized.  Yet, now I just thought it was funny.

From developing the habit of meditation, I notice that things that used to irritate me or bother me are now laughable!  What a place to BE! 

AND, I also know that in future meditation circles I am going to go over ‘What to do in case of technical difficulties or other problems!”  So it was a great learning experience as well as the biggest belly laugh I’ve had in a while.

I also sent an email to participants, inviting them to look at what they “did” with the 10 minutes of not knowing what was going on, and yet knowing that we were “supposed” to be meditating.  So in other words, what would you do knowing that it was meditation time, and yet you didn’t hear the facilitator for 10 minutes? Would you continue to meditate?  Would you be peaceful and accept whatever was going on?  Or would your mind try to make a problem out of it?

And how would you respond after you realized the facilitator had actually muted hersefl?  Would you find it funny?  Would you accept it as it is?  Would you feel “jipped” like you missed important content?  Would it be a problem?

When we get to the place where we live from the inside out, things that happen at the level of form don’t really bother us as much.  Things happen.   Calls get muted.  Calls get dropped.  And yet it is what it is!

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03-25-2007

Is it true?

I just finished reading Byron Katie’s book Loving What Is and the main thing I got out of her book was the power of questions.  I really love her first question, Is this true?  She recommends asking this question any time you’re feeling angry, stressed, tense, depressed, etc.  She suggests that you write down the situation and what you’re angry about.

Then she recommends exploring the topic through 4 questions.  However, I found the first one to be VERY effective in getting out of the drama.  And I also relate it to Eckhart Tolle’s work.

For example, I modified the question a little to “work” for me.  For example, if I’m angry at a situation and I fill in the blank with…I’m angry at….for such and such reason.  Then I ask myself, Is this true?  Then I dig deeper by asking is this absolutely true or relatively true?

In his book New Earth, Eckhart Tolle talks about the relative truth (that of what we are experiencing at the level of form) and the ABSOLUTE truth (that of pure presence, being, consciousness).  So I ask myself is that the absolute truth or the relative truth?

For me, the answer to this question, immediately takes me out of the drama.  If it’s the relative truth, I realize that I am dealing with the world of form and anytime I’m attached to form, my imposter has taken over.  (More about the imposter in a later article…)

The other day my cat was really making me angry because I was trying to read and he kept playing in this fake tree we have.  My thought was “Vinnie should not be trying to play in the fake tree, he should know better!”  Then I asked is this true?  Immediately, I realized that he is a cat, he shouldn’t know better.  Cats like to play, cats forage.  It was MY reaction to him that was causing my suffering.

Also, the other day my husband was feeling “trapped” in his job.  I asked if it was true that he was trapped?  He said YES. Then I asked him if it was ABSOLUTELY true?  From the absolute truth, no one is trapped in anything ever.  From a relative truth, (the world of form) yes we can be trapped.  So he immediately made the shift that he really isn’t trapped and that from a higher perspective no one is trapped.  Then he realized in the moment he was completely free where he is at.

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03-22-2007

Looking at others

I just got back from a speaking engagement in Los Angeles.  While sitting by my gate at the airport, a little girl about two years old was walking down the aisle and just standing in front of people and looking at them.  She was just curious.  When people looked up and realized this two year old girl was looking at them ,they immediately smiled.  This little girl continued to get smiles from everyone she looked at.  Everyone brightened up looking at her, looking at them.

I thought to myself, what if WE could look at people so deeply and get that type of reaction? 

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