The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning.  We contemplated how we walk the line of life we are given. We find a balance between handling life’s difficulties and nourishing and uplifting the heart.

This is where mindfulness really helps.  We engage experience with an open, kind and curious awareness.. We cultivate  a loving awareness that helps us let the world in without getting overwhelmed.  

In guided meditation we reflected on life’s gifts that are easy to overlook – an easy breath, a pain free morning, a good night of sleep.  We thought about simple kindnesses given to us by others and our own goodness.  Savoring these pleasant experiences feels good. Lingering over what’s good in life feels hopeful.

We heard poet Joy Harjo’s poem, Perhaps the World Ends Here.  Hah!  The title sounds grim I know.  The poem is about the kitchen table a place where we as family and friends gather to celebrate our joys and mourn our sorrows.

We also heard some of meditation instructor Oren Jay Sofer’s interview, Why Buddhism is Inherently Hopeful.  Oren encourages us to practice careful attention so that we can truly understand our interdependence and mutuality. All of our actions count and can contribute to building a better world.

Finally Marilyn Peretti’s poem, Stepping Lightly, reminds us of the weight of each of our steps has on this earth.

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The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning.  We reflected on how meditation is an “inherently relational” practice.

Mindfulness is more than developing concentration.  It is how we develop awareness of our selves, others and our shared humanity.  Guided meditation, inspirational poetry and prose inspired feeling and imagination, compassion and caring.

Mickey ScottBey Jones’ poem Invitation to Brave Space describes a circle of caring in which we “call each other to truth and love.” Micky ScottBey Jones, the Justice Doula, is an author, speaker & facilitator and the Director of Healing & Resilence Initiatives with the Southern-based collective Faith Matters Network. You can read more of her inspiring work at Sojourner’s Magazine.

We drew on Bryan Doerries’ interview with On Being’s Krista Tippett:  You Are Not Alone Across Time. Bryan is director and cofounder of Theater of War Productions.  Theater of War partners with institutions all over the world to bring theater and facilitate town hall discussions to people from all walks of life.  The plays are enacted by professional and lay actors.  Audience members are invited to share their personal reactions to the Greek tragedies and contemporary works that challenge our humanity.   You can learn more about Bryan and the groups work by listening to the interview.

We also drew on meditation teacher Oren Jay Sofer’s essay The Inherently Relational Nature of Mindfulness.  This is a very instructive essay about how the Buddhist path of spiritual development is intended to be practiced dynamically in relationship.

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The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning. Today we shared guided meditation and somatic practices to explore how we experience and relate to our bodies when they are in pain.  Pain calls for our attention, right now.  Our experience of pain is strongly influenced by how we respond to that call.

We shared meditation teacher Oren Jay Sofer’s reflections on the role compassion plays in our experience of pain.  You can find his very helpful essay, Five Mindfulness Tools for Pain, and his guided Meditation Resources for Pain on his web-site.

We heard Jane Hirshfield’s poem My Skeleton.  The poem describes the body as a silent partner with whom we walk through life – alternately holding and being held. We also heard reflections from her Tricycle Magazine interview, Felt in Its Fullness.  She describes how intimate somatic awareness in meditation offers us deeper understanding of ourselves and our place in the world.

We explored poet David Whyte’s reflections On Pain.  He describes how our world becomes smaller when we are living with pain.  It also grows larger as we reach for help and as we are able to understand we aren’t alone in pain.

In his essay, Guide to Finding Courage in Difficult Times, David explores how we find solace.  He encourages us to draw on the innate wisdom of the body which can guide us in choosing whether to investigate closely or to shift our awareness away from painful sensations.

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