Meditation, Day Two

So, my meditation efforts thus far have had mixed results. On the one hand, I have only managed two to three minutes of uninterrupted "following of my breathing." I breathe in saying inwardly, thank you for this breath. I breathe out saying inwardly, thank you for this breath. Sometimes I substitute, thank you for this life. A few minutes in, the thoughts come pouring in, ideas for this blog, analysis of the news, etc. At that point, I take a few more breaths and then stop if I cannot get back on track. I am hoping that I will move on to three-to-five minutes a day, at least.

However, it may be a coincidence (probably not) that the last two days, I have felt far less oppressed by the news, far less like the life is being sucked out of me, and more clear-headed. I feel like I am seeing the possibilities, and am noticing more and more items about the truly courageous and loving people coming out of the woodwork right now. Someday when we look back, I suspect we will understand that this was what it was all about.

I'm trying to walk the tightrope of reading (and occasionally watching) enough to understand exactly what is happening here, but not enough to get sucked into fear. That's a difficult balancing act. In a week of the outrageous and the tragic, nothing was more so, for me, than the article in the January 30 New Yorker entitled, "Survival of the Richest: Why some of America's wealthiest people are prepping for disaster." I confess that I could only bear to skim this article, but the gist of it was that, for some time, many billionaires have been actively preparing to go to underground bunkers (in the U.S. or in places like New Zealand) if chaos erupts. I'm sure this is nothing new. Twenty-five years ago, I drove through northern Idaho and could literally feel an oppressive fear-filled energy coming from behind the locked gates along the road. What probably is new is the technology that would make life many stories below ground doable, at least for a time.

My inner scanner that registers "Is this love or is this fear?" was buzzing uncontrollably. Of course it is fear. What does it say about the American dream that those who have been most successful at it would bury themselves alive or fly to the ends of the earth once the chips are down? I cannot know what it would be like to be wealthy, but I can only surmise that a love/trust-filled response would look far different.

Rich or poor, all we have is today, right? It takes courage just to look at what is happening, and even more so to act absolutely fearlessly, and not react. Yes, our lives are probably about to change dramatically, but hunkering, bunkering down in terror will only magnetize the things we fear. Let's take those two minutes or five minutes of conscious breathing out into the world openly, freely, lovingly, and courageously and create a better outcome, OK? One day at a time.