Simple food and meditation

Such a relief to eat simple food after the Tgiving extravaganza.  Here's today's Alaskan fillets, with egg and panko breading, plenty of spices in the panko, especially turmeric, together with broccoli from the farm.  Also it's fast food, took about 15 minutes fridge to plate!

And here's day two of the Great Natal Caper:  a little thing to do for yourself, particularly if you have never managed to get okay with meditation.  It's very good indeed for your health, calmness, bp, all that, but the monkey mind tends to interfere with it.

So here's a new one I sort of hacked from a series of other attempts, and it works nicely for me.  I found that it reduced the pain in my arm significantly, probably because the related muscles and tendons calmed down, and only the actual hurt part hurts, much better to deal with.

Anyway, it's ten minutes twice a day if you can remember.  Usual getting very comfortable, lying, sitting, whatever works.  And start to count your breaths, one count for in and out, while you visualize scenes or items that please you, and are not related to your work or your worries.  

I find that the counting gives a structure that keeps my mind on the job and not galloping about on hobbyhorses, and if I lose track of the number, I just estimate where to start again, and resume the counting and visualizing.  If you make art you will have a bonus: great new ideas will swim up, but don't act on them right away, get through the session first.

I find that by about breath 80, I've reached the 10 minute mark, nice chiming bell timer on my Ipod tells me.  You may have fewer breaths to the minute, if your lungs are not permanently degraded by scars as mine are, misspent sick youth (!). 

But anyway, it's not hard to fit in, and it really helps with mood and ability to cope.  So here's a present from me to you-- just give it a shot and see if it's working for you, too.  I'd feel honored if you were to do that.