Meditation here, there, everywhere!

What if you could meditate everywhere you go? Instead of spending a small chunk of time in the beginning of the day to calm your mind for a small amount of time, what if you did it all the time? Meditating all the time is not actually that difficult. The concepts are easy, but it just takes a whole lot of practice. Here are some places where you can meditate. When you are in these places, think about being in the moment and not getting lost in your thoughts.

When you are working on the computer
We get wrapped up in our work a lot of the time, and can let little computer glitches and problems with our typing begin to annoy us. The best way to deal with this is take a deep breath. Then another deep breath. Then another. Pretty soon you will be back on track to whatever you were doing, and be fully relaxed and alert.

When you are exercising
A lot of people don't stay in the moment or breathe deeply when they exercise. Instinctively people want to breathe shallowly when they run. But when you run or lift weights, take deep breaths. Feel the weight on your shoulders. Feel the rhythm of your feet pounding the pavement and look at the beautiful scenery. Feel the water rushing by in the pool as air flies out of your nose and you gracefully lift your head out of the water for another breath.

When you are talking to someone
Think of the number of times you have been without thoughts or in the moment when talking to someone? Ok, besides when you are sitting in the lotus position meditating. I have noticed that I want to interject comments or stories when people are talking. I'm always excited about what I have to say. I think of clever things in my head and blurt them out. You know what works even better? Breathing deeply. Breathe like you meditate. Then, you will really hear the words coming out of the persons mouth. Hear the sounds, the rise and fall of their voice, the emotion behind each statement, or even how funny some words sound! It feels better than just waiting for someone to talk, doesn't it?

When you are waiting
Do you tap your foot, when there isn't music playing? When you are waiting impatiently in line in a loud store? There is a type of meditation for you. Normally I would just suggest to you or myself to breathe deeply and focus on the breaths. But when you are in a crowded area you can try something even more fun! Listen to the noises around you. Take the meaning out of the implications of the crying baby, the man talking impatiently on his cell phone. Hear the noises for what they are. Isn't that peaceful? They just become...noise. Like the noise you hear when in a crowded stadium, cafeteria, or park. No meaning, no emotion, just noises created by the vocal chords of many.

When you are listening to music
I attach a lot of emotional significance to music. It almost always reminds me of some memory I have associated with the music. These memories may make me laugh, cry, or yell in anger. The best experience I have found is to really hear the music playing. When you are listening to that classical piece, instead of just hearing them as a collection of noises, hear each instrument. Then listen to the whole piece. Then listen to another instrument. If you close your eyes you notice the complexity. Instead of a wall of sound, you are presented with the ebb and flow, the ups and downs, of the musical experience.


As you can see, meditation can have many different meanings. It is more than sitting in a chair, or on a mountaintop, breathing in slowly and thinking about nothing. It can be used as a calming technique, to take normal situations and make them peaceful, detaching meaning from every sound or experience, and just enjoy the feeling of being and breathing.