Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Gratitude


My husband has started this new initiative on facebook, it's called 1,000,000 thank you's.   He had read a while back about a teacher or maybe an ancient saying in Japan -- I apologize for not remembering clearly, that when you say 1,000,000 thank you's, the world is forever changed.

He's talked about this often since he had first heard it, and he finally decided to make a fb page with those who are committed to the practice.

Recently I have gotten into a practice which I have coined power meditation.  It's inspired by this Ted X talk --
I joined a part of a power pose with my 30 minute meditation practice, so I basically sit cross legged with my hands on my hips.  And it could be my imagination but I definitely feel the benefits from this.

Well my husband asked if I would be interested in committing to the one million thank you challenge.  Of course I agreed.

So the past few days I have been incorporating as many thank you's into my days as possible.  Either repeating it over and over -- which I did 2 days ago in meditation, or repeating it when I am feeling any kind of anxiety or stress during the day, and last night I did something a little different.

I decided to do my 'power' meditation while voice recording all of the things I am thankful for in my life.  Not just the things that I am thankful for, but I was also envisioning that the next day had happened and I had accomplished all that I needed to do for that day, and expressing gratitude for having accomplished those things -- before they had actually happened.

I found that today, I was much more productive than I have been in this whole semester!

It also could be a combination of things.  Yesterday, I was expressing to my husband that I think that I had become a little too attached to facebook.  My fascination with facebook involves being connected to so many people and sharing beautiful ideas without being limited by space and time.  Well, at least in that world, outside of that world of course there are constraints.  Maybe that's why it feels that the internet can be so liberating in a sense.  Learn whatever, whenever -- talk to anyone, anytime.

So anyway, my husband changed my password, giving me a break, which I think was a fabulous idea.  I feel that it has enabled me to focus more on what needs to be done at hand.

I'm staying with a friend in town, and I have been wanting to ride a bike to school for so long, but never actually got around to it, someway or another logistics of it weren't coming together!

But my friend lent me one of her bicycles.  I bought a bike lock, and the past two days I have been riding a bicycle to school.  For someone who is as avid an environmentalist as me, it's amazing how long it took me to figure out a way to finally ride a bike to school.  It's been amazing.  Today I rode to school while it was snowing. I should have worn sun glasses, because I had to use a system of rapid blinking to not be totally blinded by the flakes haha, which was probably not very safe.. But it was amazing.

Yeah, the streets have unfortunately smog and yesterday was a little harsher on my lungs than today.  But at least I know that I am also getting fresh air somewhere in there, and I am also getting a great work out!  On my way back from school it's mostly uphill.. and I am not talking like a little up hill... it's so steep that I haven't been able to peddle the whole way home yet without having to take a break of exhaustion or physically not being able to peddle because of the mere steepness.

My goal, is to peddle the whole way home, easily.  But it may take a little practice :)

It's fun riding the bike, though I am definitely new to bicycle road manners.. or so I've been realizing that I probably haven't been doing things really correctly.. but the fun thing about being on a bike.. is that you are totally out in the open!  So every time I mess up.. I just smile and wave.. and I usually get a smile and wave back.  Suddenly I feel just a lot more connected to life and my surroundings, and I am finding it so beautiful!

Anyway, thought I would share.
:)

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