The key
move is to learn to distinguish between sensation and story.
Flow
doesn’t arise when things are easy.
Quite the opposite. Flow arise
when we push our skills and abilities to their very limit.
We
are running complex software on prehistoric hardware. The machinery of our mind and body was built
for running from lions. It was designed
to handle intense momentary stress followed by longer periods of rest and
recovery. It was not designed to handle
the constant low-grade stress we navigate every day.
Adopt an
attitude of nonjudgmental awareness toward even the most uncomfortable
sensations.
Meditation
practice will help you train your mind for increased emotional fitness. Meditation is to the mind what aerobic
exercise is to the body. Just as running
improves cardiovascular function, meditation trains the mind in ways that
enhance mood, emotional resiliency, and even immune system function.
Meditation
offers a way to create sacred moments in the midst of our ordinarily profane
day-to-day lives.
To not
meditate is to miss out on a more focused, productive, happy life, with less
stress.
[With meditation], frequency is more important
than duration.
Beneath
every stressful emotion sits a thought – a thought that may or may not actually
be true.
Stress
often arises from stories made up of the mind.
Presence
is meditation in movement.
If you
really want to live a longer life, presence – not drugs, healthy eating, or any
other strategy – is the best solution.
Noticing
is the magical moment of being.