Meditation to me is a beautiful idea of something I’d love to do, kind of like yoga, but can’t seem to adopt permanently into my life. I set intentions to do it. I get up early and sit on the sofa waiting. I save problems and bring them “to my meditation”. But any sort of routine I’ve started has never lasted for any serious length of time. I’ve even tried guided meditation, but that hardly feels like meditation to me. Doesn’t meditation involve emptying your mind? That’s my problem.

I can’t do that.

I wonder if meditation is easier for introverts. I’m an extrovert, which means I more often seek out the company of others than solitude. I like being around people, talking, sharing, dissecting life and its adventures. Like we do here. If I were a person who found more joy in being alone, I’d be halfway there in this meditation business. Because when I attempt to meditate, alone is how I feel.

I’ve heard wonderful things about meditation. But it feels like a club to which I am denied admittance. Maybe I haven’t tried hard enough yet. Or maybe I wouldn’t enjoy the music “in there” anyway. Maybe if meditation were like dancing, I’d catch on more readily. (Is there a dance form of meditation?)

When I do my crafts; knitting, crocheting, stitching, it’s like a meditation. When I’m sitting on the wharf at our summer place in Cape Breton gazing into the water, that’s like a meditation. Sometimes I slip out the back door into our yard and stand staring at the brook running through our property. That’s like a meditation. All these activities feel wonderful but I’m never completely silent during these times. My thoughts never cease their relentless chatter.

How do you feel about meditation? Have you established a regular routine? How did you manage to do it? Do you believe meditation is a practice for everyone?

photo credit: HaPe Gera