I didn’t rush out to see Eat Pray Love this past weekend, but I am reading the book.  A few years ago when the book first caught the world’s attention, I was not interested in reading it.  I was happy and was not looking to escape from or to any place.  I didn’t feel that I would relate to Eat Pray Love then, and frankly other books ranked higher on my for fun reading list.  But after seeing the movie trailer and being subjected to some of the recent media blitz, I decided to see what all of the hype was about.

I haven’t finished the book yet, but I can say that I relate to some (not all) of Elizabeth Gilbert’s experiences and feelings.  That was especially true last night when I read Tale 42.  This is one of the sections in which Elizabeth shares her battle with her mind during meditation.  Elizabeth attempts to mediate for an hour, but after minute fourteen her will power, concentration, and nerves break down.  She becomes exasperated and quits.  I relate to being challenged by meditation.

Last week I decided to resume my meditation practice after more than five years away from it.  I can’t give you a good reason for why I stopped meditating.  I simply let life get in the way.  Running here and there.  Adding one more thing to the daily to do list.  My life blasted into warp drive and those things that didn’t seem essential fell aside.

Meditation does not magically transform me or my life, but it does help me to be mindful of the present.  If you’re like me, you can get so wrapped up in your daily routine that you sail through a day (and life) on autopilot.  Meditation reminds me to focus on the moment at hand.

Last Friday afternoon with mindfulness as my goal, I picked up my timer and headed to a comfortable chair.  The meditation technique that I learned does not require me to assume the lotus position on the floor as Elizabeth did in Eat Pray Love.  Regardless of how and where I positioned my body, I still had the same goal as Elizabeth–to quiet my mind.  I set my timer, closed my eyes and started repeating my mantra in my head.  Within a minute or two, my to do list saw its opportunity and took center stage.  My grocery list raced through my mind, and I remembered that I needed to add milk to the list.  Try as I might, I never succeeded at completely quieting my mind that first day.  I didn’t make my time goal of twenty minutes either.  I wimped out a few minutes sooner than Elizabeth did in the book.  She made it to fourteen minutes.  I was only able to keep my eyes closed for twelve.  But I didn’t despair, and I didn’t give up.  I continue to meditate, and it gets better each time that I do.  That does not mean that meditating is easy for me at this point, but I am able to quiet my mind for longer periods of time.

So what has this done for my non-meditating hours?  I’m getting better at staying in the present moment.  My mind does not skip ahead to tomorrow as much as it did.  With that said, please know that meditation is not an instant fix.  It does not immediately quiet your mind, slow you down, or make you more mindful.  It takes commitment and practice to achieve that.  But with a little dedication you may discover that you spend more time living in the now and develop a greater appreciation for some of the things that seemed insignificant before.

Is something telling you that you need to slow down?  There is value in taking time to smell the roses or watch the sun set.  Maybe it’s time to quiet your mind and your life.  We live life in moments that only come around once.  Lets savor and enjoy these moments.

Blessings and Happy Meditations.