Elusive Time

“I tried to do meditation daily but I just run out of time.”- Shelly K

I was facilitating a group on inquiry, and meditation was the subject. Shelly presented as sincere and had been “meditating” for about a year. As we got further into the issue it seems that Shelly believed she needed to sit for a half hour or forty five minutes at a time to have any positive impact. And, rather than meditate less time she would skip it entirely. It’s a delicate place to be, many stop meditating entirely because they “don’t have time.” Or struggle trying to fit in 45 minutes a day and exhaust themselves, and inevitably give up.

I shared with her, that for me, lack of time is an excuse, it lasted until I finally realized the amount of time means nothing compared to experiencing the process of sitting and being Human. Sitting and gathering yourself for the day, afternoon, or evening, depending on schedule, doesn’t have to take an hour.

Sometimes I take myself too seriously, and want to live up to the images of what an ideal meditation would be. Something to do with tatami mats, sliding doors, kimono’s, incense, swords, and ancient Japan. But instead I have my alter in Novi, Michigan and my sweats, and a schedule. And so some days I will not be able to sit long, so instead I access the meditative state several times that day for brief moments. It’s not the content that counts, it’s staying in the process that matters. Keeping the meditative perspective in front of me enough that it becomes more familiar as a daily tool and process.

Find a place to sit on a cushion or chair. Or if you prefer stand, walk, or lie down. Attend to your breathing, intentionally slowing the breath to an easy rhythm, feel yourself slowing. Be. Be for five minutes. No drama, no excitement, not “trying to meditate,” just you being, breathing. Nothing to do, nowhere to go, and nothing to solve or answer. Attend to breathing and being, allow the stream of thought to fade from lack of attention. Be.

5 Minutes a day for a week. Don’t tell me you don’t have time. It’s easy to add more time once the process of daily meditation is established. It can be different times of the day, it can be five minutes or five hours, but when we start out even five minutes can seem like a lifetime. Take a few minutes and watch the minute hand of an analogue clock for five minutes. It’s longer than you might perceive until you actually measure it visually.

5 minutes. This too is meditation. Anytime you engage with just being and breathing and noticing, is accessing the meditative process.

I am deeply in love with the meditative perspectives, I meditate everyday I can and often more than once. I am surprised a little, I honestly believe that at some point, it’s no longer necessary to meditate formally, sooner or later the perspective become a part of your view.

But I have fallen deeply in love with sitting and being and noticing, no reason, no goal, no striving, just a Human, Being.

Bryan Wagner