Meditation for men who don’t own yoga pants

September doesn’t stop.

I told you last week how busy life is right now and how all this busyness has caused a lostness and this lostness makes me feel powerless.

Lately, it feels like I’m just riding the September wave, tightening my jaw, gritting my teeth, hoping to land safety on soft-sands of October Beach.

Anyway–I started doing something I want to tell you about. Something for me. Something to help me find– a sense of findness.

My morning alarm sounds at 5 am.

On most weekday mornings– by 5:15 am I’m in the garage lifting weights and doing VRT therapy.

At 5:35 am I’m in my writing room writing.

At 5:57 am, not matter what I’m writing, I stop writing, close my laptop, and set a timer for 3 minutes.

For those next 3 minutes, from 5:57 am to 6 am, I just sit and do nothing.

I just be.

And you know what– it’s the most peaceful moments of my workday.

If you’re like me– workdays condition us, from the moment we wake to the time we sleep to get busy– and fast.

Monday bulldozes it’s way to Friday. Our calendars do not allow or accept empty squares. Work needs to be done. Kids need to be minivanned to practice. Dinner is shoveled down while standing up. Homework is scratched in bulky workbooks. There are obligations to meet and promises to keep.

And to slow it all down feels a little strange. But a good strange.

When life gets busy, we forget we have the innate power to slow ourselves. That it’s okay to slow ourselves and pay attention to the most important person in our lives– ourselves.

Meditation is an ancient practice. Plenty has been written about its benefits. And many a-monk, healers, doctors have written extensively about the emotional and physical benefits of meditation.

But again, if you’re like me—you don’t have time to mediate. You shake your head and say “Yeah, yeah…mediation is great but it’s for other people. People without kids and jobs and responsibilities. People with time.”

And if you’re really like me– you’re not a monk, free-time is an absolute luxury, and you don’t own yoga pants.

But what are the costs of not slowing down?  Of not disconnecting from the noise and speed of modern life? Of not living an intentional life?

Besides whiplash– burnout, dissatisfaction, anxiety, powerlessness, substance abuse, depression, lostness.

Modern life conditions us to not only lose our way—but to lose our power.

For me, those 3 minutes each morning are about four things: awareness, choice, self-control, and power.

Four rich ingredients that I believe make for successful modern living—even for a suburban dad who doesn’t own yoga pants.

Be well,

Jay

Here’s an excerpt from last week’s post, To be found again:

My writing room door swings open and my youngest son, Dylan comes running in. Smiling. He’s wearing his Eagles football jersey.

Dad, are we going to watch the Eagles game today?

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