Stop the Noise and Smell the Roses
Excerpted from the book: The Goddess of Happiness, A
Down-to-Earth Guide for Heavenly Balance and Bliss by Debbie
Gisonni
Do you remember those lazy summer vacation mornings when you
were a kid? I used to stay in bed after waking up and just stare
at the ceiling, listening to nothing. As the rising sun splashed
on my bedroom walls, I felt so peaceful and happy lying in bed,
soaking up the silence. It was the only time during the day when
my mind wasn't cluttered with the noises of the external world.
For most women, those quiet summer mornings have been long
forgotten and replaced with the never-ending morning noise of
phones ringing, kids screaming, dogs barking, and TV blasting.
Being still, even for a moment, seems totally unnecessary and,
even more so, detrimental to the constantly moving treadmill of
life we run upon as if we'll lose our place in life if we stop.
In our technologically advanced culture, filled with stimuli to
keep us going twenty-four hours a day, there is no encouragement
for silence or reflection--unless you're a three-year-old child
in time-out! Most of us shun silence, opting instead to spend
whatever time we have alone drowning in the constant din of the
TV.
While I was in between careers, I spent a lot of time doing
nothing, which led to an interest in meditating--in essence, the
same thing as doing nothing. Yes, me . . . the person who used
to wake up in the middle of the night to add to my "to do" list
for the next day. Once I started meditating, however, I found I
wasn't as anxious at night and was able to rekindle the feelings
from those peaceful quiet childhood summer mornings at any time.
And, in the silence of meditation, I hear the most profound
things.
But don't take my word for it. Technology (it does good things,
too) can now prove the actual benefits of meditation. Advanced
brain scan imaging has shown that meditation can rewire the
neurons in the brain, with numerous life-improving benefits--it
can help boost the immune system, reduce stress, extend life,
slow disease, manage pain, and alleviate depression . . . to
name a few.
You can find silence anywhere--in a raging crowd or a quiet
forest. It's not about what's going on outside of you--it's what
you create inside. In as little as ten minutes you can become
the calm in the center of a hurricane that's whirling around
you. Start with a few deep goddess breaths. The Buddhist
spiritual leader Thich Nhat Hanh suggests a breathing technique
to help quiet your mind. While taking a breath in, say to
yourself, "Breathing in, I am aware of breathing in." As you
release the breath, say, "Breathing out, I am aware of breathing
out." All you need is a little practice and commitment, and
you'll be well on your way to having a more peaceful goddess
existence.