Life, The Universe, and Almost Everything
One of my all-time favorite books is The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by a brilliant author, Douglas Adams, who unfortunately passed into the outer regions in 2001 at age 49.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was a concept for a science-fiction comedy radio series pitched by Adams and radio producer Simon Brett to BBC Radio 4 in 1977.
Life, the Universe and Everything is the third book in the five-volume Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy science fiction "trilogy".
This post is my homage to Douglas Adams who visited Denver's Tattered Cover Bookstore in the very late 1990s to perform a reading of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. He was so kind as to autograph my leather-bound copy of that book which I cherish to this day.
So, why the blog title Life, The Universe, and Almost Everything? Because everything is too big for us to know about it all!
What we will share in these posts are things we do know and feel good writing about them. Or, we may go out to the current incarnation of the Guide, known as the internet, to find things to bring to you. Or, we may borrow things that we find valuable from the many feeds we receive each day.
This is one example of something we know and feel good sharing:
Meditation and mindfulness have been a lifesaver for us.
We begin each day with 20-30 minutes of meditation before our feet hit the floor. Unless one or all of our dogs let us know very clearly they need to out.
The following was borrowed from the Lion's Roar magazine July 2020 edition:
Meditation refers to a broad range of practices designed to help human beings suffer less and live with greater ease and well-being. Mindfulness is both the capacity of the mind to know and the development of that capacity.
Jon Kabat-Zinn stated, "Mindfulness is the awareness that arises through paying attention on purpose in the present moment - non-judgmentally."
In our Gestalt coaching practice, we introduce and encourage mindfulness with our clients. Mindfulness in all areas of their lives provides so much support as they learn to be present at the moment rather than react to their past traumas. This is extremely effective as we help them discover their answers within to life's questions.
Learning to meditate and be mindful is easy. Having the discipline to sit for a period of time is the challenge, especially in the world today.
Again, borrowing from the Lion's Roar magazine July 2020 edition:
Begin with a 5-minute session: sit comfortably on the floor, or on a cushion or in a chair or couch. Your body wants to be supported in this practice. Close your eyes or keep a soft, downward gaze.
Now, take a few deep breaths. As you exhale, let go of any thoughts or worries or plans you might have running through your head. Allow your breath to return to a natural rhythm, and simply feel your body from the inside out.
Of course, your mind will wander and get lost in thoughts as you do this. This is normal and natural and supposed to happen. When you notice that you're distracted, that's okay. You have not failed at meditation. This recognition of your wandering mind is actually a moment of remembering to be aware. Simply come back to feeling your body in the present moment.
You have begun to make a change in your life that will carry throughout your life if you continue. And, we hope you do!
For more information about our Gestalt coaching, with our horses, or via phone/internet, click on this link which will take you to our opt-in page.
Thank you for the read!
Glenn
