Ritual – Ritual – Ritual
It’s what’s been running through my mind for a month now and I think I’m almost ready to commit. ‘cos that’s the hard part isn’t it – committing – we all know the benefits of certain behaviors – we see them manifest in others and know they’re not beyond our reach – but to commit – to bring them home and make them ours – well –
I had a meditation practice for a year – 20 minutes at the start of the day – it literally changed my life in that – without it, I don’t think musicto would have come into existence. I used a basic meditation timer – no music or guidance – just 20 minutes of silence – sitting at my piano bench alone with my thoughts. I would play with the energies – moving them up through my feet to my head, warming the different chakras along the way and filling me up for the day.
My favorite meditation was creative gardening. I would imagine my brain as this large hill – something that I could climb up onto and sit on a park bench that was conveniently placed just below the access point. Entering was like moving through an airlock – I didn’t want anything contaminating the environment. Once inside I would wonder my cerebrum with a watering can filled with a liquid designed to foster connection – I would water the gyri and set an intention for neural growth.
After about ten minutes I would carefully exit and sit back down on my park bench and watch the world go by – focusing on my breathing until the triplet of tones from the Tibetan bowls brought me back.
I want to do this again – but I struggle with how to start the habit – and so…
Ritual – Ritual – Ritual
I’m going to take a piece of music – something that’s not too short – not too long – something familiar yet relatively neutral – that creates an anticipatory environment and encourages me to stop and reflect.
I’m going to take this piece of music.
Thank you Malcolm.
