Freedom Friday – Week Three: Mindfulness and Meditation Practices

This week, unexpected, out-of-town visitors caused a delay with the timely posting of Freedom Friday.

Even though late posting, I timely completed Week 3 of the 8-Week Mindfulness and Meditation Program, developed by Vidyamala Burch and Danny Penman and presented in the book, “You Are Not Your Pain.”

I have been on a challenging journey these past three weeks. Some days, I felt like saying, “Give up, you’re never going to get through this.” Then the inner voice evolved and reminded me to focus on the journey and not the destination.

Week Three: The Journey Continues

In addition to the readings, we were assigned to do:

Ten minutes of the Body Scan meditation for six of seven days.
Ten minutes of the Mindful Movement meditation for six of seven days.
Daily Pacing Diaries.
Daily Habit Releasers, Watch a Kettle Boil.

Body Scan Meditation

Following and being aware of the breath as it flows through my body is a new learning experience. Daily, I see improvement performing this meditation, which guides me to:

lie on my back with hands lightly resting on the stomach;
feel the rise and fall of the stomach which, for me, is where the awareness of the breath is strongest; and
become more aware of the breath as it moves through other areas of my body and I am beginning to notice the breath more in my back and extremities.

I feel relaxed and the mind is free from the clutter of random thought when practicing this meditation.

It is becoming easier to welcome pain, even emotional and mental, in a loving and compassionate way.

Awareness is guiding me toward understanding that pain, as presented in:

Week One, is “not solid, but fluid,” and
Week Two is “like the clouds constantly changing and moving.”

Mindful Movement Meditation

Struggling through this meditation for seven days; I wasn’t able to do the simple mindful movements, with any sense of awareness, of either the wrist rotations, finger flicks, or warm hugs.

There wasn’t any physical pain. But, mentally and emotionally, I shut down and, when guided to breathe and relax, I held the breath and shut down.

As a long-time chronic pain sufferer, there have been times that I:

refused a hug when offered by a friend or loved one;
tensed the fingers awaiting the tools of the manicurist; or
tightened the body, in anticipation, of the massage therapist’s hands.

I did all of this in fear that another’s touch might exacerbate my physical pain.

I plan to repeat the Mindful Movement Meditation until I am able to overcome whatever is preventing me from fully engaging in this practice.

Pacing Diaries

This assignment required keeping a, daily, diary of all activities. As a retiree, a typical day for me:

4:30 – 4:45 a.m. – Wake Up
4:45 – 5:15 a.m – Stretching
5:15 – 6:15 a.m. – Meditation/Mindfulness/Stillness
6:15 – 7:00 a.m. – Light Breakfast
7:00 – 8:15 a.m. – Neighborhood Walk or Exercise at Gym
8:15 – 12:00 noon. – Errands, Household Chores, Work at Desk, etc.
12:00 – 2:00 p.m. – Lunch, Read, Relax
2:15 – 4:45 p..m – Work at Desk and Prepare Dinner
5:00 – 5:30 p.m. – Jog/Walk in the Pool
6:00 – 7:00 – Dinner and Kitchen Cleanup
7:15 – 8:30 – Prepare for Bed, Relax, Read, or Watch TV
8:30 p.m. – Sleep

From time to time, the activities change and fluctuate, but rarely do I deviate from my:

Wake Up Time
Sleep Time
Morning Stretches
Meditation/Mindfulness
Neighborhood Walk or Exercise at Gym
Jog/Walk in the Pool

Pacing my activities, is a self-management tool that I have used to manage my chronic pain condition for more than twenty years. And, I feel comfortable with what I am doing in this area.

Habit Releaser

The assignment was to Watch A Kettle Boil at least one time per day. I own a bright orange kettle, which I call a teakettle, and it’s used to enhance the decor of my kitchen rather than to boil water for tea, coffee, or cocoa. I use the microwave for tea and the Keurig Coffeemaker for coffee and cocoa.

Willing to give it a try, I tried to mindfully:

observe the water flow from the tap into the teakettle;
imagine how the water reached me; and
listen to the water boil in the teakettle.

After six full days of going through this process. I wasn’t able to relate. But, I am open to giving it another try in hopes of enhancing my awareness of movement and thoughts as I carry out routine daily functions.

I will be back posting Week 4 of this journey on Friday, July 31. Thanks to the imanikingblog for hosting Freedom Friday.

Wordless Wednesday – July 22, 2015

Wordless Wednesday – July 15, 2015

Writer’s Quote Wednesday 2015

This week for Writer’s Quote Wednesday 2015, I selected a quote from the renowned Civil Rights Leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Writers Quote Wednesday 2015

This week, for Writers Quote Wednesday 2015, I selected a quote by Maya Angelou.

Honoring My Favorite Fathers

Today is Fathers Day and I use this blog to honor two great fathers. Both have been in my life for more than fifty years. Neither is my father, but the way they father has shown me what a true father is.

The #1 Father in my life is the father of my three children. I honor, respect and truly love this man who was only an 18-year-old, high school dropout, when our first child was born.

Pregnant and 17-years old when we married, I believed and trusted him when he said, “I will do all I can to improve my life to give you and our child a better life.” He lived up to this commitment by:

Enlisting in the Armed Forces to make sure there was income and health services for me and our unborn child;
Earning a GED (High School Diploma) to open up better job opportunities after military service; and
Returning to school, after working for five years in the private sector, to earn a Bachelors and Masters Degree at a Top Ten University;

He did these things to ensure our three children were financially secure and their lives were open to better opportunities. But, just as important, he was the hands-on father who:

washed diapers,
ironed school uniforms,
hemmed skirts,
sewed on buttons
cooked meals,
read stories,
attended school conferences, concerts, recitals, games, …
shared dreams,
encouraged goals.

Our children are now middle-aged and have their own families, but they know Dad is there for them, today, as he has been throughout their lives.

The #2 Father in my life is our only son. A middle-child, the only boy, born on Halloween; I, jokingly, said for many years, “I am not sure if he is my trick or treat.” Today, I say without hesitation, “He is my treat,” and “I shout from the highest height that I am proud to call him my son.”

This Father Day, and everyday, I honor this man who is 53-years-old and the single-parent to my 6-year-old granddaughter. By the way, brag time, she graduated from Kindergarten this month:

Parenting is challenging even when there are two people sharing the responsibility. And, I had concerns whether my son could handle single-parenting. Especially, given he had lived most of his life as a bachelor.

I recall the saying, “He’s a chip of the old block” and, like his father he has stepped into the parenting role with ease and confidence.

Teachers, family, friends, professional colleagues, as well as his parents, comment on his hands-on fathering skills. How could we have expected anything else? After all, he has seen hands-on fathering, by his father, throughout his life.

Happy Fathers Day to My Hubby and Son!!!

Grateful for Overcoming A Fear

I overcame a long-held fear of going into the deep end of a pool last week. This fear dates back to my high school days where I almost failed the required swimming class due to being unable to float or swim in the deep end of the pool. I am not sure how or why it happened, but I passed the class without venturing into deep water.

Last week, due to exacerbated knee pain, I knew it was no longer possible for me to continue walking outside everyday for sixty minutes as part of a 70 Day Fitness Challenge.

I decided to join this challenge after noticing two friends on Facebook, who I had not been in contact with for more than 20 years, that were participating. As a participant in this challenge: daily, I share on Facebook my Fitbit results:

steps, number walked;
exercises, other than walking;
calories burned;
calories eaten;
water. number of ounces; and
sleep, number of hours.

Twelve days into the program, having met my goal of 8,000 steps a day, I didn’t want to let go of my greatest motivator — number of steps walked. These steps were continuously recorded on my Fitbit watch; and, I had developed an addiction to looking at my wrist, throughout the day, to track them.

I entered the challenge to strengthen my lower extremities and improve my balance. If painful knees would prohibit me from accomplishing this, I considered dropping out..

When a fellow challenger heard that I might drop out, she messaged instructions on converting the calories burned in my water aerobic exercises to steps. I saw a problem with this, when she added, “to gain the best results and, at the same time, protect your knees you should exercise in the deep end of the pool.”

A strong desire to continue meeting my goal of 8,000 steps as well as encouragement from fellow challengers, I overcame the fear of going into the deep end of the pool.

And, this is what I posted to Facebook on Day 13 of the Challenge:

“Began the day with my early morning meditation followed by a 20 minute mindfulness walk through the neighborhood. Of course, I paused to rest and take a couple of photos.

In the afternoon, I stepped outside of my comfort zone, donned a waist floater, and ventured to the deep end of the pool for water aerobics. To allay the fear of my feet not landing on a solid surface, I went to ITunes music and selected one of my favorite R&B albums. For 56 minutes and 17 songs, I shimmied, swayed, jumped, floated, walked, and jogged to the soulful music of Mr. Marvin Gaye. I was in throwback mode enjoying the memories of times spent dancing without effort, to R&B music. Today, in deep water, I moved effortlessly for an entire 56 minutes, pain-free.”

I write this post to express my:

thankfulness to the two friends who inspired and encouraged me to participate and, later, stick with this challenge;
gratefulness for overcoming the fear of entering the deep end of the pool.

Who knows, maybe I will take swimming lessons next.

Writers Quote Wednesday 2015

I really, really love Black music and it has been in my life since early childhood. This month, I discovered that June is Black Music Month; and what a surprise to find out its been around since 1979. Upon learning this, I decided for the remaining Writers Quote Wednesday 2015 in June to share quotes from Black music legends.

Last week, I shared a quote by one of America’s leading jazz vocalist, Miss Billy Holiday.

My quote this week is from another legendary jazz singer, Miss Ella Fitzgerald.

I invite you to enjoy “One Number Samba” performed by Miss Fitzgerald, the First Lady of scat singing; and, for readers who want to know a bit more about her click here.

How to Make Time for Meditation

National Cancer Survivor’s Day

Misifusa's Blog

National Cancer Survivor’s Day

Today is National Cancer Survivor’s Day ~ the first Sunday in the month of June according to Google. So I found it appropriate to write today as I am also a cancer survivor ~ breast cancer in particular.

I want to honor those who have endured cancer, those who have passed already, those who are enduring the ‘Big C” and those who may be diagnosed in the future. Most of us have had cancer rear its ugly head in our lives directly or in the lives of loved ones and we have been touched by its tentacles in one way or another.

Cancer as with most illnesses changes the lives of not only the patient, but the friends and the families that it touches. It changes us all in ways we could never predict. Cancer can strengthen the bonds of love or it can destroy them. …

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