TRY IT Tuesday!

So this is my first post of "TRY IT Tuesday", which is for sharing with you something I have recently tried.

I have been wanting to start the practice of daily meditation for, like, about 29 years now. Better late than never, huh? I have had here and there experiences with meditating in different forms, from a prenatal exersize class I participated in when carrying my first child which ended with a relaxation meditation to various workshops over the years which included meditations in the teachings to simply taking it upon myself in a moment of extreme frustration, fear or anger to close my eyes, and just *b*r*e*a*t*h*e*...
But now, more than ever before, I am feeling a serious, almost anxiety-inducing yearning to immerse myself in 10 or more minutes of meditation on a DAILY basis...not just during "special occasions" such as in a class or workshop or when stressed out!
I am blessed to have the amazing freedom of being able to choose how I would like to spend pretty much every hour of my every day, so what, you may ask, is the problem with alloting ten paltry minutes per day to meditate?!
THAT, my friend, is my current $64,000 question, and other than the usual "excuses"...

I don't have the right place to do it in
(there are 11 rooms in our house, plus a huge walk-in closet and 2 and a half car garage...and don't forget our large lush yard with a waterfall garden pond and the surrounding acre+ of woodland)

 I don't know how to do it "right"
 (close your eyes, be quiet and breathe)

I always get interrupted
(turn your cell phone ringer off & tell Jeff to leave you alone for 10 minutes)

...I really do not HAVE an excuse (anymore).
No job, no deadlines, little to no pressing responsibilities, nothing really, keeping from carving out ten measly but majorly important minutes in my self-created days!

Recently, I have been collecting various guided MP3 meditations on my laptop, as well as perusing meditation websites, blogs and videos on YouTube. They are available everywhere and many are free.I'm enthusiastic and armed.

So today, I tried it. I asked for some time alone, I lit some incense, I turned out the lights & I sat in my studio desk chair in the garage. (I will be modifying that seating tomorrow!)
I pulled up a meditation I had saved on my laptop, hit play, closed my eyes...

and meditated.

It was lovely.
I felt calm yet energized when the meditation was complete.

And then, a few hours later, I did another one.

****ahhhhhh****

It was a very good, creative, content day.
I think I will try it again tomorrow.
And the next day.
And the day after that...

They say it takes 21 days for a new practice to become a habit.

I'll keep ya posted...!

(Do you want to TRY IT too?

Here are some videos to peruse:
Intro to Meditation (ignore the first 56 seconds about yoga & pregnancy!)
Simple Meditation (her voice is heavenly!)
So Hum Nama meditation
Self-Esteem meditation


and of course, there are literally thousands more on YouTube and various websites, free for the using!
You can also meditate to relaxing music, or in silence, or with the sounds of nature surrounding you. I think eventually, I would like to explore and try as many variations & methods as appeal to me.
Only 20 more days to go until I have a meditation habit!  :)


~Namaste~
Happy Me-LaurieZ