Creating a Sacred Space for Meditation

So this is my first week in Baron Baptiste's 40 Days of Personal Revolution! It's been a pretty interesting way to start 2011. The 40 Days is a time for shifting, observing, and growing. We are advised to practice yoga 6 times a week, meditate in the morning and evening daily, record our diets, read Baptiste's book, and ask ourselves some questions along the way.

Meditation can be an interesting, challenging, and calming experience. The above photo is the altar I set up for myself in my bedroom. I tried to put some of my favorite things and reminders that make an impact on my life. I placed a vision board that I made last fall with goals and dreams to ponder about. In honor of my Christian faith, I placed my Bible and cross. There's a calming blue colored vase with water. The cow head is a little jar with seedlings to represent life and growth. I have a nice smelling candle and vanilla incense to represent warmth and love. There's a rice pillow and balm for comfort and relaxation. And, Sara Ban Breathnach's "Simple Abundance" on the table because there are enlightening lots and words that inspire.

So, meditation is just a way to get centered and reconnect with God. It looks pretty simple. For this first week, we were asked to meditate once in the morning and once at night. So, you sit in a comfortable position. I use two pillow so that my hips are raised a bit and by knees are below cross legged. I place my handles in a neat circle and I close my eyes and breathe. I set my timer on my iPhone for 5 minutes and meditate. Closed eyes, breathing and observing in the present moment. It can be so challenging because you may want to fidget, scratch, or start planning a to-do list. You also might dwell on something wrong that you did or start to dread something that you will need to be doing. The cool thing about meditation is that you just observe what comes and immediately let that thought go. You just sit in quiet, calmness and peace - or at least that's the goal.

It's kinda bizarre what can come up sometimes. Like yesterday, I meditated after eating a very hefty amount of chicken masala and I kept thinking about how much my full belly made me look like Buddha. I gringed. I was disgusted. But, you have to continue to let the thoughts go like a sieve or water flowing smoothly. As the weeks go on, we will eventually have to meditate for up to 30 minutes. I just can't imagine that right now. So, slowly, I will leap into this endeavor and embrace the moments.

How do you clear your head? What are ways you are getting grounded? Do you have a prayer/meditation practice?

Holly Daze Reflections

Happy New Year! I hope you are excited for 2011. I am eager for change, learning, and stretching. I can't believe this is my 75th blog entry on Limitless Grace. Isn't that crazy? Who knew that my writings would grow in this way. I wanted to thank the handful of people who have taken the time to stop by and read along. I hope that this year brings more adventure and inspiration into your life!

So, it is time to reflect and review from last month - the last installment of 2010. Things I'm looking forward to and dreaming about in January 2011...

1. Continue spiritual work: Change is a brewing. I can feel it. I hope to be able to meditate on this upcoming change and grow spiritually. I'd like to do a weekly meditation/prayer, attend church weekly, and work on my morning pages 3-5 times a week,

2. Yoga! Yoga! Yoga!: I've really enjoyed attending Yoga Ananda classes. And, I hope it inspires me to work on my home practice. I'd like to go to yoga class x2 a week and at home 2x a week. Then I will be diving into a 40 Day Yoga Program! I look forward to the growth and challenges that will be ahead in my personal yoga practice.

3. Creativity: I will give myself the same challenge- work in my studio 2x this month, clean out my studio, and produce one new piece of artwork. I would really like to start a creativity circle or a class. Lord, please give me the courage to grow in this area.

4. Personal Health and Growth: I'd like to finish Artist's Way and SEED. I am almost there! I'd also like to continue logging in my food intake and exercise (spin class once a week, running 2-3 times a week, and strength training twice).

5. I have a few other projects coming up that I'm excited about: French class which starts next week and is in preparation for my trip to Europe. Also, I've signed up for the Austin Half Marathon happening in February.

December Dreams Reflections
1. Simplicity - What matters most this Christmas? Family, friends, fun, and festivity. It's hard not to get carried away with the craziness. I just hope to have spent some time with people I love dearly. My cousin Sheila is very sick right now, and I hope to spend some time with her before her surgery. Please keep her in your prayers. -
Done! I was so thankful to get to spend a lot of time with my family. I was able to hang out with my mother as she showed me how to work on her sewing machine, spend some quality time with my brother in his new home, catch up with my sister who was in town from Vancouver, and get a lot of rest. We baked cookies, watched lots of movies, and caught up on Glee episodes. :) We also got to visit Sheila while she started her chemotherapy treatments. You should have seen how much happier and easier it was for her to manage her pain. The whole family gathered in her swanky and spacious hospital room and celebrated Christmas there. It was a real blessing. During my second week of vacay, I was able hang out with Jacob, Yushan, Albert, Thuan and many other friends. It was so much fun to spend the evenings listening to vinyl, dancing to Michael Jackson, and counting down the last few hours of 2010 with my close buddies.

2. Crafty - I've scheduled in a couple of artist dates for the this month. One will be a sewing class and the other one is my truffle making class. I hope to put in some art studio and yoga studio time, too. At least yoga twice this month and art studio time twice this month as well.

Done! I thoroughly enjoyed both of these classes! Sewing was a bit of a challenge for me especially since I haven't taken a class in YEARS. But, I was amazed by what one can produce with some time, fabric and a machine. The truffle class was absolutely delightful, too. The process was easily explained, and I had a good time rolling up my truffles and sharing them with friends. I also went to Yoga Ananda quite a bit and even recruited Jacob to join me. I logged in 8 classes, and I love the feeling of doing something good for my body. Now as far as studio time... mmm... yeah, that hasn't been too successful. I have worked on my morning pages, done some collaging, a clutch for my roomie and labeled my Christmas cards very creatively. So, I have been putting in doses here and there... just not in the studio.

3. Spiritual - I made this really neat "Creative Prayer" booklet. I'll probably blog about it in a future post. It helped me to stay centered and remember how important it is to connect with God and spirit. I'd like to create an altar space, continue going to church, and have better quality alone time in scripture, prayer or meditiation.

Work in progress- I attended midnight mass with my family, but haven't really made it to service much besides that. I am hoping that my quality time does improve. I have an altar with a great vision board and have done quite a bit of meditating over the past month. So, I look forward to continuing my spirituality in January.

4. Cardio - I'd like to continue to keep up with my workouts. I really enjoy spin class and running. And, we only have three more Athletic Conditioning classes before the end of the semester. (sniff! sniff!) So, I will need to continue to stay motivated through the holidays with some creative workouts.

Work in progress! This was definitely hard for me this month. I started off pretty good, but with the holidays and lazing about with family and friends, it was quite difficult to put in the cardio time. Last week, I did go running twice, attended spin class once, went on a couple walks, and lifted weights with the beau. So, it wasn't a complete loss.
5. Foodie - I'm so excited about my Food Network magazine issue. I'd like to try and cook something at least once a week this month. With potlucks and parties coming up, I don't think that will be hard. Done! This was actually quite fun. My brother and sister had an afternoon of baking. Afterwards, we devoured cookies and watched movies. It was very fun. I also had a great time in the truffles class as mentioned before, and last night Jacob and I enjoyed a nice pot of chicken and veggie green curry. So delicious and cozy for a cold winter evening.

Musings on Patience and Fullness

As I was indulging in a challenging and sweaty Power Vinyasa Flow class at Yoga Ananda, my instructor prompted us to set an intention and challenged us to think about PATIENCE. Ugh... It really resonated with me because stillness used to be and still is a challenge for me. I forget that we are put in situations today for a reason and I get restless and bored at times. But, the sad thing is if you don't live in the presence you can oftentimes miss out on life and it will just start to whiz right by.

I've been trying to challenge myself professionally and I'm at a loss with next steps. I'm not necessarily worried, but I am getting restless. As I was meditating and praying, I realize that patience (eagerly waiting and taking your time to work through today) is very related to living a full life. The best thing I can provide myself and others is my presence and really being in the moment fully. I started to think about things and experiences that I might have missed out on because I was so focused on moving on. And, that can be really tragic.

So, this maybe a bit weird, but cooking also really made me think about patience and fullness. When I was cooking my risotto recipe again, I thought about how much time, attention, and patience you really need to have to make it work. You have to pay close attention to each step: looking vigilantly for the right amount of broth in the pan, observing the "dancing waves" of rice, and the particular starchy liquid that the little rice grains produce. You can't make it too dry or too wet. It's a balance that you have to feel. But, suddenly almost like magic, the dry rice grains eventually puff up and become creamy, tasty risotto. So, with the right amount of stirring, patience, and nurturing, life experiences eventually bloom! During this time of the year, I think this is the appropriate time to really work on patience and fullness.

* How can I be fully present in my work, social life, and on my own? How do I give my best and do my all in this area?
* How can I make my holiday experience more meaningful? I am really excited about doing my cards, creating some fun gifts by hand, and learning how to craft more.
* How can I really be there for the people who matter most in my life?
* How can I give to others who really need it?

Week In Review

So, I thought that I would do a little weekly check-in for December. (Our last month of 2010 - sniff, sniff!)

- Great visit with my cousin Sheila. She is still sick, and the prognosis is up in the air. We just decided to just chill out and Glee it up. We watched the latest episode of Glee, enjoyed some chik-fil-a, and bonded over the new iPad she just received. The frustation of being sick is disheartening, but I continue to pray that she will have courage and keep her spirits up.

- Hooray! Last week, I did a pretty good job on my cardio. I went to TAC class twice, spin class twice, ran three miles, and even played some tennis with my buddies. (Unfortunately, I was unable to get much exercise due to travel and work these past few days. But, I have a feeling I'll get back to it!)

- I had a fun time with my latest projects: going to Sew Crafty, writing articles for my two new blogs, http://tastelivecreate.blogspot.com/ and http://artfullyluxe.blogspot.com/. I've really enjoyed findnig fun and creative things to write about lately.

- CASE Conference: I just returned from Austin from a pretty cool conference where we were able to exchange ideas about programs. It provided me some fresh perspectives on my job that I think would be interesting to try.

- Fun times: I enjoyed doing workouts with the beau, playing a few tennis matches with Albert, Yushan, Thuan and Jacob, and catching up with peeps at Cadillac Bar and Byzantio.

- I'm proud of my latest foodie work: asparagus risotto and homemade veggie pizza! yum-o! I am looking forward to my class at Central Market next week.

- Spiritual: I enjoyed supporting Living Water at the Taft Street Market (so many cute things - biscotti, handmade cards, lovely magnets and soap!), attending Advent service, and practicing my creative prayer card. I look forward to more church, meditation, and yoga next week!

I'm so excited about the weekend. And, I hope your days are meaningful and joyful, too!

Simple Pick-Me-Ups

One of the silly things that we can do on a regular basis is build in a little pick-me-up in our weeks. It can be basically anything that doesn't cost very much, but has an impact in making yourself a little more cheery, warm, and excited. Sometimes, we have to manage our self-care practices in order for us to be able to care for otheres. As mentioned before, I like getting pedicures, grabbing a cup of coffee, reading a book in ped. Those are all nice self-care indulgences. This is a chance to go creative. It could be anything from a new lip gloss, finding a cute piece of jewelry at an art fair, or baking a batch of cookies.

My latest pick-me-up is this adorable duck tea infuser that I found on my latest trip to Austin. I like how sipping tea takes time and it can be very relaxing. A cup of tea is long enough to take a few deep breathes, slow down, think or read a magazine article. Ever since my visit to Path of Tea, I've been interested in trying out some new teas. Hopefully, I can find some loose leaf teas soon. And, the cool part is I can try it out in my french coffee press at home.

I'm looking forward to having a cup of tea by my bed, tons of books surrounding me, and a journal. Ahhh!

Creative Prayer

"Prayer is not just asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness. It is better in prayer to havea heart without words than words without a heart." - Ghandi

Spirituality is one of the big themes I touch on wanting to participate in throughout the months. One evening I was feeling a little bummed out and I decided to stay in bed and do some reading. I read Kimberly Wilson's excerpt in Tranquilista about prayer and it gave me the inspiration to make my own creative prayer booklet.

I decided I wanted something that was cute and small that would help me prompt through some important elements in my meditation and prayer time.

Starting Point: Snapshot, Moment, Music, Quote of His Beauty
I like starting off with something that reminds me of the Divine. It could be something little like a great moment you had with a family member or a beautiful flower you saw or just a really good song that you like listening to. It's just basically a way to start of connecting with God.

Quiet the Mind: I like getting still and sitting cross-legged. Getting in tune with the present moment and breathing. I like reflecting on the verse, "Be still, and know that I am God."

Call Out to God: At this part of the prayer, I just like focusing on how amazing the Creator is and putting aside my ego and selfishness to clear out a space for prayer and connecting to God.

Intention: Why are you calling out God? What is your purpose for connecting on a spiritual level?

Gratitude: What are the incredible things that you have at present? What are you thankful for having? Reflect on the limitless grace that God always continues to bring to us.

Courage: What are areas in your life that you would like to lean on God's courage? There is usually a situation, action or a talk that needs to be had in your circumstance. Where do you wish God could give you strength in ?

Final step: Prayers and Blessings Who needs blessings? What circumstances in your life need prayer?

This morning, I've started working on my sacred space. I lit my cassia candle, turned on a good song on my iPhone (I heart Stevie Wonder!), and put on some nice aromatic lotion on. My sacred space also had a cross and my vision board. I sat on a comfortable pillow so cross-legged seated would be delightful. It was definately a nice way to feel more grounded and centered. I also think it is a nice way to start the day with intention instead of just running through the day-to-day routine.

November Highlights/December Dreams

Wow, where is 2010 going? Soon it will just be whizzing by me and everyone else.

November Reflections
Though the weather hasn't cooled down much, I do pull on my black tights and cute sweater dresses any chance I get. And, when the weather is cool, running is just so much more bearable for me.

So, here are my November Reflections!

1. More art studio/creativity time- Just like last month, I'd like to continue doing more art work. This month is Art is Everyday month. I want to visit Texas Art Supply. Go to the art studio once a week. And, perhaps, I'll host a girls' afternoon in the studio. - Made it to the studio: twice! Did Jacob's Birthday present, did a few Art is Everyday projects, and finished a couple of vision boards

2. Finish Crucial Conversations training - We are more than halfway through with the training. I think it will be nice to have a new toolkit of options when I communicate with others! - DONE! Oh goodness, I have the new skills, but let's hope I'll be able to use them when it's needed.

3. Continue my workouts with a side of spirituality- We finished boot camp and Melissa and I earned our BON Running Club shirts. I'd like to do cardio 3x times a week, yoga 2x a week, and athletic conditioning 2x a week. - Hmmm! Partly done: This month, I did yoga 4x this month, went to Brian O'Neills 4x, did spin class 5x, athletic conditioning class 5x, and a handful of sessions with Jacob and a Thanksgiving Day run/strength workout.

4. Try out Yoga Ananda studio- I bought a first timer's drop in pass, and I would like to try out their unlimited studio pass this month. I visited the studio the other day, and I love the cozy and refreshing vibe. - Yoga Ananda is an aweseome place. I tried out two classes which were very nice.

5. Plan and go on some Artist Dates- I snagged some $2 Mr. Bubble. So, I will plan on getting at least one hot bath a week. I still haven't been to a movie yet! I'd also like to hang out in a cafe and read, do some journaling, and bookstore browsing. This Saturday, I plan to go to a Vision Board class at the yoga studio. Hooray! - I did go on a few of Artist Dates (first one was a manicure, another was sipping tea at Path of Tea and hanging out in the studio with Melissa and the last one was bookstore browsing). I will definately have to schedule in a few more next month!

5. More blogging and reflecting- I am definitely in need of some morning pages this month. And, I have three blogs now. This one, one on food (http://tastelivecreate.blogspot.com), and a brand new one on arts (http://artfullyluxe.blogspot.com/). Whew! I know a little insane, but I just have so many fun projects and it's nice to finally be able to pin my ideas and thoughts down. - I worked on ten blog articles. Yay! I haven't done many morning pages, but I hope that will change this month.

6. Spiritual/ Alone Time- I have been really wanting to get some alone time and read James. I think some time at a cafe is keeps coming up in my future. We are also coming up towards the holidays and craziness. So, it is good to have some time on my own. Meditate and read scripture x1 a week. - I've been doing a better job at attending church these past few weeks. And, I do really need some cafe time to myself. I probably spent one bed day contemplating things which was not enough for me.

7. Plan and do some meaningful and fun events at my job- I have a handful of events this month, and I would like to keep the momentum going from October. Hopefully, they will all go well. - Let's see... I think things went really well at work. We had Bernard Amadei come in and I planned a couple events with his visit. He was pretty inspiring. And, the Seniors did their first fundraising event in Midtown. So, overall pretty good.

8. Work on skill development and my career- I really want to make more headway in yoga training, SEED, and Sacred Commerce. I have also made a commitment to continue looking towards my next step in my career. - I've started exploring options, but things aren't that solid yet in this area.

December Dreams

1. Simplicity - What matters most this Christmas? Family, friends, fun, and festivity. It's hard not to get carried away with the craziness. I just hope to have spent some time with people I love dearly. My cousin Sheila is very sick right now, and I hope to spend some time with her before her surgery. Please keep her in your prayers.

2. Crafty - I've scheduled in a couple of artist dates for the this month. One will be a sewing class and the other one is my truffle making class. I hope to put in some art studio and yoga studio time, too. At least yoga twice this month and art studio time twice this month as well.

3. Spiritual - I made this really neat "Creative Prayer" booklet. I'll probably blog about it in a future post. It helped me to stay centered and remember how important it is to connect with God and spirit. I'd like to create an altar space, continue going to church, and have better quality alone time in scripture, prayer or meditiation.

4. Cardio - I'd like to continue to keep up with my workouts. I really enjoy spin class and running. And, we only have three more Athletic Conditioning classes before the end of the semester. (sniff! sniff!) So, I will need to continue to stay motivated through the holidays with some creative workouts.

5. Foodie - I'm so excited about my Food Network magazine issue. I'd like to try and cook something at least once a week this month. With potlucks and parties coming up, I don't think that will be hard.