Monday Mindfulness ~ four pebble meditation

This meditation, which I found on a blog post from 2010, was adapted fromThich Nhat Hanh’s LivingWithout Stress or Fear.  The idea is to gather four different pebbles to represent "distinct aspects of your true nature to live in happiness and free of fear and suffering.  The first pebble shall represent a flower; the second a mountain; the third, still water; and the fourth, space."  The whole meditation can be found here, but today I want to focus on what each pebble represents.

flower ~ represents freshness
mountain ~ think of solidity
still water ~ is about reflection
space ~ equals having freedom

Pick up the first pebble and visualize it as a flower.  As a matter of fact, see yourself as a flower and feel fresh as you breathe in and out three times.  Become fully a flower, as much as you are able. again.  I think I'll imagine myself like those jonquils above, which are growing now at my friend Ginnie's house.

The second pebble serves as your mountain. See yourself as a mountain and feel solid.  We can be solid because there’s a mountain inside each of us.  Think of yourself as solid, stable, and steadfast in spite of any mental or emotional winds.  It's possible to stand confident and unmovable like a mountain.  See the strong stones behind the jonquils — Ginnie lives on the top edge of a mountain.

Pick up the third pebble and visualize it as still water.  Reflect on things as they truly are, and feel calm.  Don't let anger, jealousy, or fear bring turbulence to inner waters.  Cultivate peace of mind by being calm.

The fourth pebble represents space.  Feel free by freeing up space and emptiness.  With freedom and space, there's room for happiness.



This YouTube presented by Plum Village brother Thay Phap Huu remind us of our flower freshness, mountain solidity, calm water clarity and spacious freedom ("Pebble for your pocket meditation," YouTube, 6:21 minutes).  Ha!  The video even shows jonquils like Ginnie's.

Sunday Survey ~ what's up?

READING

FINISHED

The Invention of Wings ~ by Sue Monk Kidd, 2014, fiction (South Carolina), 10/10

I told you about this one when I got it from the library, so click the title to read about it.  The story was inspired by the historical figure of Sarah Grimke, an abolitionist.  This isn't a review, but I rate the book 10 of 10, my highest rating.  Some of the women from my church met Saturday morning to start a book club, and I praised not only this book, but the author.  I also especially like her The Dance of the Dissident Daughter (nonfiction) and The Secret Life of Bees, her highly acclaimed novel (which I also rated 10 of 10).

CURRENTLY READING

The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic ~ by John Shelby Spong, 2013, religion

I'm studying this one with a clergywomen's group on Facebook, and I'm already way behind in my reading.  I should focus on one thing or the other, but I'm studying with too many groups of people!  Like the next book.

CURRENTLY STUDYING

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life ~ by Karen Armstrong, 2010

The goal of this study is not to "learn about" compassion, but to PRACTICE compassion.  Karen Armstrong shares concrete methods to help us cultivate and expand our capacity for compassion and provides a reading list to encourage us to “hear one another’s narratives.”  She teaches us that becoming a compassionate human being is a lifelong project and a journey filled with rewards.

CURRENTLY FINISHING

Living Buddha, Living Christ ~ by Thích Nhất Hạnh, introduction by Elaine Pagels, 1995, religion

I never finished it when I started in 2012, and now it fits in with my Monday Mindfulness posts on this blog and with my study of compassion with Book Buddies during all of 2014 (as I mentioned above).  I'll probably quote from this book a time or two, possibly even tomorrow.

CHALLENGES

I'm "working on" a couple of challenges, sort of.  The main reason I even signed up was curiosity about letters and numbers.  Neither of them will make me read more books, and I only occasionally think to update my lists.

The 2014 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge is to read one book with a title starting with each letter of the alphabet.  I imagine some letters may be harder to find than others, but I've already got 8 of the 26 letters.

I've been doing A Century of Books since the beginning of 2012.  Since there didn't seem to be any ending date, I'll keep adding to my list until I've read a book for every year.  Obviously, I'm reading more from this century than the last, so I decided to have two lists and include two centuries:

20th century (1900-1999) ~ I've read 18/100
21st century (2000-2014) ~ I've read 14/15

NEW BOOK CLUB

I mentioned above that I am helping to start a book club with other women of my church.  The only problem is that I'm planning to move.  I meet with them yesterday anyway, discussed books the group might read, and shared ideas about what to name the group.  Two possibilities that came up were Bookworms and Mind Benders.  Do you like either of those?  What does your discussion group call itself?

Caturday ~ cattitude

Beginning ~ with nostalgia

The Feminine Mistake: Are We Giving Up Too Much? ~ by Leslie Bennetts, 2007, women's studies

"My grandmother made the world's best rhubarb pies and sewed extraordinary silk garments with exquisite craftsmanship worthy of a French couturier.  Raised to devote her all to marriage and family, she worshipped her talented husband, doted on her children, and baked homemade bread whose enticing aroma drew every one to the kitchen.  Although she lived for nearly eighty years, she never worked outside the home or held a paying job.

"Such latter-day paragons of traditional femininity often make people nostalgic for bygone times, but even then, the truth was frequently a lot darker than the champions of conventional gender roles like to admit.  Although my grandmother's life adhered faithfully to the old-fashioned stereotypes so often held up as a modern ideal, the result was a disaster, not onlly for her but also for her children and relatives."  (p. xv)

This book has been on my shelf for at least two or three years, and I've finally decided to take a look at it.  I'm trying to sort through books I want to keep and books I'm willing to discard, even if I haven't yet read them.  This one looks like one I'll try first.

Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.  Click here for today's Mister Linky.

Beginning ~ with rifles in the office

The Septembers of Shiraz ~ by Dalia Sofer, 2007, fiction (Iran), 8/10

When Isaac Amin sees two men with rifles walk into his office at half past noon on a warm autumn day in Tehran, his first thought is that he won't be able to join his wife and daughter for lunch, as promised.

Here's a synopsis of the novel: 

"In the aftermath of the Iranian revolution, rare-gem dealer Isaac Amin is arrested, wrongly accused of being a spy.  Terrified by his disappearance, his family must reconcile a new world of cruelty and chaos with the collapse of everything they have known.  As Isaac navigates the terrors of prison, and his wife feverishly searches for him, his children struggle with the realization that their family may soon be forced to embark on a journey of incalculable danger."

Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.  Click here for today's Mister Linky.

Library Loot ~ February 26-March 4

The Invention of Wings ~ by Sue Monk Kidd, 2014, fiction (South Carolina)

Hetty “Handful” Grimke, an urban slave in early nineteenth century Charleston, yearns for life beyond the suffocating walls that enclose her within the wealthy Grimke household.  The Grimke’s daughter, Sarah, has known from an early age she is meant to do something large in the world, but she is hemmed in by the limits imposed on women.  This sweeping novel is set in motion on Sarah’s eleventh birthday, when she is given ownership of ten-year-old Handful, who is to be her handmaid. We follow their remarkable journeys over the next thirty five years, as both strive for a life of their own, dramatically shaping each other’s destinies and forming a complex relationship.  Handful will endure loss and sorrow, finding courage and a sense of self in the process.  Sarah will experience crushed hopes, betrayal, unrequited love, and ostracism before leaving Charleston to find her place alongside her fearless younger sister, Angelina, as one of the early pioneers in the abolition and women’s rights movements.  Inspired by the historical figure of Sarah Grimke, Kidd goes beyond the record to flesh out the rich interior lives of all of her characters, both real and invented, including Handful’s cunning mother, Charlotte, who courts danger in her search for something better.

I see now why it's taken weeks for me to get this book — it's an Oprah Book Club 2.0 selection.  At one point, I think I was 43rd on the list.  Finally, I got one of the eight copies in our system.  My librarian friend Claire has heard it's good.  So have I.

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire @ The Captive Reader and Linda @ Silly Little Mischief that encourages us to name the books we checked out of the library.  Click here to see what others got this week.

Monday Mindfulness ~ paying attention

"What is the sound of one hand texting?"

That's how the NYTimes article starts, the one about mindfulness getting its share of attention.  The author, David Hochman, defines mindfulness as "a loose term that covers an array of attention-training practices."

Okay, that got my attention, and I wondered, "Am I interested in mindfulness because there's a lot of attention being focused on it?  Or am I noticing the articles and blog posts about mindfulness because I'm already paying attention to it?"

Do you know the zen koan "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"  That first sentence, which changes the last word to "texting" is a play on the classic koan.

Where is your attention these days?  On books?  On texting?  On the world around you?  What's on your mind?