In 2015, I read Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I implemented it in my entire home and I felt really good. When I neared the end of the process, it saddened me. I wasn’t sure why, but I knew I enjoyed it. What I didn’t realize was that it wasn’t only the book I enjoyed; during the tidying process, my mind was quiet. (I was actually meditating without realizing I was even doing it.)
I didn’t know “how to meditate” and mentally reserved that activity for people who spend hours on mountain tops humming by streams or something. Not me. I still don’t even really know what exactly kombucha is. My favorite time of day is cocktail hour. That’s just me.
One day, I was trying to be positive and it was just one of THOSE days. You know, the ones where you have just freaking had it and try to hide in another room for a breather.
Yeah, they came frequently that year.
I desperately needed a pick-me-up. For some reason, it popped in my head to google positive thinking videos. I stumbled upon a channel of positive affirmations. I figured I’d give it a try. What did I have to lose?
The first time I did a guided positive thinking video, I rolled my eyes. Halfway through, I laughed a lot. I kept pausing it because it felt so cheesy. But for whatever reason (maybe because of the kid in the donkey mask and the one with Butt Paste smeared down her leg) I went back to it. And a few more times….I went back to it and eventually stopped laughing at it and started paying attention to it.
Then one day, I caught myself ACTUALLY thinking one of the positive affirmations in a stressful situation and feeling like “I’ve got this under control, no biggie.” I realized it was working. I stopped sweating the small stuff and realized I was actually finding the good in everything without meaning to.
I began to explore more of the positive thinking exercises on the YouTube channel I found and wouldn’t you know…there were guided meditations. What is that? It’s for people like me. Ones who don’t know HOW to “meditate.” I always thought it sounded a little weird…what am I supposed to do, just sit there quietly and stare at the wall?
I did a guided meditation just before bed and I was hooked. It was absolutely amazing and I slept so well. That’s when I finally understood that the term “meditation” meant one thing and one thing only: quieting the mind. For however long you choose, you are able to just stop thinking. You have to do it to understand why it’s pretty amazing.
There are tons of these types of YouTube videos. My personal favorite is Jason Stephenson. I will link his channel here for anyone who is interested. Jason Stephenson
The word “meditate” always made me picture someone in the middle of nature, sipping herbal tea, becoming in touch with how they think. Somehow, clad in an annoyingly pink Lilly Pulitzer tunic while eating a plate of leftover ziti and hiding from my kids….I got there, too.
