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Forgetting to Take a Break (and a reminder of the importance of practice)
I got caught up in something in the middle of the day today. By the time I could reasonably take a break (I did eat my lunch from home), it was too late to be able to get a real break. I then worked fairly late. By the end of the day, I really noticed the difference between a day when I have taken a walk, met a friend, sat at the Botanical Garden or the museum for even 15-20 minutes and this day, when I let myself get so tangled in the demands of work that I did not take a break.
I work better in the afternoon when I have taken a break, just as my work, my body, my digestion, my sleep, and my relationships are healthier when I practice consistently. I no longer need a reminder how important it is both to take a good break each day and to find time for practice. I am looking at this day, though, as a teaching lesson, an extra reminder of the importance of finding some delicious time to bring into the rest of the day.
Do you take a break to eat quietly or take a walk in the middle of your day? Can you notice the difference the days you do and the days you don’t? What about the weeks you practice and the weeks you do not? Does this not fire you up with resolve to be steadier in your practice and kinder to yourself?
Back to the Office (and My Walk Home Past the Capitol)
When I walked past the Capitol sometime after 7, the light in the cupola showing that Congress was still in session was blazing brightly, making my 10 and a half hour day seem short. I returned to my desk after the week in Miami to several dozen emails. By the time it was midday, an new meeting was scheduled for tomorrow that had not been in the emails or existing calendar, my catching up was interrupted by the need to give background to a reporter, and I was asked to chair a meeting tomorrow that I usually just attend. None of this felt stressful, but it did mean that to get enough done to handle my work responsibly and also get a good night’s rest, I could not leave in time for the two-hour Monday night class at Willow Street.
It seems perhaps not quite right that going out of town to study makes it harder to study with and support my local teachers, whom I love and respect. I think they understand, though, when I have been to study with our mutual teacher and bring back to share the energy of our wider community.
And now for a deep, quieting practice and my evening meditation before bathing and bed. It has been a long day.
Practice Every Day
It isn’t sadhana unless it is steady, repeated, and over a long period of time (though form or emphasis might change).

United States Supreme Court, June 28, 2018




