Here’s That Rainy Day
Posted: March 25, 2015 Filed under: Kindness, Meditation, Mindfulness, Yoga | Tags: Citizens' Academy for Omaha's Future, community, Identity, kindness, love, meditation, Mindfulness, Omaha, passion, yoga 20 CommentsThe ego relies on the familiar. It is reluctant to experience the unknown, which is they very essence of life-
We cultivate a sense of identity from what we do, and when a habit bolsters a positive sense of identity, it’s immensely powerful. Over time, the pure joy of this “habit” fades away into the ether, and what are left with? Race bibs. medals, memories and for me personally – Nothing. This past weekend after much thought, I have arrived at a point in my life where I need to stop pursuing fleeting dreams, choosing instead to do something meaningful with my free time – other than racing and competing. Its time to focus on other areas in my life …
Daily Meditation:
Over the course of the next six weeks I will be attending the Citizens’ Academy for Omaha’s Future and I would genuinely love to have you along for the ride! In essence, I’m trading race bibs and medals to hang in the garage, for the chance to create meaningful change in our community.
Thank you once again for your continued support as I walk a path to discovering my true self.
In a Mellow : Tone :
Posted: March 24, 2015 Filed under: Kindness, Meditation, Mindfulness, Yoga | Tags: Buddhism, community, Criticism, cycling, ego, family, Hardship, Identity, kindness, love, Materialism, meditation, Modernism, passion, reading, Reflection, self, Wealth, writing, Zen 4 CommentsMake your ego porous. Will is of little importance, complaining is nothing, fame is nothing. Openness, patience, receptivity, solitude is everything-
Our appetite for wealth, the latest and greatest, and material gain isn’t driven by any sort of “hardship“, but by our own, deep-rooted inner discontent.
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I was convinced that I could buy my way to happiness after all the years of abuse I put myself, and my family through. I believed that my discontent was wrought from hardship, and that the only way to permanent fulfillment and well-being was the acquisition of things. Sadly, our society still measures “success” in terms of the quality and price of the “things” we can buy, the size of our house and salaries – the size of our manhood and Ego when we drop trough and boast about a new bike or whatever.
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As much as I take comfort in casting blame on society for my faults, my Ego is what defines my role(s) in the material world; I am a father, I am an engineer, I am an avid cyclist. I am liar, I am a fakata of things in this thing called life. When asked to introduce or say a little bit about myself – I instantly define myself in the conscious realm, and my ego is hell-bent on pulling me away from my True Self.
Daily Meditation:
The more I identify myself with the “I am … “, the less I am able to identify with the, me.
Only Trust Your : Heart :
Posted: March 17, 2015 Filed under: Kindness, Meditation, Yoga | Tags: Bicycle Commuting, Bliss, community, Commuting, cycling, harmony, Identity, image, kindness, meditation, Omaha, Seva, yoga, Zen 11 CommentsIt’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit-
Have you ever stopped at a “stop walk” when there’s no traffic? Waiting patiently for the signal to indicate its safe to cross the street, when out of seemingly nowhere, another almond chai tea latte sporting pedestrian comes along and proceeds to saunter on through? Do you lament, “I’m a moron for waiting!” Or do you think out-loud, “Try not to get run over you jack ass!” These benign and tedious social interactions, offer us a glimpse into our inner “moral police,” and how we spend more time defending our own egos than actually enjoying this inspiring moment in time.
I don’t believe we are abandoning morals in our society as a whole. We still lean heavily on moral arguments to justify our daily behavior (topic for another day … ), although we tend to prop ourselves up on “morals” more randomly, pulling out whatever moral code serves our interests best in any given situation. So how do we begin to tie in morality, which is a painfully tedious and a woefully self-serving discussion. With mindfulness, harmony and surrendering to the moment? Or, simply being?
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What ever happened to here-and-now relational responsiveness in our society? Actions that are open-hearted, sympathetic, and not embedded in rigid ideas of the self, and our “personal interest?” Helping the elderly to cross a street or carrying their groceries to the car? Holding a random door open for someone? Waiting at a cross walk, and sharing a smile with the driver, before you both carry on? Its amazing what we can achieve as a society when people go out of their way to help one another with no thought of self-advantage.
Daily Meditation:
Instead of being propelled by an outside force – Morality – Ego – Self Advantage … Allow your heart and spirit to propel you gently this morning.
My Spirit Flies to You
Posted: February 20, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: Bliss, blogging, community, compassion, exercise, family, fitness, flow, form, freshly pressed, grace, happiness, health, karma, Karma yoga, kindness, life, lululemon, meditation, musings, natural, Power Yoga, Service, Seva, Virality, Wanderlust, writing, yoga, Zen 3 CommentsIncredible nervous state, trepidation beyond words: to be this much in love is to be sick (and I love to be sick)-
This act was not necessarily random, although it was based on kindness and service …
” … I was first initially baffled, and then pleasantly surprised to find my Yoga students coming to class earlier and earlier. Some arrive at class 40 minutes early … which, of course, forces me to arrive even earlier to prepare the studio for them. I couldn’t figure out why at first, but then I saw that they liked to check in with each other before class, and as they took off their shoes at the door and hung up their coats, I noticed such a sense of relief in a few as they turned off their cell phones and smart phones — it was a noticeable sense of a technology burden being lifted from their shoulders. Their Yoga practice — in the form of Pratyahara — begins as soon as they touch that “OFF” button. Realizing that made me much happier to come to the studio even earlier to be ready for their arrivals!”
– Baseball, Yoga, Life … (and me)
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When we act with mindful love? We release the true spirit of those we interact with on a daily basis. Our action(s) and reaction(s) –aka the Law of Karma- begin and end, with how we mindfully care and nurture our own spirit first, and then through embracing Seva, we can bring forth the best in all whom we interact with.
Daily Meditation:
Love – Is feeding and serving others with compassion, kindness and a deep and abiding sense of giving. Through love and Seva, lies true realization.
Heat (the) Pot
Posted: August 2, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, community, exercise, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, humor, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, lululemon, lust, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, Omaha, paleo, passion, perfection, Place, running, trail running, whole foods, WOD, writing, yoga 16 CommentsIf people reach perfection they vanish, you know-
Many folks who wander around these parts consider themselves perfectionist and they also consider perfectionism to be one of their most valuable attribute (a close runner-up is their charming smile). As a perfectionist you are likely to obsess over bringing attention to detail: Your yoga mat and running shoes have to match your outfit. A keen eye on organization and following a well intended plan, as well as a clear sense of how all of the pieces of the “big picture” relate to each other.
It seems that having good intentions (wanting to excel no matter the discipline) and working hard would result in our meeting a desired outcome(s). However, as we well know, this doesn’t happen as often as we think it should. In fact, you might be frustrated by the fact that your perfectionism pays off in keeping your socks organized and your Prius meticulously clean but backfires horrendously during your adho mukha svanasana.
Why is this so?
Even more confusing and frustrating is when we use our perfectionism in one instance and it works great, but then we use the exact same strategy in another situation? It doesn’t work in the least. Quick example: Obsessing about making mistakes can make you detail-oriented and a key asset in your work place. Or obsessing about making mistakes can make you fail miserably during yoga class and during your next “big” event.
Notes:
I decided not too long ago that I wanted to better understand when and under what circumstances perfectionism worked and when it backfired. Race preparation and event planning – A touch of perfectionism helps, a lot! Enjoying yoga class and a nice flowing trail run? Not so much. I’ve also seen people (myself included) literally kill themselves in the pursuit of the perfect mile, split time and perfect rep … Totally not worth it!
CultFit 