Except Alex Mill. He put baby in a corner…and I liked it. I’m also a glutton for punishment but that’s another story. Who is Alex Mill? Let’s not get it twisted…this isn’t the opening to the fourth installment of 50 shades of Grey. Alex is a friend, a Buddhist Monk, life coach, writer, illustrator, and yoga enthusiast. He’s also an avid Buddhist meditation teacher. Which is what brings me into his world today. Much like the aforementioned Mr. Grey, Alex is a tall man that exudes kindness and a certain amount of uncanny mystery. Unlike Mr. Grey, Alex is not focused on material possessions. The exact opposite in fact. The first story he relayed to us is of his former life, he was “successful” in the mainstream working definition of the word. He had a steady girl friend ( DOH! stone cold fox) (wait…can I talk about a monk that way?) …a “great” job, an apartment in the city, and an every growing CD collection. Yes folks, CD collection. If you are under the age of 20, a compact disc is a small disc used to store media. They look like DVD’s but are for music. I digress, former Alex was obviously a 90’s hot shot. Livin’ the American dream. I’m not sure why, but I picture former Alex and former Alex’s’ girl friend wearing shoulder pads and carrying cellphones with extendable antennas. By the way, if you need a more cynical view of the American Dream, revisit the Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald. Again, focus. We are still talking about former Alex. One day former Alex followed his lady friend into a small trendy shop in the city. He picked up a book. This book, these words, quite literally changed his entire life. As he thumbed through the pages he thought “this is exactly how I feel” his feelings that at the time he did not have words for. The book was about meditation, and searching for contentment in your life journey. Fast forward 14 years in a monastery with some living squeezed in between and now he is here. Living in the moment and sharing the tools for an emotionally satisfying life through the principles of meditation,
If you are questioning why I am taking this workshop then obviously you did not read the first paragraph. I can be slightly distracted. Similar to Dori from finding Nemo…if you jingle keys, or hold up something shiny while you are talking to me. Game over. I’m not listening. Meditation should be a requirement for people like me.
First, Alex made it very clear that the main goal for this style of meditation is to master being present in the moment. To be free of distraction and have the ability to sit in silence for a certain period of time. If a thought came to mind we acknowledged it, then let it pass. The first five minutes of this workshop was torture. The others entered serenely and took their seat facing a wall and all I could think of was how much I wanted to chat with everyone around me. Coming in as a writer my mind is racing with idea’s and he is telling me to let these thoughts pass. SHHHWAAAA? But, this lil’yoga junkie is always prepared, brought her handy dandy voice recorder . So let those thoughts pass I did (BTW I deleted the recording as soon as I got home by accident ::facepalm:: technology fails are typical for me). Anyway, being able to follow his verbal cues and release the constant chatter in my mind was like a wave on a jersey beach in August, the thought came racing up to my toes along the waters edge. Finally warm enough that the short run in with my toes didn’t cause immediate hypodermic shock. Then the wave retreated back to the ocean. Again, and again, and again. Did I mention that I struggle with anxiety? Dealing with repetitive thoughts isn’t a once in a while thing. It’s a 24/7 job. Finding a method to quickly cope with the rushing thoughts instead of reaching for the candy jar (and by candy jar I mean meds) is a nice change of pace.
There are many styles of meditation. There are many misconceptions about meditation. I could write a full dissertation about both of these topics but I’m going to give you the cliff notes because that was more my style in high school…reading is for geeks. Now the writer is insulting her audience…this is going well… Anyway, I’m not extremely well versed in the many styles of meditation but I can say that each technique has a purpose or end goal. For example, Yoganidra sometimes referred to by Western culture as guided imagery has a proctor to orally guide you to a certain goal, such as focused thoughts, relaxation, or sleep may be some of the desired results. Buddhist meditation brings the end goal to being present. This style aims to eliminate any outside distraction (sights, sounds, smells) and find true silence. When one can attain this silence, they also will be able to truly understand themselves. Very quickly, some common misconceptions….not all meditation is religious, there is no chanting, no mention of deities or any tie to religion period. Think of it this way, all Buddhists meditate, all who meditate are not Buddhists. Just like, all Christians accept wine as a symbol of the blood of Christ. Not all who drink wine are Christian (does that make sense?). Also, meditation will not lead to levitation (this disappointed me a bit too).
So what will this practice actually do? Increase your focus, lower your blood pressure, give you the ability to have an open mind, help boost your immune system, give you more perspective on life, reduce anxiety/ depression and much much more. Alex coached us through an activity where we had to share envision how we wanted to feel all the time. Then he had us share that feeling in one word. My word was luminous, I want to glow from the inside out and let others feed off of it and feel the same way. Then, after a minute I felt shame. It almost brought me to tears because I know that the reality is that the little monsters in my tummy make me feel like I’m not good enough. Like I haven’t achieved or finished a check list of accomplishments that would entitle me to feel this way. It’s bullshit. Logical me knows this. Logical lil’yoga junkie knows that she is awesome and deserves to be happy. Meditation is going to help me squish the little monsters in my tummy (this is an excellent book btw) and for that I am thankful. I will follow the steps given to me by Alex. I will practice my meditation at a beginner time of 5 minutes a day and continue down my path to forgiveness, happiness, and contentment. One breath at a time.
Thank you Alex for sharing this amazing gift with me.
Alex Mill teaches a beginner’s meditation workshop on the first Sunday of every month. You can find out more information and register at http://www.peaceloveyogavineland.com. Graduates can then take his weekly class on Friday evenings at 8:30 pm.
What to wear: loose comfortable clothing. Yoga attire is not required.
What to bring: a pillow, blanket to sit on, some water and a chair if you are unable to sit on the floor for long periods of time.
Peace, love, and pigeon.
lil’yoga junkie
lil'yogajunkie 