20 Jun Today was hard

“Today was hard for me.”

This is a common, but significant message that I receive. You are not alone. Each one of us will have meditation sessions that come soft and easy and other times might feel like hell.

In the early days of our practice, the hard days mess with us. This is not working, we say. I’m just not good at meditation. My mind won’t stop racing. And so we bail. We give up on the practice or only reach for it when convenient or when all conditions are perfect.

Did I mention you are not alone? Even after years and years of daily practice, you will have peaceful days and trying days while you sit.

My first decade of meditation was full of start and stop. I would get a couple days or a couple weeks under my belt and then head for the hills when a difficult time or two came along. I saw every tough session as proof that I was not cut out for this.

I want you to know this so that you continue. Easy or hard, do the work each day. If it is a good day, meditate. If it is a hard day, meditate. Unwavering.

Consistent, daily practice has secrets to tell. You start to see the times that your mind is jumpy as a powerful part of the process. These sessions will no longer frighten you or cause you doubt. They will sharpen your skills of awareness and improve your ability to bring things back to the breath, back to your center.

We get lots and lots of practice on days like these.

~Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau