Peace is the way

I'm a pacifist. I don't say that to separate myself from others, to make myself different, or to label myself. I say it as a reminder to myself, a reminder that my power lies in serenity and nonviolence. Being a pacifist means that I draw from inner peace to interact with the world. When I'm at peace, I'm powerful. When I'm at peace, I'm less reactive, more composed and able to make better decisions. I'm centered, grounded, and strong.

As a pacifist, I don't ignore what is going on. With my pacifist mindset, I have participated in and accomplished many changes of things and circumstances that matter to me and that affect the greater good. Some are obvious. Others, not so much. Yet these changes are appreciated by others and contribute to a healthy coexistence, more pragmatism, collective productivity, and communal wellbeing. I may not scream, rant and raise my fist, but I do protest. I protest, make my voice heard and make change happen.

At the moment, we are in turmoil. My country's present is bleak, its future even more so. We are in the midsts of political mayhem. Trust is at an all-time low. Our dignity has been violated. We, as a people, are at our wits end. Our future compromised by governmental corruption. We are suffering injustice after injustice perpetrated by the very people elected to manage our resources, protect and serve, and make decisiones for our country. We have no justice. We have no peace.

To live in peace requires justice, requires action. We as a people are coming together to claim justice. Next Monday, May the 1st, we will march, we will stop commerce, we will stop everything, and we will make our voices heard. I ask for your highest and best thoughts for a peaceful and powerful demonstration. I ask for your highest and best thoughts for a peaceful outcome for the people of Puerto Rico.

Peace requires action. Today is a good day to take action. Sit in meditation for a few minutes. Gather your peace, gather your strength. Meditation is action. It is reaching in for power, strength and guidance. Sustained peace requires this kind of action and action that will garner us justice requires us to be at peace so that our message is heard and not our anger or our rightful indignation.

For those of us who will march on Monday, let's join our minds in silence and stillness before we head out to protest, that we may be imperturbable as we walk. Peace is the way.

Let's gather our peace, let's gather our strength, and let's go and make our voices heard.

Image found at pinterest.com.

© Millicent Maldonado and www.soulcerer.com. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved.

Breathing Space

Take a deep breath. Open up the space between this moment and the next. Breathe. Create space between your emotion and your reaction, between your reaction and your decision. Create a space between your anger and what you say. Breathe. Make space between your sadness and your view of the world. Breathe space between you and your reaction to others. Breathe. Create space.

It's Friday. Many view this day as the beginning of the weekend. Yet, many others view Friday as the most difficult day of the week. It's the day in which everything that didn't get done during the week must get done. It's the day when we see what balls we dropped, what deadlines we missed, and what gets pushed on to next week's already full to-do list. Friday, for many, is the day that looms longer than others. It's the in which we hold our breath without noticing, in which we react without thinking, in which we bounce from one thing to another seemingly without a beginning or end in a loop of frantic activity and fragmented thoughts.

Today is a good day to create space for inner peace, calmness, and more composed thoughts. It is a good day to breathe and create space between one thing and another, between one task and another, between one thought and another. Let's breathe while we wait for the elevator doors to open, for the page to load, for the light to change. Breathing space between everything that we say, think and do minimizes mistakes and clumsiness, allows us moments of unexpected joy, brings up kindness, reduces anxiety, and let's a better version of us come through. Breathing space consciously improvises a smile on our face, creating a positive neurochemical reaction that makes us feel good. Let's breathe space between one bite and the next. Let's weave space in conversations. Let's be mindful. Let's take conscious breaths throughout this day creating space in our body, our mind, our spirit, and our soul.

Lotus Mandala 2, painting by Judith Shaw found at feminismandreligion.com.

© Millicent Maldonado and www.soulcerer.com. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved.

Now and later

Last Friday a colleague and I sat around a work table and both commented how off we felt. He had not meditated either that morning. Not meditating made him feel out of focus and forgetful. I, on the other hand, was feeling clumsy and disorganized.

Then, yesterday, I had an appointment for my annual pap exam. These things are never pleasant. I was bit more tense than usual because I was visiting a doctor who was new to me. I was unfamiliar with him, his staff and the office. The waiting room was full of people, including many children and babies. The children were running around the room with moms screaming at them. Many of them brought fast food with them. At one point, french fries became toy missiles flying around the room, with more screaming from the moms. Most of the babies were crying loudly, some unconsolably. On top of that, the air conditioning was not working which made the smell of fast food stronger, pungent even. I knew I had to wait, so I had brought a book with me. Would I be able to read in the midsts of all the noise and discomfort? I focused on my breath.

These two stories bear out some of the results of meditation. Meditation has both immediate and cumulative effects. Many times, right after meditation, I feel grounded and focused. I feel as though I can handle whatever comes my way. There are other times throughout my day when I feel the accumulated effects of my meditation practice. Yesterday, for instance, I was able to read in bosom of life around me. Before I knew it, the nurse had called me into the examination room. Moreover, while the doctor was performing the exam, I was relaxed and comfortable. That had never happened to me before.

The focusing and calming effects on meditation have a real impact on our physical and mental health.  A regular meditation practice can help us be productive and efficient, think more clearly and creatively, reduce our blood pressure, and regulate our emotions, among many other benefits. Today is a good day to meditate for both the now and the later effects. Let's take a few minutes to sit in a quiet place, close our eyes and breathe. Let's do this consciously and bring about inner calm, equanimity, better health and our ability to deal better with daily life.

Image found at irinianagnostaki.com.

© Millicent Maldonado and www.soulcerer.com. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved.