"Don't Just Do Something, Sit There!"

I never mentioned that I want to start a meditation practice again. I had one many years ago, and it helped with stress and my way of dealing with the world. (It also brought up some strong negative emotion too, but that was okay.) I've sat a few times recently, and my mind goes all over the place, not surprisingly, but my body relaxes and the time goes fast. The challenge is finding the time on a regular basis because I am really busy.

I found a great book on meditation. It's called Quiet Mind: A Beginner's Guide to Meditation, edited by Susan Piver. It provides really good summaries of the major types of meditation (Shamatha, Vipassana, Zazen, Metta, and Tonglen), all of which interest me. It also comes with a CD that I haven't listened to yet.

There's a Zen group that meets on Thursday nights and Saturdays, but I don't think that I can do a half hour's worth of meditation at this point. I'm interested in trying it though, not to mention that it would be a good way to meet people in Springfield. The group also takes trips occasionally to Champaign-Urbana (where I went to college), which would be cool too.

Speaking of meditation, I should do so before my mom arrives here. She's driving down to help me after my surgery on Monday.