Day Four of My Real Happiness, but I am sad!

So happy to be doing the Real Happiness 28-day meditation challenge!

Today I feel sad. It frames my morning activity, how I wake up, my walk to the park and phone call to a close friend. It is there when I sit down to practice, but still I am glad to come to the cushion, grateful for my friend who suggested a half hour sit. Being in New York this month after 10 months in the Pacific Northwest has been challenging, stirring up feelings of anger, resentment and self hatred that I wasn’t completely aware of.

So today I was with this: noticing feelings of heartache and returning to reassuring breath, noticing strong desire to do habitual things and returning to breath, noticing the long list of all things not breath: Tasks, plans, conversations, crunchy repetitive thought patterns, typical musings on future events and so on. And one more thing, these painful menstrual cramps churning my tummy, but still I feel dignified, graceful sitting there and I carry a piece of this into my weekend. This feels "real" to me.

Big hugs to everyone participating in the 28 day challenge!