thelerner

Cancer is very frightening but depending on the type and spread, it's not necessarily the monster it used to be. It may be presumptuous of me to say but until you find out otherwise there is much room for hope. Yours Michael

I'm so old. How old? I saw this in a movie theater. .. and there was a piano player who played along w/ it.

In Ki-Aikido they separated breathing exercises from meditation practice. I've always liked trying different breathing rhythms, in Aikido they'd do very long 1 minute cycle, a minute in, minute out. Quite difficult, but cheating was allowed til it was doable. Lately, I like 7in-7hold-7out for 30 minutes. After doing a breathing exercise, your normal unguided breath lengthens, allowing you to move deeper faster during meditative sitting.

I tend to throw out the bible and look to mystics for my concept of God. Been working on- I'm a creature of many filters. Cultural, physical, emotional, logical, irrational.. The great mystics don't seem to have so many filters. We're here, God is here.. want to see God, open your eyes. That's hard intellectually and (for me) hard bordering on impossible, experientially. But that's what I strive for. Walking silently in nature I get inklings. I'm meditating outdoors more these days, I like it, but what I'm looking for has to be outside meditation, outside looking. Beyond satori into something lasting. It feels like a retreat, a great substraction, might be the push I'd need to come closer to it. But being a material guy I'm loath to give up my material ways.. but the time will come.

Stuff I do.. Lately after eating, I'll continually rinse out my mouth, ie gargle w/ water, repeatedly (3 or 4 times) til no little bits of food come out. I assume it's these little bits that turn acidic and hurt mouth health. Perhaps long rinsing also knocks down some of the acidic nature in the mouth for a little bit. Anyhow since I've been doing this I've gotten good dental reports. I use Sensodyne toothpaste. Otherwise my teeth are sensitive to hot and cold. This is controversial but at night after brushing I'll spit out the toothpaste and foam, but not rinse out, ie leave a thin coating on my teeth. To my mind it strengthens them. I'll often do Wim Hof breathing, an unique form of body stress that might turn on some good hormones. Likewise take cold showers In winter they'll get real. Why? Again, a unique form of stress that 'exercising' circulation and releasing some good hormones. Tracking my sleep w/ Oura Ring. It records sleep time and depth. Heart rate, temperature, movement.. using the data to plot to show how well you sleep. A nice tool for an insomniac like me. Best motivator to change something is to keep records of it. Any unusual health things you do??