11 Days To India

My trip to India is fast approaching, all the work needed to actually get out the door is an odd mix of essential and irrelevant planning. From everything I've gathered, you can't really plan to do more than land in India and have a place to sleep for the first night. After that, all bets are off. I'm usually an excessive planner, but "usually" isn't such a big deal when you've decided the past doesn't have any bearing on the present moment. I'm pretty happy to just make sure I have everything I'll need and leave the rest up to God. With a bit of determination and a little grace, I think I can resist the desire to determine every outcome on the trip.

Speaking of determining outcomes, there is a growing feeling in me that whether or not I get sick in India is as much to do with my own fears as it has to do with what I eat. It seems like every doctor is happy to tell you there's a 50/50 chance that you'll be down and out for a few days, regardless of what you do to prevent illness. That tells me state of mind is just as important as taking a few shots, so I'm going to try and let all that go and just accept whatever happens. My efforts to eat the best foods and drink the cleanest water are all that's up to me, the outcome will happen of its own. My goal is to learn humility and patience rather than suffer, no matter what.

Time Flies When You're Actually Busy

In the past few weeks I've gained some understanding about what a challenge it can be to maintain a steady practice of meditation, reading and contemplation when things get busy. I continue to meditate daily and do a new A Course In Miracles lesson every other day so it hasn't been too different, but my non-lesson reading has been cut back and as you can see, I haven't been writing quite as much.

My new job actually involves writing on a daily basis, so my interest in pursuing more in the evenings has been low. Despite the workload, I feel like I'm standing on solid ground as far as my general happiness and peacefulness go. Meditating daily and continuing my lessons has kept my mind from wandering too far or forgetting what I'm about. It feels as though the more intense periods where I gave more of my day to studying has left me with a gentle hum to carry me through the busy periods without being affected too much.

I'm keenly aware that it doesn't take much to let my head-space slide, or get too prideful about what "progress" I've made. I've heard the phrase "I don't meditate, but I have a meditative attitude" bandied about before, it rings especially false when I see that actions and words often speak in contradiction to a supposed peaceful attitude. The ego is a great justifier, after all.

The work continues at a simmer until I'm ready to turn it up again. I'm looking forward to seeing where my trip to India takes me next month!