From: David Simon

"A lover's pain is this sleeping,
This sleeping,
When God just rolled over and gave you
Such a big good-morning kiss!"
~Hafiz

During the school year when my kids need to get up in the morning but want to stay asleep, they say the "sleep monster" is holding them in bed. For many, the sleep monster continues to exert its control. Hours, days, and years pass in anesthetic states, from which people have difficulty awakening. Many recognize the importance of shedding old ways of thinking, feeling or behaving, but find themselves pulled back into familiar - but unfulfilling - patterns.

The spiritual journey is the process of awakening to the precious mystery of life. When my meditation teacher Maharishi first came to the West, he was amused by how often people commented that their insomnia abated once they began meditating. The meditation message was intended to awaken people, but because so many were so fatigued, they were finally able to sleep.

The experience of presence is the essence of awakening. Right now, tune into your present moment, consciously attending to the sounds, sensations, sights, tastes, and smells in your environment. Close your eyes and bring awareness into your body, noticing where you are carrying resistance. Shift your awareness to your mind, becoming conscious of the thoughts that occupy your attention. Then, simply follow your breath, allowing a temporary quieting of the mind chatter that keeps you ruminating about the past or worrying about the future. It is this perpetual mind traffic that numbs you.

Make a commitment to do one thing different today that breaks the pattern - one thing that your mind cannot immediately disregard by saying "been there, done that." Hike to a new place, go to a new restaurant, make love in a different position, wear a new color, take a different route to work. Awaken, even if for a moment, to the splendor of the Infinite and Eternal disguising itself as Form and Phenomena.

With love,
David