Second meditation class tonight

So tonight was the second class in meditation from the nearby Buddhist centre. It didn’t go as well as the first class because a guy’s phone went off during the first meditation, then another guy was super fidgety and scratchy and coughy and…well to make it simple he was really distracting.

We got through it OK, basically you have to accept that not every meditation session will be quiet and peaceful and all that, some people are just fidgety and, well,  annoying.

But like any distraction or thought during meditation, you let it pass, gently bring your focus back to your breathing or whatever you’re meant to be meditating about, and you move on. Like someone replied on a forum thread I started, you treat the distraction or thought like a puppy that wants to play: you acknowledge it and then let it go on its way. I really liked that way of putting it.

Still, I found it difficult to meditate properly, but that is part of it anyway.

Today’s teaching was on giving, and how much happier you can be if you give as much as you can. It was a good talk, and afterwards in the discussion I brought up Freecycle, which I participate in, and of course the amount of ’stuff’ I’ve ended up getting from it as well.

Apart from the distractions it went fine, but I have to work on the whole focus thing. And giving more stuff away!