avatarRoxy Wright

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Abstract

ow would things sound if I stopped thinking?</li></ul><h2 id="9fa8">Somatic Field</h2><ul><li>Which part of my body is the least comfortable?</li><li>Which parts of my body are hardest to detect?</li><li>What happens when I concentrate on two body parts at once?</li><li>Do any bad emotions arise during the body scan?</li><li>How would my body change if I stopped thinking about it?</li></ul><h2 id="778a">Taste Field</h2><ul><li>Does the taste change as I roll it around my tongue?</li><li>How does the intensity compare with other things I have tasted?</li><li>How would it taste if I had never smelled it?</li><li>Does my feeling about the taste change between first contact and swallow?</li><li>How would it taste if I were asleep right now?</li></ul><h2 id="a87c">Olfactory Field</h2><ul><li>Would I recognize the smell if I had not seen it?</li><li>What adjectives are suitable? (Smooth? Bold? Sweet? Floral?)</li><li>How close must it come to me before my nose can detect it?</li><li>Does it improve my mood or worsen it?</li><li>What memories does it bring to mind?</li></ul><h2 id="5631">Cognitive Field</h2><ul><li>If my thoughts were rabbits in a yard, how crowded would the yard be?</li><li>If my attention was a dog, which rabbits would it chase?</li><li>How much of my focus three seconds ago was on the past?</li><li>How does a little circle make me feel?</li><li>What would I be dreaming now if I were not awake?</

Options

li></ul><h2 id="9690">Emotional Field</h2><ul><li>How easy or hard is it to turn each feeling on and off?</li><li>What changes will happen when I start to pray?</li><li>If I were the prow of a ship would my sea be bright under the sun?</li><li>Who have I shared this suffering with?</li><li>How deeply do I love you?</li></ul><figure id="ef74"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*31vXTbzWPAdDxN72iuu31w.jpeg"><figcaption>Photo by Author | Dancing with the Goddess</figcaption></figure><h2 id="1f17">Questions After the Scans are All Finished</h2><ul><li>Did I close my eyes for most of the scans?</li><li>In what ways are mental fields like maps?</li><li>If I were only allowed to keep one field, which one would I choose?</li></ul><h1 id="010c">Note</h1><p id="4022">To the best of my recollection, all the questions are in my own words. If I copied anybody from unconscious memory it was probably my first remote meditation teacher, <a href="https://www.thegreatcourses.com/professors/mark-w-muesse/">Mark Muesse</a>, a Therevada practitioner from Texas.</p><h1 id="d3c3">About the Author</h1><p id="f104">Tom spends his workdays asking people in a big store if they would like any information about heating and cooling. He often wears an Indiana Jones hat. A grapevine in his front yard convinced him to let her live and to even provide her with a little support. That’s all. :)</p></article></body>

PARENTING | KIDS | LOVE | GROWING UP

To My Daughter on Her Second Birthday

An open letter to share my hopes for you.

Photo by Senjuti Kundu on Unsplash

To my little girl,

You are made of all things magic, sweetness, fire, giggles, and fury. I feel so blessed to be your mother and cannot wait to get through your teenage years which I’m certain will be super fun for both of us.

Parents sometimes share their hopes for their children, so I figured I would share some of mine as you walk into toddlerhood.

I hope you know all the strength you will ever need, you already possess. Draw on inspirational people around you, but know when you need it most, you can dig deep where there is strength to be found.

I hope you know you do not have to follow the crowd. The few fleeting years of childhood where standing out equals ridicule, you’ll be much better off being uniquely you. The adults I see as successful and happy have taken risks, stood apart from the crowd, and see themselves as an eternal student.

I hope you never stop learning. Pick up a book, a dictionary, have a chat with someone you don’t know, just never be afraid to learn more. You will never know everything, but the quest is well worth it.

I hope you experience hardships in your life and face them with all the tools I give you as you grow. It’s sweet and nice to wish our children had easy lives, but that’s simply not reality. I would handicap you if I set you up with the belief that everything will be easy.

Rather, I hope I model perseverance, tenacity, humor, and grit so you are prepared when hardship comes, because it will come. I may not be here when it comes to you, so I will find comfort in knowing you have everything you need to plow through them and come out better on the other side.

I hope you and your siblings are close as adults. Your siblings will become your foundation when your father and I are gone. Make them your best friends even if they drive you crazy.

I hope you understand you are worthy of a relationship that nurtures you, supports your dreams, and places you first. The way others treat you does not define you. You get to define who you are and who has access to you. Choose carefully, my darling girl.

I hope for situational awareness, empathy, humor, and fun for you.

I hope you hold on to the idea that you are more than your failures and successes. You are valuable as a human and the world needs your gifts.

I hope you are a good friend to those that earn your trust. Be the listener, the shoulder to cry on, and the one with a quick joke to make someone’s day better.

I hope you pursue every passion you ever have in life. Do not let yourself age with the weight of regret.

My hope above all hopes is that you always know you are meant to take up space in this world, have a seat at the table, and you make room for those around you.

Love yourself as I do.

See yourself as I do.

Protect yourself as I would protect you.

You are incredible my little love, and I can’t wait to see you persevere, laugh, love, grow, and get back up when you are knocked down.

Sincerely, Your Mama

P.S. I also hope you are potty trained in the next three months. If you could get on that, that would be great.

For more on kids and parenting, check out my collection “According to Beau” where my oldest son shares his thoughts and opinions on the world.

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Kids
Parenting
Birthday
Toddlers
Growing Up
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