00:00I'm Lucy Fink and this week I'm gonna explore the art of meditation.
00:05My personal form of meditation is watching The Real Housewives of Orange County, of course,
00:10with pizza in my apartment and pasta and like probably lunch chips, the barbecue kind.
00:16I've noticed recently that I've been out to dinner with friends or on the phone with my
00:19parents and I'm actually thinking about something else and someone will say something and I'll
00:25just be like, oops, sorry, I just blacked out, what did you say?
00:30This hectic week is the perfect time in my life to try meditating.
00:34I'm gonna start right now, Monday night, I'm gonna meditate on my bed for 15 minutes, we'll
00:39see how it goes.
00:40Meditation takes courage because you have to spend time with yourself and I hate myself.
00:45I mean, I don't, I'm kidding, but am I?
00:48Last night's meditation was...
00:52Note to self, do not meditate on the bed.
00:56My back started hurting midway through, I lit a couple of candles, it smelled a lot like
01:00fire and I was having a lot of trouble sitting in a room with my eyes closed knowing that
01:05there was a flame burning, so I blew it out.
01:07The biggest struggle for me last night was trying to figure out how to shut my brain off
01:12and in doing so I couldn't think about anything except for the words, stop thinking about anything.
01:16So by the time my 15 minute alarm went off, I was sort of like...
01:21Was that it?
01:22So I did some research and there's this meditation technique called mantra meditation where you
01:27sort of repeat a word or a set of syllables that don't necessarily have any meaning attached
01:32to them with the goal of focusing your mind.
01:36The mantra I decided to repeat over and over again is...
01:40I am grateful for all that is...
01:43Forget it already.
01:44I am grateful for all that is unfolding in my life and all that is yet to come.
01:50I am grateful for all that is unfolding in my life and all that is yet to come.
02:02Have you ever been woken up at 430 in the morning by monks who told you to tame your monkey
02:07mind?
02:08I have.
02:10I am grateful for all that is unfolding in my life and all that is yet to come.
02:15I don't think I will ever forget those words.
02:19This morning I went out onto my building's terrace and I practiced mantra meditation one more time.
02:24Awww.
02:27It was nice being out there as the day was breaking and to hear the sounds of the city around
02:31me.
02:32The cars passing by sort of sounded like white noise.
02:34That was a great way to start my day.
02:36I think I'm going to take a break mid-day today.
02:38I'm going to sneak away from my desk and try a new type of meditation.
02:42Mindfulness meditation.
02:45An article from Psychology Today calls mindfulness meditation something that is unique and is
02:51not directed towards getting us to be different from how we already are, but instead it helps
02:56us become aware of what is already true moment by moment.
03:00That was the perfect mindset to adopt on a stressful day like today.
03:04Personally, my favorite place to actually meditate is on the subway.
03:08Cruising along, rats scattering by, a casual mole person.
03:11Tonight, I went to a meditation club.
03:14I was in a room of almost 100 complete strangers and we all sat there and for 20 minutes we
03:20each did personal meditation in silence.
03:23MediClub is a community of about 800 modern New Yorkers and we share meditation as a common
03:29thread.
03:29People with, you know, modern, regular lives can come together and share meditation and
03:35also discuss the issues that come up in our lives living in a place like New York City,
03:40like love, sex, dating, work.
03:46Five days of meditation and I am zen to my core.
03:50Meditation can become part of your busy lifestyle.
03:53You don't have to go off into the wilderness and stop talking for 10 days.
03:58Meditation should feel like you're sitting on the side of a road and you're watching cars
04:02pass by.
04:03Each of those cars is a different thought that you're having.
04:06When you start to think, stop having that thought, stop thinking about that, you start
04:11to try to push those cars back, that's when you run into a traffic jam.
04:15Acknowledge that you're thinking about it and watch it drive by until it goes off the screen.
04:27I will subscribe to Refinery29 on YouTube and I will enjoy all of the incredible content.
04:35I'm Lucy Fink and I think you should subscribe to Refinery29 on YouTube.
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