Would This Make You Giggle?

When is the last time you stared into the eye of your partner? Or anyone for that matter?

Most people find it very difficult.

They giggle.

They look away.

They wonder if they should be staring at one eye or the other.

They giggle some more.

Can you relate?

Well, I used to feel that way too until I made it a regular event in my life. You see, I incorporated it into my meditation practice with my husband. No, he doesn't meditate with me every day, but when he does - it is a beautiful practice and I will tell you more about it in a bit.

I highly recommend meditating with your partner and here are some tips to help make it easier to begin:

Pick the Right Time

Now that we are empty nesters we have more flexibility but we used to do it right after school drop-off.  Attaching this new habit to an existing habit made it much easier to incorporate into our daily lives. Although weekends and holidays continue to throw us off track, as with our breath, we just return to our practice again and again.

Find the Perfect Place

Weather permitting, we head outside and face the trees. Otherwise, it's off to our sunroom we go, where it is full of natural sunlight and quite peaceful. Having our designated locations pre-decided takes one more potentially derailing decision out of the way.

Compile a list of Enlightened Guides

We really enjoy both silent and guided meditations and our favorites are the Deepak/Oprah Series and those found on Insight Timer. I try to pick a topic that is pertinent to what is going on in our lives at the time or just something that seems thought-provoking.

Savor the Pithy Recap

Following each session we take a few minutes to talk about our particular experiences. Often it is about how our minds wandered more than usual or how ironically we both do this crazy thing where we look up and backward with our closed eyes. It reminds us that this is a journey and, though every day our experiences will feel different, this practice is highly beneficial to health, happiness, and relationship.

Add the Special Sauce

I saved this for last because this has connected us in a way above and beyond anything I imagined. In the beginning of each guided meditation, we stare into each other's eyes for a few minutes. The first time we giggled, the second time I cried, and by the third time we were hooked. Trust me, the benefits go way beyond the meditation experience!