Morning Routine
I’ve been refining my morning routine and I have landed on a set of practices that feel good. First of all, I’ll admit it’s nice being retired. You have a lot of time to devote to self-actualization endeavors. I wish I would have landed on these practices thirty years ago, but of course from a stoic perspective, wishing is not a productive use of one’s time. So without further ado, here’s what my mornings look like.
Meditation
This is key to all that follows. I have a writing desk where all of the morning activity takes place. Centered on the desk is a statue of Shiva (which I understand is my personal deity thanks to a birth chart reading I received in India) and two glass candle holders and a lotus flower incense holder. I light the candles and incense. I put on a recording of the “Om Namah Shivaya” Mantra. A simple chant. I play that in a loop while counting the repetitions on my Mala (Indian Rosary) until I have reached 100. (That’s about 20 minutes) Eyes closed, I focus on my fingers and the beads and try to let my mind relax. I relax my breathing as well as the rest of my body as best I can. It takes time. I haven’t perfected this yet but I’m excited about where this will carry me.
Writing
After my meditation I’m ready to start writing. I focus my writing on six areas. I will spend anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes on each area.
- Reactions from my meditation.
- A few words about what occurred yesterday.
- A few words about my intentions for today.
- Some prompted writing.
- A Stoic thought.
- Today’s Journal entry.
To explain in a bit more detail.
- The reactions from my meditation are simply a recording of any thoughts that came to me during or after the meditation. Since I try not to focus on specific thoughts during my meditation, this is generally reactions that come to me afterwards.
- Next I recap yesterday. I do this as a memory booster. If I choose to review my week I have a source to go to.
- The words about today are simply a way to prioritize what is most important to me today.
- The prompted writing is responding to prompts from the “The Book of Alchemy” by Suleika Jaouad. The book contains 100 writing prompts. My daughter gave this to me for Christmas and it’s been great to read a prompt a day and then write about whatever they brings to mind.
- I write a Stoic thought. These are inspired from the book “The Daily Stoic” by Ryan Holiday. Not original on my part, but writing about the material in this book is a great way to absorb classic Stoic advice. It’s also a great way to learn a subject.
- I close my daily writing with a Journal entry. Often these are short, but these can be anything. After I have loosened my writing muscles with the first five tasks, I am often surprised by what this final pen to paper exercise generates. Sometimes these entries end up here on my blog but more often than not they are simply thoughts that help me see more clearly.
- I also have a Mindfulness journal which I write in occasionally. I like having a separate journal for that type of though.
There you have it. Following this practice feels good. How far it will eventually take me I have no idea, but I am optimistic that this practice will help bring me to better health and help me be more focused. It is gives me a better understanding of what my goals and desires are.