Good morning on this bright Tuesday.
Do thoughts of the coming holidays stress you out?
There are the huge crowds, gift wrapping, weight gain, traveling and prolonged exposure to distant relatives.
While we can’t make chatting with a bullheaded uncle any more pleasant, perhaps learning how to meditate — which can reduce stress and promote happiness — may help you achieve a more peaceful holiday season.
We recently asked two meditation experts — Holly Duckworth, who often works with executives across North America, and Tara Brach, the author of “Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha” — to answer questions for beginners. Their advice may help you get through this holiday season.
The kids are watching “Home Alone” and the pecan pie is in the oven. Do I have time to meditate?
It varies from person to person, but Ms. Brach generally recommends people meditate 10 to 45 minutes per day. “Like gaining fitness through physical exercise, there is a value to ‘playing your edge’ with meditation, sitting a bit longer than might be your tendency,” she said. “Even a few minutes each day will put you on a track to develop the practice.”
When I shut my eyes, visions of unwrapped presents dance in my head. What can I do when I’m distracted by thoughts?
Continue reading the main storyIt is perfectly normal for distracting thoughts to enter your head, Ms. Duckworth said. Try returning your focus to your breath. Ms. Brach also offered a tip: “During practice, when you realize the mind has been distracted, pause for a moment, and without judgment, reawaken your senses. Become aware of the sounds around you, the sensations and feelings throughout your body, the feeling of your breath. Knowing how to step out of the incessant inner dialogue that perpetuates stress, and re-grounding in the present moment, brings much freshness, creativity, clarity and ease to our hearts and minds.”
My boss is on his eighth egg nog at the office party, and I need to center myself. Do I need to find a quiet conference room to meditate?
Distraction-free locations are not necessary for meditation, the experts said, but they are recommended for beginners. With practice, you might be able to meditate during your commute. And eventually, Ms. Brach said, “you can practice informal meditation, or meeting life with a non-judging, openhearted presence, during all the activities of life: conversations, creative endeavors, sports, eating, lovemaking and taking a shower.”
Aside from filling the air with the scent of gingerbread, what is the best way to breathe during meditation?
Many meditators recommend breathing in through the nose and out the mouth, Ms. Duckworth said, but there’s no right or wrong way. Really, the purpose of paying attention to the breath “is to help collect the attention, quiet the mind and more fully notice the experience of the present moment,” Ms. Brach said. “You will find that what deepens your meditation is not how you’re attending to your breath, such as breathing through the nose, the mouth, or into the belly, but the quality of the attention itself.”
Here’s what else is happening:
Weather
° ° °If your mood depends on the weather, you might not need to assume a lotus pose today.
We’re expecting a serene and sunny fall day, with a high of 53.
Tomorrow is looking even warmer.
In the News
• It’s not just the subways that are in bad shape: A new report details the extent to which New York City buses have been neglected. [New York Times]
Photo
• Newly unsealed documents reveal that in 1998, Donald J. Trump paid over $1 million to settle a case involving illegal immigrants who, years earlier, had worked to demolish the building to make way for Trump Tower. [New York Times]
• A stolen boat that the authorities thought was a part of a terrorist plot actually turned out to be used in a New Jersey man’s late night drunken adventure. [New York Times]
• In Camden, N.J., a marker has been put up to commemorate the arrival of Africans who were sold into bondage. [New York Times]
• The coffee maker Chock full o’Nuts now includes a disclaimer of “No Nuts” on its containers, intended for consumers beyond New York. [New York Times]
• Columbia University’s recently acquired collection of photographs, taken in 1940s Puerto Rico, showcases how poverty has persisted on the island. [New York Times]
Photo
• Bodycam footage of a suicide response call showed a chaotic 10-second showdown that ended when the police shot a man in the leg. [New York Daily News]
• The city’s Department of Transportation is entertaining the prospect of allowing a new dockless bike-share program. [Curbed NY]
• Councilman Jumaane Williams wants to increase term limits for the City Council, allowing its members to serve for more than a decade. [BKLYNER]
• Brooklyn’s second Apple Store will open over the weekend. [Brownstoner]
• A couple’s “dark time” inspired them to volunteer for a Queens program that organizes events for adults with developmental disabilities. [New York Times]
•
• Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “A True Broadway Baby”
• For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Morning Briefing.
Coming Up Today
• Visit the holiday market at Columbus Circle, open through Dec. 24. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. [Free to look]
• A condensed performance of “A Christmas Carol,” caroling and free ice skating at the opening of the holiday display Luminaries, at Brookfield Place in Lower Manhattan. Beginning at 5:30 p.m. [Free]
• A discussion of the book “Seneca Falls and the Origins of the Women’s Rights Movement” at the Greater Astoria Historical Society in Long Island City, Queens. 6:30 p.m. [Free]
• The author Andre Aciman discusses his book “Call Me By Your Name,” now a film by the same name, at Three Lives & Company in Greenwich Village. 7 p.m. [Free]
• Islanders host Canucks, 7 p.m. (MSG+). Rangers host Panthers, 7 p.m. (MSG).
• Alternate-side parking remains in effect until Dec. 8.
• For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.
And Finally …
Photo
Looking for a holiday gift for a youngster on your list?
The New York Public Library recently released its 100 Best Books for Kids and 50 Best Books for Teens lists for this year, compiled by a committee of librarians.
Among the top children’s books were “Bravo! Poems About Amazing Hispanics” by Margarita Engle; “The Goat” by Anne Fleming; and “The New Ocean: The Fate of Life in a Changing Sea” by Bryn Barnard.
For teenagers, the top books included “The 57 Bus” by Dashka Slater; “How Dare the Sun Rise” by Sandra Uwiringiyimana; and “What Girls are Made Of” by Elana K. Arnold.
We also wanted to know what New York kids are choosing for themselves, so we asked the library to give us the most checked-out titles over the last year.
The top four children’s books, in order, were “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling; “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double Down” by Jeff Kinney; “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” by J.K. Rowling; and “Wonder” by R.J. Palacio.
For teenagers, the library told us the top four were “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas; “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” by Ransom Riggs; and “Everything, Everything” and “The Sun Is Also a Star” by Nicola Yoon.
You can see both lists and search for titles based on age here.
New York Today is a morning roundup that is published weekdays at 6 a.m. If you don’t get it in your inbox already, you can sign up to receive it by email here.
For updates throughout the day, like us on Facebook.
What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com, or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.
Follow the New York Today columnists, Alexandra Levine and Jonathan Wolfe, on Twitter.
You can find the latest New York Today at nytoday.com.
Continue reading the main story Source: http://ift.tt/2zJJQW7
0 comments:
Post a Comment