Just as waves are only part of the ocean, perceptions, feelings, and thoughts are only part of the self…
…waves are a natural expression of oceans. It is useless to try to repress or stifle them. It is impossible. We can only observe them. Because they exist, we can find their source, which is exactly the same as our own.
Thich Nhat Hanh
Neuroscience tells us that, to be more productive and creative, we need to give our brains a break. It’s the quiet mind that produces the best insights. But it’s a challenge to take that sort of time off in the midst of a busy day. Here are some specific, quick and easy ways to build purposeful break time into your day.
Quick meditation
New research from the UCLA Laboratory of Neuro Imaging suggests that people who meditate show more gray matter in certain regions of the brain, show stronger connections between brain regions and show less age-related brain atrophy. In other words, meditation might make your brain bigger, faster and “younger”. As lead researcher Eileen Luders explains, “it appears to be a powerful mental exercise with the potential to change the physical structure of the brain.”
Tip: If you commute via public transportation (or even if you’re a passenger in a car pool) use the time to close your eyes for 10 minutes. If you drive, leave a little early, park and spend 10 minutes in the car before you walk into work. Choose a very specific image, such as a waterfall, beach or tree, and try to focus on it alone. If other thoughts get in the way, gently push them aside. Do this once or twice per day. The goal is to let your mind achieve a sense of relaxed awareness.
Matthew E. May is a speaker and advisor to companies such as Toyota, Edmunds.com, Intuit and ADP http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/12/quick_and_easy_ways_to_quiet_y.html
Hearing, in short, is easy. Listening is a skill that we’re in danger of losing in a world of digital distraction and information overload.
Luckily, we can train our listening just as with any other skill. Listen to your significant other’s voice — not only to the words, which after a few years may repeat, but to the sounds under them, the emotions carried in the harmonics. You may save yourself a couple of fights.
“You never listen” is not just the complaint of a problematic relationship, it has also become an epidemic in a world that is exchanging convenience for content, speed for meaning. The richness of life doesn’t lie in the loudness and the beat, but in the timbres and the variations that you can discern if you simply pay attention.
Seth S. Horowitz is an auditory neuroscientist at Brown University and the author of “The Universal Sense: How Hearing Shapes the Mind. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/11/opinion/sunday/why-listening-is-so-much-more-than-hearing.html?_r=2&
Perfect speed isn’t moving fast at all; perfect speed is being there
La velocidad perfecta no es volar más rápido donde quieres llegar,
la velocidad perfecta es estar allí.
Fear knocked at the door. Confidence heard the call and opening the door…
…nobody was there.
El miedo llamó a la puerta, abrió la confianza y cuando abrió…
… no había nadie.
LAYERED CASHEW&MUSHROOM NUT ROAST
SERVES 6-8
1 table spoon of olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
8 oz (225gr) cashew nuts
4 oz (110gr) fresh bread crumbs
1 egg (Free Range!)
Salt & Pepper
1 oz (25gr) butter
8oz (225gr) mushrooms, chopped
3 med parsnips, cooked & mashed
1 tsp fresh rosemary or 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 dried thyme
1 tsp yeast extract (marmite etc…)
1/4 pt (150 ml) hot water
Butter for greasing tin
METHOD
Pre- heat oven to gas mark 4, 350ºF (180ºC)
Heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic until soft. Grind nuts in blender or crush, then mix the bread crumbs. Beat the egg and add it to the dry ingredients, then mix in the mashed parsnips and herbs. Add fried onion, being sure to scrape the pan so that you get all the juice (as nut roasts can sometimes be a little dry). Dissolve the yeast extract in hot water or stock and add to the others ingredients. Season to preference.Melt the butter in a frying pan and sauté the chopped mushrooms until soft. Grease a 2 Lb (900gr) loaf-tin with butter, then press in half the nut mixture. Cover with a layer of sautéed mushrooms and top with the remainder of the nut mix. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hr. When cooked, remove the loaf from the oven and leave it to stand for 10 mins before turning out. Serve hot or cold and enjoy a very Merry Christmas!
Everything our senses perceive change; it’s impossible to stop the winds that blow or the seas that move …
… but we can learn to travel in harmony through life’s movement.
Todo lo que percibimos por los sentidos está sujeto al cambio, no se puede ordenar a los vientos que paren ni a las mareas que cesen…
… pero se puede aprender a navegar en armonía por el movimiento de la vida.
