Sacred Silence - Post Week 3

Halfway through "Sacred Silence," three weeks are down and so are two of our four participants. Will the last three weeks, especially those including 20 long (or short!) minutes of meditation, do them in? Will we officially declare this challenge a killer of motivation and an impossible habit to instill for high school students? Or can we place our faith in Troy (and myself) to "remain calm," quite literally? Read their post-Week-3 thoughts below and place your bets*.

Describe how you meditate (time, place, chosen music, guide, or none, chosen position such as standing, sitting, lying down)
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "I tend to meditate and do some down time prior to sleeping, and so I usually am sitting or lying down. During this time I tend to listen to calming music.
Example playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DWYcDQ1hSjOpY?si=e313b2599c004719"
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "I meditate right before bed, sitting cross-legged on the carpet next to my bed, and along to silence (my sister's voice is my bell when my time is done)."

So far, do you think the time you spend in meditation is well-spent?
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "To be honest, I feel like I could be doing more during meditation (e.g. yoga). Nonetheless, overall, I believe that taking a certain amount a time just to meditate, calm down and focus on yourself, it can go a long way. For example, it improved my mental and is starting to make my perception of my life generally more positive."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Definitely. I can easily imagine 15 minutes seeping away into un or not-so-fruitful places - scrolling through Quora, shifting awake in bed, wandering around the house gobbling on nuts (yes, my stress food addiction), or even staring blankly at 2-3 math problems unable to comprehend because I can't think (clearly). Meditation, on the other hand, either helps me better approach day to day issues, from homework to stress eating, or it at least gives me peace I (and we all, frankly) need."

What changes, if any, in perception or your life have you observed?
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "As explained a little before, my perception of life has become more positive. This is a change from my former more pessimistic and negative perception and person."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Life gets crazy. But if you can stay committed to meditation every single day, that's dedication, mindfulness, and wisdom; at least you're not going crazy too:)"

Do you foresee any changes in your perception of/or your life occurring that you would hope to occur?
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "At the moment, there are no changes in my perception of my life. However I do hope, at the end of this, that I start looking at life with a more positive perspective. Furthermore, I hope I can start noticing happy and more uplifting elements of my life rather than the negative ones."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "I would like my perception to be more intrinsically open. Wouldn't it be great to not judge so quickly, feel sensitive so often, get flustered so easily? I wish to eventually be able to maintain zen and exhibit compassion in balance."

Was adding five minutes to your routine a big difference?
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "Honestly, I have not noticed any big differences after adding five minutes to my routine. However, I did notice that it was a little more difficult to fit in the time though I figured something out to manage this."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Not really. I would say the jump from 0 to 10 was much bigger."

When you realize we're halfway through, do you think, "only" or "already?
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "When I realize that we're halfway through, I think both "only" and "already." This is because, I have noticed that individual weeks have been going slowly for myself however, I also think "already" because I did not realize that its been so long since this challenge started."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Already! Woah time really does fly when you're having fun (with APs, and of course, meditation)!"

As the second half of "Sacred Silence" begins, let us hope it offers a forecast as sunny as the next half of the month. Until next Tuesday, Mackenzie!

*Project Metropolis does not endorse gambling of any sort.

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