Sacred Silence - Pre Challenge Thoughts

As the chirping of birds grows by the day, the rain and sun clash over the sky persists by the hour, and the heartbeats of students awaiting midterms hover by the minute, four dauntless volunteers begin our second Make or Break series: "Sacred Silence."

For six weeks, these students, ranging from grades 9 to 11, will meditate daily.

(Daily) meditation is known to gift its practitioners with a myriad of miraculous benefits, such as enhanced focus, boosted immunity, invigorated energy, and a more optimistic, gracious life. This six-week challenge is about trying to render daily meditation a healthy, steady habit.
For the first two weeks, participants will meditate 10 minutes a day, for the next two, 15, and for the final two, the ultimate 20.

Please note that if you did not sign up to officially partake in this challenge, you are welcome to join us from the comfort of your home! (Although you would, unfortunately, miss the final treat awaiting you after six successful successive weeks of meditation)

Now, without further ado, let's hear the pre-challenge thoughts of our "Sacred Silence" challenge meditators:

Have you ever tried committing to meditation (doesn't have to be daily) before?
Samuel Gwosdy (Grade 9): "No, I have never tried committing to meditation before."
Pradyumn Jha (Grade 10): "If I find myself unable to focus I usually run for a bit to clear my thoughts. I do find bird sounds to be calming so that's a plus when I'm able to jog outdoors lol. Deep breathing is also a good way to relax and regain focus."
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "I have not."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Sort of? I joined my mother and sister for a ten-minute series... until our free trial expired."

What do you think of when you hear the word "meditation?"
Samuel Gwosdy (Grade 9): "When I hear the word mediation, I think about personal relaxation and rejuvenation."
Pradyumn Jha (Grade 10): "Deep breathing is something I think of for sure as it's key to gaining focus."
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "Quiet, mindfulness, calming down, destressing"
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Peace, calm, love, warmth - a state where one is fully aware of their internal and external environment and has embraced it so that they can truly appreciate themselves and their life."

What do you hope to gain from these six weeks? (goals, desires, dreams)
Samuel Gwosdy (Grade 9): "I hope to become more focused and to live more at the moment. Further, I want to become more relaxed and relieve some of the pressure from my school work and extracurriculars."
Pradyumn Jha (Grade 10): "Better focus, better ability to refocus, etc."
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "An improved mental health, a daily schedule of meditation to keep stress levels low."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Better focus. More awareness. Miracles would be a cool and magical bonus:)
I seek an enlightened form of myself where I can face and embrace whatever a day or person may bring with an open mind and heart. I wish to be more loving and considerate as a whole, and more kind while maintaining a healthy amount of discipline - I think enough will be characterized by my maintaining of this habit!"

What challenges can you see yourself facing?
Samuel Gwosdy (Grade 9): "I have in the past found meditation difficult as it makes me think of sad or unpleasant memories. Further, I think that it will be hard to force myself to do this every day and cut into my very busy schedule."
Pradyumn Jha (Grade 10): "Probably finding time to commit to the meditation."
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "No motivation, no time."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "Boredom and failure to accept that sitting still and listening to breath are actually powerful and impactful."

Are you making plans to help you overcome challenges?
Samuel Gwosdy (Grade 9): "In order to overcome challenges, I plan to find a meditation exercise that looks at the future rather than the past and in order to have myself do it every day, I will remember that this is to improve my mental and physical health and that the few minutes of the day that it takes will be made up for my ability to better do my work and assignments."
Pradyumn Jha (Grade 10): "Allocating a period of the day."
Troy Saldanha-Martins (Grade 10): "Creating a schedule to fit in time to meditate."
Misheel Batkhuu (Grade 11): "I'm putting meditation into my schedules so I can force myself to acknowledge it as a vital part of my routine. I'm also reading up on various meditation benefits so I'm aware of why and how what I'm doing is right and good, and that will motivate me to keep doing it."

And with that, we wrap up the pre-challenge reflections. Stay tuned to hear from our participants (or whoever's persisting) on their first week meditating for "Sacred Silence!"

If you would like to contribute future series ideas for Make or Break, please share: https://forms.gle/SWhQqkqBmgeiiP6d6