13: Mountain Meditation

There is nothing better you can do for yourself than sit, watch and wait as time goes by...

I have never taken mediation seriously as a form of mental refreshment, but after speaking to my Mum about her experience I wanted to give it a try. After years of trying to have a child my Mum managed to get pregnant after attending a four week meditation course and clearing her mind. When writing this list I wanted to incorporate mediation somewhere, to pay homage to my origins. Also, the picture of the cross-legged man looking zen on the top of a mountain gave me a smile. And so the challenge was born.

In early February my girlfriend bought me a 3-week pass to Happy Mellon Studios to help me de-clutter my mind. Even though she purchased the pass for me to reduce stress, I was secretly happy that I could practice my meditation skills in anticipation of hiking the Routeburn Track in New Zealand one month later.

"I enjoyed the meditation classes, so much so that I am still doing them now four weeks later."

Meditation was not easy at first as I kept on falling asleep (even though we were sitting upright). However, when changed up my routine to include a 20 minute power nap before each class I started to see the benefits. There was one meditation in particular that was very powerful and gave me a glimpse at the deeper levels of my unconscious mind. During any meditation I imagine my mind like the ocean. At the surface it can be choppy and wild, but underneath it is calm and peaceful. The key is to keep swimming down into that peaceful state, even though your mind always tries to bring you back to the surface. In this particular instance, as swam through the peaceful level of my mind I reached the bottom of the ocean. At this level I visited my late grandmother who passed away about a year earlier. It was like a lucid dream, I could hear the instructor telling me to breathe, but was also present with my grandmother. I have not had an experience like that since, but I still enjoy the peaceful state of mind that meditation brings.

Two weeks before my trips to New Zealand I went to Tasmania with my girlfriend for our 4-year anniversary, and even though it wasn’t my intention, I seized the opportunity to tick one more Challenge off my list. So when we climbed to the top of Mt Wellington, on a freezing cold day, I stepped aside to take ten minutes to be present and by myself. My girlfriend nearly lost me as I hid behind a rock to escape the wind, but luckily I popped my head up before she started heading down the mountain.

The word sublime is often misrepresented in the English language. Football commentators will use the word in reference to a good play, or your friend my comment "that was sublime" after a tasty ice-cream, but in reality it means striking grandeur of thought and emotion. Sublime, is the perfect way to describe the view from the top of Mt Wellington. The cathartic and meditative experience is sublime, looking out at the world and realising how beautiful the world is.