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Distracted by email, iPhones, the ping of a new text message, bad news on television and the stresses of work, of relationships and family, it is easy to be overwhelmed, stressed and miss the extraordinary gift of being alive. Our bodies’ break down under the onslaught of stress – insomnia, anxiety, depression, and all chronic disease is made worse by unremitting stress.

Pain is inevitable. Loss is inevitable. Death, illness, war, and disaster have always been and will always be part of the human condition. Yet within it, I wondered as a young man, was there a way to understand suffering in a different light, to break the cycle of suffering?

I realized there was a way to be more awake, to see things as they are, to notice life as it is and to savor it, to love it, to wake up with gratitude, lightness, and celebration for the magic of life. It is always there, and the trick is simply to notice.

But to notice requires a stillness of the mind. This is something not quite so easy to achieve for most of us. Being awake takes practice. Each of us can find our path to being awake. Ancient traditions provide many avenues.

Belief in any particular religion or philosophy is not necessary, just a desire to show up and pay attention without judgment or criticism. To notice the ebb and flow of our breath and our thoughts without holding on to them, like waves washing over you on a summer day at the beach.

The good news is that all you need is a few minutes and a place to sit and be quiet (you can do this anywhere). Here is a simple instruction for mindfulness mediation you can try yourself.

Mindfulness Meditation

Instructions:

1. Sit in a comfortable position. Try to sit in the same place each day. Avoid positions that you might fall asleep in.

  • The back is long and supports itself.

  • Shoulders are relaxed downward, the neck is long, and the chin is pointing neither up nor down.

  • The face is relaxed.

1. Begin to breathe (preferably through the nostrils.) Feel the belly rise, the ribs expand, and the slight movement in the collarbones and shoulders as the breath moves upward. Feel the exhalation.

2. Focus on one aspect of the breath.

  • The movement of air in and out of the nostrils.

  • Or the lifting and falling of the belly.

1. Watch that one aspect of the breath.

  • When the mind wanders, gently bring it back to the breath and the aspect you have chosen to watch.

  • Do this as many times as you need to.

  • There is no such thing as a good or bad meditation. (Good and bad are judgments, events in the mind – just note them and go back to the breathing.)

1. Start with 5-10 minutes and then increase the time until you can sit for 30 minutes.

Countless claims have been made regarding the music of Mozart. Studies have suggested it can relieve depression, decrease pain, and even spark an increase in certain types of intelligence. One recent paper found it even increased heart transplant survival in mice.

Two researchers have identified another benefit. They provide preliminary evidence that listening to Mozart can help us cope with cognitive dissonance—that intense feeling of discomfort that arises when we realize two of our core beliefs are at odds.

The ability to recognize and accept the unpleasant reality that our convictions sometimes conflict is a key sign of emotional maturity. Without it, our instinct is to devalue, or refuse to believe, the information that makes us uncomfortable.

Precisely how the music inspired greater maturity—if that’s indeed what occurred—is unclear. But the researchers persuasively argue that taking “even a first step toward identifying a mechanism for tolerating cognitive dissonance is fundamentally important.”

The findings provide evidence supporting their overarching thesis: that music has played a key role in our evolutionary history, enhancing our emotional intelligence even as the refinement of language has strengthened our reasoning ability.

While it’s possible that many types of music could produce this same effect, there’s a certain poetry that the researchers chose Mozart. Mozart’s music can be defined as “the play of opposites,” in the words of American composer William Bolcom; it’s simultaneously highbrow and popular, notable for both its profound depth and surface charm.

In our society that values practicality, music appears to be superfluous and unnecessary. At first glance, music has no utilitarian purpose. The song itself cannot harvest grain or cook a chicken or anything like that. Using our pragmatic school system as a barometer, our society places very little importance on the value of music. Our budget cuts have declared an education in the arts to be all but expendable. Yes, there is math and science and language in music. But the human experience illustrates the importance of music better than the equations.

In this world of uncertainty we find ourselves looking for conclusions: trying to find the chorus in the chaos. Searching for order and patterns: we’re are all on the same quest – the scientist, the mathematician, the composer, and you. We’re caught up in the mysterious symphony of life: listening for the hook, looking for the melodious phrases that might somehow bring meaning to the dissonance and the blue notes of our lives. In this endeavor, music is a priceless vehicle to go places where the test tube cannot. The song helps to navigate the spaces outside of our control: the majestic, terrifying slopes of wonder.

The song or the silence: This will always be our choice. Will you raise your voice and sing or will you look the other way? All around us, beauty and pain are exploding into being. The song of humanity is bursting into life, tension and resolution, full of dissonance and harmony. The decision is yours and mine: Will we dive in? Will we enter into the song of wonder or remain silent? The symphony of mystery is all around us, music lessons that are available to us at any age- a musical education beyond than the walls of any school. Don’t be afraid to play it by ear. Come, raise your voice with mine. And let us choose to sing, to enjoy the wonder of the song while it lasts. Let us sing before our time runs out

You’ve heard this career mantra before:  Do what you love and the money will follow. But as any aspiring poet or starving artist can tell you, it just isn’t that easy. Finding a way to do what you love and still make enough money to support a family can be a real challenge. Still, many experts say finding a way to follow your career bliss is worth the effort.

Here are 10 reasons why it is important to strive to find a way to do what you love for a living (or, at the very least, find way to love what you already do).

• Your self-esteem improves […]

• You will be motivated […]

• You become a valued employee […]

• You earn more money […]

• Your overall health is better […]

• You garner more respect […]

• You have a better home life […]

• You are more productive […]

• You have improved mental health […]

• You can serve others better […]

Along with a brief explanation of each reason, the author provides a link to a related article.

… because there’s an election campaign in the US.

Even in the most overtly political films, psychological undertones were always present (and usually not buried too deeply). Here’s our seperate angles on 12 different films.

The films mentioned in the article:

• Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
• 12 Angry Men (1957)
• Chinatown (1974)
• Dr. Strangelove (or How I Learned to Love the Bomb and Stop Worrying) (1964)
• JFK (1991)
• Election (1999)
• Primary Colors (1998)
• Fight Club (1999)
• The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
• Do the Right Thing (1989)

By my count, that’s 10, not 12. But an interesting list. Read the article for the political and psychological aspects of the films. Two of my favourite films are included, namely “12 Angry Men” and “Dr. Strangelove”.