How I Meditate – Examen by Darren Rowse

How I Meditate – Examen � Darren Rowse: As I mentioned above – if you don’t share my faith background I still think that much of it can be helpful. Stage 4 in particular is really useful for reflection. As I mentioned in the ‘note’ above – the practice of just setting aside time to think about how you live, react to situations and to notice the patterns that you slip into can be an enlightening one.

I love this meditation because it’s not overly ’spiritual’ and is quite practical. It does force me to stop, still myself and just ‘be’ for a few minutes each day but I find it also challenges me to work on aspects of myself that are slipping and also gives me a space to process and deal with the crap that life can throw at us and move forward.

The End Game

Rather than start another blog I think I can use the Thoughts Illustrated blog to journal my recently inagurated search for spiritual discernment.

The impetus for the search comes from two primary sources.

1. the recognition of the need for an end game to address the issues of the last part of life, especially those that arise from Ginny's cancer and also those that effect me as I "grow" older.
2. the eposure to Ignation spritiuality from the initial spark of the commencement speech at Melissa's graduation from Santa Clara in June, where the operative theme was For Others.

In the succeeding months, Anne led me to connect with Fr. Charlie Gagan who introduced me to the spiritual exercise ( prayer) devised by St. Ignatius called the Examen which is treated in detail in the link below.

Consciousness Examen by George Aschenbrenner, SJ – IgnatianSpirituality.com

The Examen is a form of prayer designed to increase your spiritual discernment in a twice daily review of the ongoing process of your life .

I have tried to get going with the Examen, knowing that it requires a faith in God that I do not at present possess. But it appears to be a possible pathway for developing the spiritual element of my "end game". We shall see.