Why Do You Meditate?

It’s a question I am often asked. Especially as meditation becomes more popular, and especially because I have been meditating for nearly 29 years. When someone asks me this question, I think, “How much time do you have?” Because the list is long. But if I had to pick one reason, ok…maybe two reasons…the biggest reasons I chose to meditate every day are to turn off the noise and reunion.

For a heady, introvert like me. A person who could happily spend days in my own head, in my own space, pondering and analyzing the world, I need silence. I need space to get quiet and hear what is happening inside. To explore and turn over ideas. To reflect on the state of the world, humanity or my own soul. The world is getting louder and more boisterous. The cacophony is deafening some days…actually, most days. Without the space to turn off the noise and simply breathe, I burn out and lose my way. So for me, meditation gives me space to rest and enjoy the elusive silence my soul craves.