Shackman, who never fails surprise me came up with this intriguing topic for this week’s Friday blog post. Despite his asserting in a comment on one of my blog posts that the rest of the seven bloggers in this group are not common folk by any stretch of the imagination, I must confess that I am a very common person ordinary to a boring level and just ordinary things keep happening to me. So let us examine this ordinary mind on an ordinary day. I do admit that there will be extraordinary days occasionally but, by and large what follows is my normal, at least while the chinese virus ties me down to my home.
As Wolf suggests, I shall focus on the activities of the mind rather than on my physical activities which in any case are of little importance as I hardly indulge in any major physical activity. The only exception being my daily morning routine of half an hour of yogabhyas adapted to my physical limitations.
My day starts with half an hour to forty five minutes of Vipassana Meditation. A major activity that endeavours to still the mind.
The other major activity for my mind is my daily dose of six newspapers and the seven crossword puzzles that appear in them.
Since the advent of WhatsApp, my mind is also occupied for a few minutes every hour reading all the messages that I get in it and in sharing some of them with those I think will appreciate receiving them. I rarely start a chain and so do not have to spend too much time on WhatsApp.
In the afternoons, my mind is occupied in answering my emails, catching up with blog posts of friends, commenting on them and also responding to comments on my blog posts. Once definitely and sometimes upto three times a week I also write a blog post.
The rest of the day is spent on reading periodicals and books, mostly on matters spiritual and Indian economics, history and politics.
My mind was distracted for a while at the beginning of the pandemic which made it difficult for me to focus on reading. This was diagnosed by my Psychiatrist as Anxiety which was being seen in many others too and following a course of supplements for a couple of weeks I returned to normal and since then haven’t not had any problems focussing on my reading.
Nothing else challenges my mind and it is peaceful and content with my present lifestyle. I have accepted the limitations that the pandemic has imposed on me and so have no problems with leading a more or less inside the home life style.
This is my contribution to this week’s Friday 8 On 1 blog post topic. The other seven bloggers who write on the same topic every Friday are Maria. Sanjana, Padmum, Raju, Shackman , Srinivas and Conrad. This week’s topic was suggested by Shackman. Please do go over to their respective blogs to see what they have to say on the topic. Thank you.
A quiet peaceful day Ramana….actually exactly how I expected yours to be. I’m sure many other would wish their days followed the same pattern.
Take care
Cathy
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I am at peace with myself Cathy. No more mountains to climb or battles to be fought. True retirement. Thank you.
I love the description of your day, Ramana. Very peaceful but like mine lacking in F2F contact except within my bubble of family. Very few of my friends are “safe” as they don’t follow protocols and run around maskless with so many bubbles in their lives I can’t count them (grandchildren exposed at packed schools, etc), so I view them as too high a risk.
XO
WWW
We tried a web meeting last week and it will take some getting used to modern gadgetry. We plan to try tomorrow again with eight participants who form the group to which I belong and with whom I used to have meetings over lunch frequently before the chinese virus put paid to our fun and games.
I decline to take the opening quote seriously. I’d find many of them empty.
Fair enough. Being empty is also a virtue in my view.
I like your day very much Rummy. it seems very civilized to me.
in a rather uncivil world right now.
as a long time follower of Thoreau… I’m finding the covid world ok.
and as you say… I think some things won’t return as more and more people find life easier in odd ways.
I haven’t ordered any groceries yet. but I always wear a mask whenever I’m out. I never quite have figured out why masks became so political here. are people THAT MACHO? I mean… “I’m too macho to wear a face mask.” that’s just silly.
This macho and devil may care attitude is seen here too and I despair for them. Little else we can do.
A 10-year old child locked down and home schooled would increase your stress levels immensely LOL – it certainly does mine
I know some people here who will agree with you and I am indeed grateful that I do not have that problem.
my life is a little different to yours – in that I’m the only one in my bubble – so I have do quite a bit more, like in cooking. I’m able to go out now, our restrictions have lifted a little more in New Zealand and our c/19 cases are either in managed inward travellers facilities or odd little community outbreaks.
Most of my time at moment is “home based” as I’m possibly leaving Auckland in 2021, and there are a lot of “things” that need to be thought about. Like “do I need 100 of these paper cards?” “nope, lets just keep a 1/3 and decide what to do with the rest”. I’m making progress…
Then I will probably take a break in a week or two and get back to making “art” – something that fills in many hours of my day, if I let it!
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Yes, being alone in one’s bubble makes life different from mine for some other people in my circle too. They too, like you have to do things that I do not and that is indeed a blessing.
Your path as you have laid out in the past for this stage of life seems to be suited to any adaptations added for pandemic safety. That being said, what I find intriguing is the fertility of what I envision your inner life to be. Even as sociable as you are, I know that you embrace that inner activity as a blessing!
My inner life increasingly is placid and equanimous. There are ups and downs too but, they do not last long and leave me to my placid devices.
You seem to have adapted well to this new COVID-life.
It hasn’t been terribly difficult for us, though it is getting terribly old. We both have plenty of interests to keep us occupied. Prior to COVID, our most frequent outside destination was the nearly daily trip to the gym. I went in the morning and Karen went in the afternoon. Now that we have a treadmill, I walk before supper and then before bedtime, while Karen walks after lunch and then, again, after supper. We both get several miles in each day.
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It did not take much to adapt as my life pre covid was also very similar except that I used to go out for meetings with my friends at least a few times every month. Other than those, my daily routine was exactly like it is now.
I can understand the frustration as my son was like you, a regular visitor to the gym and he hopes to start again as the gyms are being allowed to open from tomorrow subject to very stringent measures.