Last week we took a meditation class from a Buddhist monk. I have been doing yoga consistently for two years now and was really excited for the challenge – and it was a challenge.

First he taught us how to do walking meditation, something I didn’t even know existed. You are supposed to focus on one foot at a time and think about that movement and nothing else. The difficulty lies in the eyes: you shouldn’t walk with your eyes closed, it’s dangerous, so you must keep your eyes open and block out anything you see. Instead of thinking about the exact shape or color you see, just observe the fact that you are seeing. The same goes for smells, sounds, tastes, and feelings. After 30 minutes of walking meditation we did sitting mediation. Of course, being confident in my yoga practice, I thought it wouldn’t be too bad. Well it wasn’t… until about 20 minutes in. Because I was keeping my back and neck very straight the entire time, I began to feel a sharp pain in my upper back. I did what I was told and simply observed the pain without doing anything to fix the problem. That was okay until I felt I was going to suffocate.

“Ow, pain in my upper back. Oops, just observe. Pain…pain…pain…pain…pain…pain….still pain…more pain…isn’t it supposed to go away? Pain…okay, breathe in, breathe out. Oh, I am not supposed to think like that. Stomach rise, stomach fall. Rise, fall. Rise, fall…risefall…risefall…risefall…fall…risefall…risefall…risefall……..breathe…pain…risefall…fall…rise…rise…fall…pain…risefall. Focus. You’re not dying. Pain…pain…claustrophobic. Can I think that? Really claustrophobic! Do something! Rise, fall. Pain. So much pain. Risefall. Risefall. FOCUS! Okay. Riiiiiiiise…faaaaaaall. Riiiiiise…faaaaall. Riiiise…faaall. Rise…..fall. Rise, fall. Rise, fall. Ah. Rise, fall. See? Rise, fall. Your mind can do anything. Rise, fall. Rise, fall.”

Maybe it doesn’t sound like I had an amazing experience, suffocating is a terrible feeling, but I really did. I learned a lot in that hour of meditation. The most important thing I took away is that your mind can do anything. Anything. Good or bad. It controls you. But at the same time, you control your mind. This principle can apply anywhere. A job interview, church, a test, waking up on the wrong side of the bed, a big performance, exercise, eating habits, attitude. If we can master the practice of observation and control, we can do anything.