My February Fast

It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of somebody else’s life with perfection. Bhagavad Gita

February 1st I committed to one month of withdrawing my attention from political news. This is a big deal for me. You see, something changed within me when Donald Trump became president. The Divine Presence within me was rock solid, but my personality was running amuck and wearing me out. I somehow felt, that in order to stay safe, I needed to become vigilant and know what the president was up to. I felt that lending my energy to catching him in his lies would somehow keep me safe. I also committed to praying for the president and the country everyday and I told myself that knowing what was going on was helpful. I don’t know how helpful it really was. I got caught up in the energy spiral of division and hatred and felt Ghostbuster slimed at the end of each day resorting to an Epson salt bath to end each night.

My nightly routine began with watching Chris Matthews from 5 to 6 pm and depending on the news cycle, I may have watched a few more hours of tv. Whatever I did, I ended the night (before prayers) by watching the opening monologue of Stephen Colbert. I would flip my tv to Fox and watch their reporting of the president and the country. Then, Friday nights I had a date with Bill Maher.

Thursday I decided that I would put the remote down, fold the newspaper up, and for one month stay away from political news. For twenty eight days I will turn away from Chris Matthews and from the 5 to 6 pm hour I will enter into my second meditation for the day. The rest of the evening I will read, take walks, participate in the community, and spend time with my honey. I will give time and attention back to myself and to what I truly value in life.

This decision was hard as I heard the voices in my head that told me civil minded citizens stay up on current events. I heard the voice of fear that told me I won’t know if the president is impeached or if a missile is headed in our direction. I also thought that it may be part of the president’s plan to wear the electorate down and having them become passive. Was I becoming passive? However, I hunkered down and followed my Soul guidance. I am a contemplative and my energy is best served connecting and communing with The Divine Present that Created the Universe. I would fast. And, I may even choose to make 2018 a year of fasting and each month let something else take a seat outside of my attention. But, I was getting ahead of myself.

I am now three days into my fast. Once I made this decision I felt light. There was a familiar giddiness within me that was beginning to well-up. For the first three or four hours I felt free from a bondage I put upon myself. Then, by about hour four a little haunting started settling in and I reminded myself it was the stagnant energy of repitition. Come 5 pm I meditated for an hour and accessed the vastness of the Universe within me. I knew I had made a wise choice.

Last night at 8 pm I started turning toward Bill Maher and stopped myself with the promise I could watch re-runs. I took a big breath. I then had a lengthy hour to read, to putter around the house, and I found myself in the backyard looking up at the stars in the sky.