A Joyful Practice

EXCERPT: “When Awareness Expands…” June 1, 2024

Happy Pride! Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone observing Eastertide; Counting the Omer, and/or working as a force of peace, freedom, and fulfillment (inside and outside).

“Well, I– I’ve come up with a… with a sort of a slogan right now, because I’m about frustrated at all of this. So I now say, ‘Truthful, not neutral.’ –There’s a difference. (Trevor: Yes.) Truthful is bringing the truth. Neutral can be creating a false equivalence between this faction…

(Audience: applause and cheering)

I’m really glad you agree, because it’s to you who I’m reporting the news, and I really want you to know that I go out of my way to bring you the truth. And the truth is actually there. You can find the truth. And there are facts, and there are figures. And then there are other things. –And you can’t conflate the two. (–Yes.) Or equiv… or create an equivalence there.

I learned that in Bosnia, Trevor. I covered the Bosnia war, –and there was one side that was massacring another side. (Trevor: Yeah.) And we were expected to somehow create a moral equivalence, and there wasn’t any. And so, in order to be truthful, I had to tell the truth….”

— Christiane Amanpour, quoted from a The Daily Show interview with Trevor Noah

What better way to kick off a month dedicated to “seeking only the truth” than with a practice inspired by what makes the news, what doesn’t make the news, and who produces the news? The excerpt below is from a 2022 post about the beginning of CNN (which premiered today in 1980) and the (physical) end of the Tulsa Massacre (which destroyed Black Wall Street, May 31 — June 1, 1921. Click on the title below for the entire post.

When Awareness Expands (a “renewed” and expanded post)

Please join me today (Saturday, June 1^st) at 12:00 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “06012021 The Difference A Day Made”]

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### THE TRUTH IS [OUT] THERE ###