A Joyful Practice

Für Deine Gesundheit! “Be Curious….” (mostly the music) May 28, 2025

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone celebrating the Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh, Counting the Omer, and/or observing the Apodosis of Pascha.

“The purpose of a doctor or any human in general should not be to simply delay the death of the patient, but to increase the person’s quality of life. ”

— Dr. Hunter Doherty “Patch” (or “Stumpy”) Adams (b. 1945), quoted from “Chapter 5. Overwhelmed With Minutia” in Reclaiming the Joy of Medicine: Finding Purpose, Fulfillment and Happiness in Today’s Medical Industry by Alen Voskanian, MD, MBA

Please join me today (Wednesday, May 28^th) at 4:30 PM or 7:15 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.

Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “10102021 World Mental Health Day (redux)”]

“Then [Patch] sat back and said ‘…. The question is “are you living?” Are you living? Are you being the human being you want to be? Are your relationships healthy? Are you grateful? What is your sense of wonder? What’s your sense of curiosity? What thrills you?

You can decide to love life. You can decide to love your partner. You can decide to know what I mean when I say, a tree can stop your suffering.’

Somehow those words struck me as free. I don’t need to figure out everything about dying. I need to keep living. To be thrilled, to be grateful, to be wonder-filled. To be curious about life and living. These are ways of being that are accessible to me.”

— quoted from ”Diving into an Ocean of Gratitude — Living and Caring with Patch Adams” by Jarem Sawatsky

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.)

“Be curious!”

“And while you’re waiting to come up with a question, I can say that I make me. I decided at 18 to never have another bad day and I am 79 on Tuesday and I haven’t had a bad day since I was 18. I love my life. I chose to make me and to be six qualities: happy, funny, loving, creative, cooperative, and thoughtful.”

— Dr. Hunter Doherty “Patch” (or “Stumpy”) Adams, quoted from the May 25, 2024 live-stream video entitled “Celebrating my 79th Birthday with My Loving Community”

### BLESS YOU! ###