FTWMI: A Quick Note & EXCERPT: “Caught In The Middle” (a post-practice Monday post) November 10, 2025

Many blessings to everyone and especially to looking for friendship, peace, freedom, understanding, and wisdom.

Stay safe! Hydrate and nourish your heart, body, and mind. CONTINUE TO BREATHE!

For Those Who Missed It: The following was originally posted on November 10, 2024. Date-specific items have been revised. The 2025 prompt question was, “What is on your heart and mind?” You can request an audio recording of this practice or a previous practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra      (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

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.

“You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say.”

— Martin Luther (b. 1483)

There is often a contradiction between what someone thinks they will do in a situation and what they actually do in that situation. Sometimes this is because our ideals don’t line up with our actual actions (i.e., thoughts, words, and deeds). Sometimes it is because the situation is much messier than what we imagined. That messiness can come from our own hearts and minds — and it can also come from the hearts and minds of others.

For a lot of people, things are messy right now. You might find — even if things are [quote-unquote] going your way — that your sympathetic nervous system is kicking in and that you want to fight, flee, or freeze (collapse). Take a moment to breathe and come back to (a variation of) the “formula” I mentioned [this week in 2024]:

• What are you seeing/hearing? 

• What are you thinking?

• What are you feeling?

• What do you want?

• What can you do?

It is in this moment, this liminal or threshold moment, that we choose how we untangle this double bind of Catch-22 situation.

CLICK ON THE EXCERPT TITLE BELOW FOR A RELATED POST.

For Those Who Missed It: Caught In The Middle

“‘The enemy,’ retorted Yossarian with weighted precision, ‘is anybody who’s going to get you killed, no matter which side he’s on, and that includes Colonel Cathcart. And don’t you forget that, because the longer you remember it, the longer you might live.’”

— quoted from Catch-22 (Chapter 12) by Joseph Heller (pub. 1961)

There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices. 

NOTE: In previous years, we have used different pratyahara playlists. In 2024, we used a playlist available on YouTube and Spotify [Look for “05252022 Pratyahara II”]. Click on the excerpt title above for the previous playlist.

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 an 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).

### “Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.” (ML) ###