You might have to sit down for this. I’m going to take up the question I’m asked most.
How do I teach my child to meditate?
You might have to sit down because of the question I’m asked least.
How do I meditate?
Everywhere I look I see people – well-meaning, helpful, good-hearted people – trying to get kids to be still, be quiet, slow down and pay attention. What a noble and mostly, lost cause. Still, it’s got to be worth the effort, particularly in light of how far we’ve let things get out of hand. Another day of TV, another night of TV, another video game, another trip to the electronics superstore, another this, another that. Our kids are disordered, addicted, adrift. We turn our backs for what seems like a minute and a whole generation is lost.
So I have to wonder. When people ask how to teach their children to meditate, are they really asking, “How do I get my child to stop bothering me?” If so, then it’s easy. We already know how to do it, and we do it far too much already.
If the question really is, “How do I teach my child to meditate?” then the answer is easier still.
Sit down for this. Just sit down.