What do I do about all the noise + distraction?

My neighbor’s dog barks at everything, the trash truck seems to be collecting every time I sit down, and there are so many sirens driving by — how am I supposed to meditate with all this noise?! Did the world get noisier or did you just notice something?

Rule of thumb: if you can easily change it, by all means, do. There’s no prize for making your formal meditation process more difficult than it needs to be. However, if you can’t change it, make it part of your practice.

Where did we get the idea that our meditation environment needed to be ideal? Life is this way sometimes. We don’t always get what we want. Our environment may be unpleasant. How does your mind respond to it? In fact, a noisy space may be a very fruitful place for practice — noticing sounds nearby, in the distance, and noting whether they are pleasant or unpleasant. Naming and noting without judgment or resistance can become a powerful experience.

Perhaps try to explore with curiosity whether you can find spacious freedom in these moments of formal practice. These simple yet profound experiences are what offer us skills to bring into our daily lives. This is the practice. This is the path.

Larissa has been practicing mindfulness meditation for over 25 years and has been certified to teach mindfulness meditation by the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program. If you are interested in working with a mindfulness meditation teacher toward a formal practice contact Larissa to begin.