Lean and Six Sigma systems, as you want to be assured that they are actively improving their own processes Receiving inspection program at their plant Supplier certificatory they do with their suppl

Podcast 4: Seeking the Foundation, Yet Being at Rest in the World

Each of these labs have been attempts to shift our attention and notice that there is another way of being in the world that does not require us to be so self-conscious. Each podcast has attempted to get us to know how our minds and awareness works. We also have been getting a taste of what Christianity means by words like prayer, soul, and God to demonstrate that these things are based on a lived reality and not just opinion or ideas. The intent of these exercises was to give a deeper understanding of what is being discussed even for those who are not believers themselves. This final exercise is an attempt to bring what we have learned in past labs into play. The different skills of visualization, focusing on a word, and even a deep focus on the Mystery and Strangeness of Life, all have potential to allow us to be less self-conscious and to rest.

Preparing for this practice:

All you need to know for this lab in advance is that it is different than the three before it. Now, instead of going to our sacred space by the fire, we are going to go out into natural surroundings and just be present there. The sounds you hear are from a real place: Washington State, Olympic National Park. There is a new opening that will be similar to past ones but instead there will be a narration giving instructions about our intent. Again, it is important to be in a quiet place while listening. As in past podcasts, you should try to be in a place where you will not be distracted. Since this podcast focuses on listening, a quiet room where you will only hear the audio would be the best.

The Meditation/Practice Itself

All you need to do is to sit in a relaxed manner and to listen deeply. This recording captured what it is like to sit in natural settings undisturbed by any human made noise intrusions. This is what it is like to be alone in nature. Sit in a relaxed manner. Breathe deeply and slowly. Try to rest your attention on the noises. Imagine you are there in those natural surroundings. Try to visualize what it is like to be there. And listen.

If your attention wanders, bring it gently back to your surroundings. If you need to perform any of the techniques from past episodes such as visualizing your benefactors there with you or saying your sacred word over and over, feel free to do that. If you need to give your mind something to do, you can breathe in and out and count your breath or bring attention to your body and release the tense or stressed parts of your body. Or just simply rest in the sounds you hear. Try to listen to each sound like it is the last time you will hear and you want to not miss a moment.

Writing Prompt

After listening to Podcast Five: A Journey Within, spend some time in quiet. You need not be alone but it has to be a quiet space, unplugged from phone, TV, laptop, radio. Silence the phone for the length of this exercise so as not to be distracted. Don’t engage others at all. Spend 5-10 minutes in a comfortable position and return to how the podcast ended. Try to limit movement, let go of control and tightness in the body. Listen deeply to the sounds in the room you are in and do not engage the thinking patterns that arise.

In a 500 word response, double spaced in Times New Roman and 12 pt font and remembering the rubric, write a response to only ONE of the following:

1. Describe your experience of the podcast. Be detailed and explain. To help you get started, here are a list of questions that may get you to think about how to describe what happened. Feel free to answer these or come up with questions of your own. You can answer in whatever way you feel will allow you to describe with depth: Could you do the practice well? Were you able to pay attention without your mind wandering? Did you feel a shift in attention while listening to the podcast from having to stay in control and directing your body, breath, mind to a space where you were no longer in control but still very much awake? Were you relaxed or anxious? Why? Did you feel like you were actually in nature? If you were distracted and got lost in thoughts, what specific things kept tugging at you? What does this help you understand about how your own mind works? If you were distracted, what technique did you use to try to let go of the distraction? Why did you choose that technique? Did it work? Etc.

1. The narrator mentioned the “Seekers of God.” Another way to think about God is to use the term from the title of this writing prompt: foundation. What Christians mean by God is the Foundation of all things that exist and that this foundation is good, merciful, and compassionate. This foundation is a type of love and care for all – allowing and supporting all things to exist – called agape. Maybe this podcast communicated a sense of serenity and peace. If you wish, you can write your lab report connecting the title of the writing prompt above with the silence you experienced in the lab reports and the theology that Michael Himes discusses about God, relationships, service, etc