For a few months I was doing really well with this goal. Almost every evening for more than two months month I was sitting down for 20 minutes to an hour to sit quietly and practice some form of meditation. It was a pleasant experience, but I didn’t feel like it was changing my life.
I’m not sure what happened, but suddenly I just stopped for the last couple months – and that’s when I noticed some things start to slip. I realized I wasn’t able to focus on things as deeply as I had been. I felt less in control of my moods. I was less organized and more scatterbrained. I felt stressed by things that I knew weren’t that big a deal.
I think the benefits of a daily meditation practice take longer to develop than they do to fade away once you stop, so they’re more noticeable when you quit. So now I’m looking forward to recommitting myself to this goal and enjoying all those benefits again.