Philosophical April

For the month of April my class was challenged to participate in a philosophical idea or

action to live and explore for the month of April. We were also assigned to choose a path of

yogi that correlated to the challenge we decided to participate in. I chose the path of Raja:

Mysticism. The challenge that fit into this yogi that I chose, was to meditate daily for at least

thirty minutes. Along with this I challenged myself to try different forms of meditation. I also

challenged myself to cut back on soda and junk food.

For almost each week of April I tried a different form of yoga. For the first week I chose

to do the Buddhist meditation technique of Zen meditation. This is where you sit on the floor

with your legs crossed and have good posture. This form of meditating requires that you either

focus on your breathing or just focus on your presence and experience the moment. This form

of meditating was actually my favorite, just because it was really easy for me to do and it

worked very well. The next form I tried was the Hindu technique of Mantra meditation, or OM

meditation. This is very similar to the previous meditation technique except you constantly

repeat the chant of OM which is harder and more specific than it sounds. You have to move the

OM sound throughout your body and focus on the vibrations that occur. This meditative

practice was interesting since I had to focus more to do it. It made me feel peace and let go

from the world but it didn’t really make me relax because I was focusing on what I was saying.

The final type of mediation I tried was the Chinese method of Qigong or Chi kung. This form of

meditation can be practiced in many ways, the way I chose was to simple just sit against a wall

in a dark room and let my mind wander. This one also worked very well for me and I found it
very stress relieving. It was nice to take a break from my day to do nothing. This one was so

relaxing I actually fell asleep once! Overall I loved taking a break from my stressful high school

life to meditate and relax. I would definitely recommend it and will continue doing it myself.

Eating less junk food and soda also made a big difference this month. I felt way healthier

and able to perform. I don’t know if it was the meditation or the heathier eating but I actually

started sleeping better this month. I’m very glad this class challenged me to try something new

and I am excited to continue practicing these healthy and relaxing lifestyle choices.

Community Service

In this class we were also required to participate in a total of five hours of community

service. I chose to help out a neighbor of mine who helps operate a nonprofit organization

called Bear-O-Care. They give support for individuals with multiple disabilities and their

families, by providing day support, respite, child care and hosting home services. I have already

provided previous service to this company for my Eagle Scout project a couple months ago.

Where I did a cleaning supplies drive and then used the supplies to do a deep cleaning of their

facility building to prepare for the upcoming flu season. I have gone back multiple times to

provide various forms of service. I have helped by tearing away an old mat floor and helping to

replace it. This took a while since we had to move all of the equipment and furniture which was

on the floor. I have also aided by helping in a bib drive that was done to help restock on the

bibs that are used by the organization. I love this nonprofit company and I loved spending time

to help make a difference and creating an example for others to also make that difference.