A couple of years ago I had the experience of spending a day with a Shaman in the Arizona desert. Other than starting the day having our spirits purified by preforming a ritual of burning feathers and chanting, the majority of the day's event were centered around visiting various vortexes of the area and mediating. One of the meditations practiced had a lasting impact on me. We sat out in the desert perfectly still for a period of 15-20 minutes. We were told to image that our spines were reaching down into the earth as roots of a tree. Then we were told to understand our place on the earth and with the earth.This might not appear to be your thing, but everyone was effected that day. Sitting there with no external noise but the wind or an occasional bird is very usual these days with busy schedules and constant accessibility. Several had visions that were interpreted by our Shaman. One of the group was scared of the experience and another was skeptical - choosing to believe in nothing spiritual. But overall, we experienced a sense of peace.
Even now when things start to get out of hand, I stop and mediate, straightening my spine and imaging myself as a tree growing out of the earth.
