We all have experiences that touch the soul. Treasured time with family, getting lost in nature, insight when you need it, or a performance that activates euphoria. We are moved but feelings fade. How might we add a thickness to remember these enlightened moments?
Trapping time with content and telling stories is an obvious way to stretch memories. To add a spiritual layer, mediate within the moment. This doesn’t need to be awkward or take much time. Breathe in every tiny detail and notice the nuances to burn different sensations into your experience.
The choice to be inefficient is what makes this effective.
Past experiences provide context for the biological circuitry that helps us navigate the world. With memories forming much of our instincts, the cost of paying special attention is what adds the glitch.
These glitches become mental bookmarks that improve our recollection and storytelling while adding an ability to revisit real sensations inside future meditations.
Brewed From Within
#115 📖 Life & Happiness
1 Comment
Ben McDougal · October 14, 2026 at 2:38 PM
ORIGINAL – 6/13/22
We’ve all had experiences that touch our soul.
Perhaps it’s exploring the universe at an observatory, a scenic nature hike, an inspired talk from someone who seems to know just what you need to hear, or a concert that takes you to a different state of consciousness. Whatever the experience may be, we are moved in these moments, but how can we ensure the energy from such occasions don’t fade?
Perhaps adding a mental bookmark can thicken the moment? Even if it’s a short, but focused mediation in the moment of impact, might this attention make it easier to revisit the sights, sounds, and feelings of a past experience? Stories, photos, and video are fantastic reminders of what we saw, but connected meditations may provide added layers of internalization.
This story of curiosity begins in the sands of Sedona, Arizona. As we hiked the Airport Vortex, my wife and I found a shady spot to rest on the mountainside. Michael Kass, a friend, colleague, and facilitator who helps others shift consciousness one breath at a time, had given me a special gift. It was a personalized, recorded meditation for my 40th birthday, which I named Sedona Sands and minted this NFT to commemorate. As my wife and I sat together, listening to this thoughtful gift and breathing with the land, I was thankful for such serenity with someone I care so much about. I was also (pleasantly) distracted by the scenic view, with beauty that made it had a hard to close my eyes. 12 minutes soon passed and while I felt a flowing sense of gratitude, it didn’t feel like an enlightened moment at the time.
Fast forward two weeks. I was visiting 1MC communities in Kansas City, Wichita, Iowa City, and Chicago. Within the whirlwind of travel, I had an evening to unwind. After enjoying a serendipitous sunset overlooking the Arkansas River, soaking in the hot tub with a good book sounded like a relaxing way to finish my day. After reading a chapter, I thought it might be interesting to shift gears by revisiting Michael’s recorded meditation. This was the first time I had listed to it since we enjoyed it in Sedona. To compliment the steam, I put a cold towel over my eyes and let cool water run through my fingers. Within an instant, the recorded meditation brought me back to that shady spot on the mountainside. The red rocks surrounding us. I could feel the desert air. My wife was with me and I was there!
This same mediation was enjoyed at a different time and place, but the energy was deeply connected. I look forward to exploring how momentary, connected meditations may allow the powers of our past to continue guiding us through the grounded energy of this great adventure called life.
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