capemaggie's Forum Posts

i'm no expert, but i think your session was "successful".  the presence of monkey mind does not determine successful vs. unsuccessful; i'm not even certain success and meditation are words that go together.  as soon as we are judging our experience and our performance, we are leaving the non-judgmental mind that is part of meditation.  
i've been meditating off and on for years and i still have incredible monkey mind. every time i notice i've gone off with my thoughts and bring myself back to my breath (compassionately), i'm being mindful.  
i'm glad you mentioned "success" in your post.  it reminds me of the "how did it feel" rating here on Medivate.  i don't use that anymore.  reading Pema Chodron and many others has led me to the realization that how a sitting "feels" is probably no indication of how much i might have gained from it.    those sittings where i'm feeling anxious, upset, whatever - don't feel good but they may teach me so much about how i deal with different emotions.  anyway, i think judging "how it felt" is probably irrelevant at best and misleading or even harmful at worst.   once again, non-judgmentalism.