A few weeks ago my four year old HP computer, which had never caused me any serious problems, crashed for the second time after Windows 10 had unexpectedly downloaded on me a few weeks earlier.  I was already under a lot of stress with illness in my family and prayed this would be a simple fix as I loaded the equipment  into my car and took it to the computer store .

Repairs, it turned out were not part of my current technical support plan, but the tech on hand felt it could be a simple fix if it was just a windows 10 glitch.  Only problem was that the summer is their busiest time and an estimate of three to four days wait for the results of a diagnostics test was predicted.  I didn’t have a backup other than my iphone so I knew I would be using computers at the library if this went on too long.   Still, despite my disappointment and what seemed like a mountain of work to be done, I didn’t get angry or argumentative.  I just said thanks and was relieved for the optimism on the fix.  I also realized this was a good time to again test my latest meditation –opening to love.  It is one of the heart meditations from the meditation master Pragito Dove  and when life goes suddenly out of control, it helps you to focus on the wisdom of the heart rather than listen to the logical mind, which can drive you to panic.  It also helps to laugh and there are laughter meditations to counter stress, too.

In the end, it was the fourth day that I got a message to call the tech and heard his still optimistic assessment that the diagnostics showed nothing serious and he could fix it that weekend.  Unfortunately the next day I got a message that when he took it apart, the damage was more extensive than predicted and the fix rather expensive.  Unfortunately the tech was off the next day, a Sunday, so I would have to reach him to discuss it on Monday.  The bottom line is that I ultimately chose to buy a new computer and was told I would have to wait three more days for my old computer ‘s data to be downloaded.  When I showed up at the store late in the morning on the third day only to find out it wasn’t ready yet , I could have been very angry – it was almost two weeks at this point —  but I listened calmly, thanks to my morning meditation.  The sales person remembered me and was sympathetic with my genuine concern.  The tech came out and apologized for the delay and promised it would be ready later that day.  I actually thanked him when I got the call that it was ready.  In a world that has too much anger, I managed to get through my computer meltdown with grace and was rewarded with love.  Yes, I love my new computer!  And despite the logical mind that wanted to yell at each stressful delay, I was so glad that my blood pressure had stayed low and my productivity high. I am also thankful for libraries.

For more information on meditations to calm your mind and open your heart, visit www. discovermeditation.com