[chelviweeme]

thank you all very much for your help and feedback! i've been very interested to read each of your replies and consider what to do. i'm not interested in short-circuiting learning meditation, just in doing the most efficient advancement.

about the only thing i have learned so far, is to sit still, listen to some quiet music / ambient sounds on the headphones, and try to focus on the air moving in and out of my nose as i breath

one "supplementary" approach i did find in my research was something called [specific technique-please email for name] which i took to help in keeping focus.

of course, focus seems wierd to me in the context of meditation because i thought i am supposed to lose focus and just drift. i guess i focus on something internal vs external?

so, when i laid out my formula above, i was looking for some technique just to get an initial step of meditation. i guess focusing on my nose breathing would be one? it is just these basics that elude me as to different things to try to start with to see what works best for me. i also found one site about imagining going to a lily pond and sitting in a giant daisy in the middle. i can certainly exercise my imagination but that was not my impression of "stilling the mind".

i will check out and explore all of the advice you have given above and in pm and try things further. any additional advice is always welcome.

thanks!