I will be honest with you. I love to meditate. I do it 3-4 times a week and have been for years. Why? Among other things:
It helps my mood.
It helps me de-stress.
It helps me keep life's ups and downs in perspective.
It reminds me to take care of myself.
It just feels good.
How did I get into it? Well, I came to meditation as an ultra-endurance athlete. 3 times a day for 4 months, I would jump into the brown water of the river and take my first strokes. Between the rhythmic motion of the swim strokes, and pure exhaustion, I was able to get into a mental start that allowed me to keep going for hours on end. There is no way I should have been able to swim 1600 miles, but I did.
When the swim was over, I wanted to figure out if it was possible to get into a similar head space without swimming 6 hours a day. I think the thing that comes closest is meditation.
And the science seems to back me up. Check out the video below.
If you are in the DC area and have been thinking of trying meditation, check out the Insight Meditation Community of Washington (www.IMCW.org).