Welcome.
This is Allison with Mindful Pause Center.
I'm going to bring you a practice today for recovering perfectionists,
Among whose number I count myself.
So to get started choosing a posture that can support you for the next 20 minutes.
Just beginning by allowing yourself to feel into what is it like to be sitting here or standing here,
Lying down,
Or even walking?
Where do you notice the weight of gravity?
That gentle tug that is connecting us to this world?
And you might scan to see where you're holding tension in this moment.
What are the sensations around the eyes?
Those little micro muscles,
Are they flitting and buzzing?
And if so,
Perhaps try smoothing the forehead or lifting the corners of the eyes in a slight smile.
Might let the jaw relax as much as able.
Let the tongue fall to the lower palate.
You can check the shoulders for those knots of tension that often form.
And in this moment,
Not trying to get rid of them,
But just making space around them.
Attending to their presence,
But softly.
Allowing any knots to float.
If the hands are gripped,
Softening the hands,
Softening around the belly.
If it feels good,
You can bring your awareness to the felt sense of the body breathing.
How do you know the body is breathing?
How does the body show you that it's breathing?
And because we're not trying to change the breath at all in this moment,
It could be very subtle.
The movement of the belly or the ribcage,
The way the breath comes in through the nose and goes down the back of the throat,
Allowing the body to breathe.
Nothing you really need to do.
The body does this on its own.
Simply opening our awareness to receive the rhythm of the inhalation and the exhalation.
When the mind is pulled away into thoughts or emotions or memories,
When you notice this has happened,
You're already beginning to return the awareness to its initial state.
You're bringing your awareness to its anchor.
Sometimes it can be helpful to stay with whatever has pulled you away just long enough to label it thinking or feeling or remembering.
And then bringing your anchor forward,
Either the felt sense of the body breathing itself or the weight of the body in whatever posture you're in,
Becoming aware once more.
And then bringing your anchor forward,
Either the felt sense of the body breathing itself or the weight of the body in whatever posture you're in,
Becoming aware once more.
The weight of the body,
The breathing of the body are always here with us.
Sound has been happening all along.
Nothing we're required to do to make it happen,
Just including sound.
You might notice you have preferences.
Some sounds are pleasant.
Some sounds are unpleasant.
But to the ears,
It's all just information.
Neutral.
You might just see if you can allow yourself to hear.
Notice that you are sitting or standing,
Lying or walking in the midst of a world that is happening all around us.
We are connected.
We belong.
And we're also resting,
Not needing to do anything in this very moment.
For the remainder of the practice today,
If you find yourself pulled away by thoughts,
Emotions or memories,
Any one of these three anchors can become your home base.
The body,
The breath or sound.
I'm going to drop in some questions now for your reflection.
And the invitation is not to try to answer the questions with your thoughts.
But to let the question settle,
Maybe like a pebble gently landing at the bottom of a pond.
And then waiting to see if anything arises.
Remembering at any point you can return to a home base.
Or you could even pause the practice by opening your eyes to take in something of your environment.
Or gently moving the body before returning to the practice when you're ready.
You can repeat this question in order to let it settle.
How do I want to hold space for imperfection?
In myself and in others?
How do I want to hold space for imperfection?
In myself and in others?
Letting the question settle.
Waiting to see what arises.
Maybe you'll receive a word or a phrase.
Maybe a gesture comes to mind.
Maybe you can even offer yourself that gesture.
Hand over the heart or the belly.
Maybe a color or sound arises.
What in me longs to be healed?
What in me longs to be healed?
Again,
Allowing the question to settle.
Waiting to see what arises.
And maybe nothing comes to mind.
Maybe it's more a sensation,
A willingness,
A sensation.
Maybe it's a sense of receptivity.
Not all answers have language around them.
They can simply be spaces that become available in us.
What might be waiting if I stopped striving to control outcomes?
What might be waiting if I stopped striving to control outcomes?
Letting the question settle.
And then seeing what comes forward.
And now to help us integrate whatever arose,
Whether it was tangible or intangible.
Direct or indirect.
Placing one hand on your heart and one on your belly.
And in whatever way makes sense,
Just honoring what came forward for you.
Maybe it makes sense to offer gratitude.
Maybe it makes sense to in some way bow.
Making space with this light touch to receive whatever wisdom came forward.
And acknowledge it.
Knowing that because you're taking this moment here and now to integrate,
That you don't need to fight to remember anything.
The invitation is to trust that it will be available for you when you need it.
And to close the practice now,
Opening the ears to hear the sounds that are here.
The sounds that have been with you all along.
Noticing the body breathing itself.
The breath that has been here all along.
And noticing the body.
The weight of the body.
And then beginning to move the body in a way that feels good.
Working out any kinks that might have come with the posture you chose.
Stretching the body as the eyes open or the gaze lifts.
Taking in some feature of your environment.
This is a way to directly communicate through the senses to your nervous system that the practice is coming to a close.
And in a moment,
You'll hear the bell.
Thank you for your practice.
