Let's begin by taking three deep breaths,
Whatever way feels comfortable for you,
Just breathing in and out,
Just allowing the breath to gently flow,
And now finding a comfortable position,
Sitting upright.
Each time you meditate,
If you sit in an upright position,
It reminds your body it's time to settle and bring your awareness to the present.
Imagine an invisible thread holding you upright,
And let your hands gently settle in a comfortable position,
And if you haven't already,
Slowly and gently closing the eyes or lowering the gaze,
Whichever feels comfortable,
And taking another deep slow breath in through the nose,
Let it ease out through the mouth,
Doing that once more,
Gently inhale,
And a soft unhurried exhale,
Now just allowing your breath to return to its natural rhythm,
Just find yourself arriving in the present moment,
The simple fact that you are here,
Feeling the weight of the body,
Supported by the surface beneath you,
Noticing the air against your skin,
There's nothing to change or achieve,
Just arriving into this present moment,
Just bringing your awareness now gently and slowly to the body,
Awareness of the body,
Bringing your attention first to the top of the head,
Just imagine a warm,
Calming wave of awareness,
Just moving downwards through the body,
Noticing your forehead,
Jaw,
Just let them soften,
Notice if you're holding tension,
Now the shoulders,
Just notice if you're holding tension,
Allowing that calm wave of awareness,
Letting your shoulders drop away from the ears,
Noticing the chest rising and fall with the breath,
Softening the stomach,
Allowing it to expand naturally with each breath,
Letting your awareness move down through your arms,
Your hands,
Your fingers,
Through your body,
To your hips,
Down your legs,
All the way to your feet,
All the way to the tips of your toes,
Just noticing if any tension,
Just bringing that awareness away,
Breathing into the area,
Not to force anything to change,
But simply to acknowledge what's present,
Letting go of your awareness of the body,
Moving your awareness to the breath,
The breath is our constant companion,
Anchoring us into the present moment,
Just bringing your awareness to the fact that you are breathing,
Feeling the inhalation of breath,
And the exhalation,
Just noticing the sensations of the breath,
As it moves gently on its journey,
In through the nose or mouth,
Allowing the breath to move,
Rise and fall of the chest and stomach,
And if at any time your mind wanders to thoughts,
Emotions,
Just notice awareness of where your mind wandered,
And gently returning your awareness to wherever the focus of the meditation is,
And currently we're focusing our awareness on the breath just noticing the journey of the breath,
Following the journey,
Noticing the sensations,
If your mind wanders,
Notice with kindness your awareness,
Just slowly and gently returning your awareness to the breath,
Now expanding your awareness from the breath and the body,
Expanding your awareness to include the sounds around you just noticing them as passing events,
Nothing to follow,
Nothing to block,
Just allowing them to come and go like waves noticing if any thoughts or emotions arise,
Rather than engaging with them,
Imagine they leave floating past on a stream you don't need to pick them up,
Or push them away,
Just let them drift,
And bringing your attention back to your breath,
And just setting an intention for your day now gently,
Ask yourself gently,
What do I want to carry with me as I move into the rest of my day,
Perhaps it's calm,
Clarity,
Patience,
Or simply awareness let the intention settle softly within you,
Held lightly without pressure,
Now taking one final deep breath in,
And a long gentle breath out and begin to move small movements back into the body,
Wiggling fingers and toes,
Rotating the shoulders and when you're ready,
Gently and slowly opening the eyes,
Taking a moment to notice how you feel moving into your day
