Hello,
And welcome to this guided gratitude meditation.
Today we'll be cultivating a sense of gratitude by tapping into our five senses.
So I invite you to find a comfortable position that could be seated or lying down.
Get yourself cozy,
And whenever you're ready,
Let's just start by taking three deep breaths.
If it's comfortable for you,
And if you have not already done so,
I invite you to close your eyes.
For this practice,
We'll be doing a little bit of visualization,
So having your eyes closed might help you with that.
And if any of the five senses that we move through today don't feel applicable to you or don't resonate with you,
Feel free to make this practice your own in whatever way feels best to you.
Today we'll begin with the sense of sight.
Whenever you're ready,
Bring to mind a sight that brings you joy.
This could be anything,
Perhaps something that you find very beautiful,
Maybe something from nature,
Like sunlight streaming through the leaves,
A mountain,
A forest,
An ocean,
Or your favorite flower or plant.
Perhaps this could be a favorite work of art,
A favorite picture or sculpture,
Or even your favorite color.
Or maybe you wish to bring to mind something a little more personal.
Maybe it's the smile of someone you love.
Maybe it's the image of a favorite memory.
Letting all of these sights flash through your mind's eye,
Just allowing anything that comes up to come up.
And whenever a new image appears,
Trying to cultivate a sense of gratitude,
Feeling grateful for all of the sights,
All of the colors and textures and interplays of light and shadow.
Allowing yourself to bask in this feeling of gratitude.
Allowing your thankfulness to wash over you,
Feeling it in your body.
And if it resonates with you,
I invite you to repeat to yourself in your mind,
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Allowing yourself to really feel that,
Feel the impact of those words.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Giving yourself a few more seconds to enjoy this gratitude,
To enjoy these images.
And then gently letting them go as we move on to our sense of smell.
Bringing to mind your favorite scent.
Perhaps this is the smell of your favorite food coming out of the oven.
This could be the smell of your favorite candle or essential oil or shampoo.
Or perhaps it's a smell from the natural world,
Pine trees,
Flowers,
Freshly cut grass,
Crisp mountain air,
The smell of rain.
Bringing to mind any scents that brings you joy that you're grateful for.
Our sense of smell is very tied to memories.
So if thinking about any of these smells brings to mind some memories,
Just let it happen.
Just allowing yourself to feel gratitude.
Gratitude for the privilege of being able to smell and gratitude for the various things that your favorite smell reminds you of.
Letting gratitude wash over your body.
And perhaps repeating our phrase for the day.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Allowing yourself a few more seconds to rest in this state.
Thinking about your favorite smells,
Feeling that gratitude wash over you.
And then gently letting it go.
Preparing yourself to move on to sound.
Bringing to mind your favorite sound.
Perhaps it's your favorite song or the sound of your favorite instrument.
Perhaps the sound of crunching autumn leaves or ocean waves.
A baby's laugh.
A cat's purr.
Or your loved one's voice.
Bringing to mind any sound you can think of that makes you happy.
Allowing gratitude for those sounds and all the things they represent to you to wash over you.
Introducing our phrase when you're ready.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Giving yourself a few more seconds here.
Feeling gratitude for your favorite sounds.
And gently letting go.
Moving on to your sense of taste.
What is your favorite flavor?
Is it something sweet?
Savory?
Bitter or spicy or sour?
Is it a favorite food or perhaps a drink?
How do you feel when you taste this flavor?
Allowing a feeling of gratitude for your sense of taste to flood through you.
And whenever you're ready,
Saying to yourself,
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Giving yourself another few moments to think about your favorite foods and drinks.
And whenever it feels right,
Gently letting go.
And moving on to your sense of touch.
What is something that feels really good to you?
Do you have a favorite texture or temperature?
Perhaps it's running your fingers through your pet's fur.
Warming your hands by holding a mug of tea.
Cuddling up in a cozy blanket.
Taking a warm bath on a cool night.
Or getting in a cool pool on a hot day.
Breeze on your face.
Sunshine on your skin.
A hug from a loved one.
What feels good to you?
Allowing any thoughts or memories or images to float in and out of your mind.
Allowing yourself to bask in this sense of gratitude.
And when you're ready,
Repeating to yourself,
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
My life has many blessings and I am grateful.
Before we end our practice,
I invite you to just take another moment.
Allowing yourself to feel grateful for all of these things we mentioned.
Allowing yourself to feel grateful for the ability to see and smell and taste and hear and feel.
Flooding your body with gratitude.
You may stay in this state of gratitude for as long as you'd like,
But if you're ready to move on with your day,
I invite you to take another couple of deep breaths.
Perhaps wiggle your fingers and toes and gently open your eyes.
Perhaps setting an intention to be more mindful of the many small blessings you encounter every day.
I thank you for joining me and I hope you have a great rest of your day or evening.
