Welcome,
Beautiful soul,
To this quiet harbor.
We live so much of this fragile life in a grip.
We rise with the sun,
And immediately the mind begins its anxious inventory.
We dress ourselves,
Not just in woven cloth,
But in the stale remnants of worries that should have been left sleeping,
And the heavy,
Worn-out idea of what our life must achieve today.
We look out our windows,
Straining,
Longing for our safe place in the distant stars,
Never noticing the simple truth.
The very act of clutching is what keeps us suspended,
Rootless,
And straining against the flow.
We hold things close,
These tight,
Small bundles of plans and fear,
Thinking that by keeping them within reach,
We can somehow prevent them from breaking the surface.
We build a wall of control,
But in the silence behind it,
We find only a deeper,
Quieter truth.
The wall itself has imprisoned us in the very fear we were trying to avoid.
Imagine,
Beloved,
That you are not the weary captain trying to steer the entire cosmic ship.
Imagine you are simply a vessel,
Floating on a vast,
Compassionate river,
To surrender is not a defeat.
It is the most beautifully divine act of trust.
It is the recognition that we are already being carried from the stars into this life,
And through every crest and trough of uncertainty.
The more tightly we constrict,
The denser we become,
Sinking like a heavy stone to the turbulent bottom.
The moment we simply release the need for control,
We allow the current to lift us,
And a grace to enter,
Making life fluid,
Lighter,
And so much more joyful.
Let us practice this great release now.
Let us soften the hands we have been holding tightly against the open current of life.
Settle your body now.
Allow the shoulders to slump.
Let the face soften.
We are simply giving ourselves back to the earth for a little while.
We'll start with three deep offerings of the breath.
Inhale,
And imagine you are drawing in the clean,
Wide air of an open sky,
A gesture of trust.
And exhale a long,
Slow whisper back to the world,
Releasing the urge to rush,
Releasing the tight knot of knowing that we often carry behind the eyes and in the throat.
Settle your awareness beneath you.
Feel the quiet love of the ground rising up to meet you.
You are held deeply and completely by a world that has always desired your rest.
Bring your attention now to the most ancient,
Grounding part of you,
The root chakra.
It holds the memory of deep,
Foundational safety.
The worry of tomorrow often finds its way here,
Sitting like a heavy stone.
Breathe into this heavy,
Tight place.
See the stone begin to soften,
To dissolve into the rich,
Dark earth,
The very soil that holds all life without question.
Release the idea that you must be rootless,
Fighting to prove you belong.
You are already an inseparable part of this moment.
Now,
Let the awareness drift gently upward to the center of your power,
Flowing softly beneath the ribs.
This is the place that asks,
Am I capable?
Am I enough?
When worry is loud,
This place becomes a turbulent,
Churning knot,
A desperate energy trying to grip and control.
With every inhale,
Draw in a soothing balm of gentleness.
And with every exhale,
Release the stale,
Worn-out ideas of what your life should look like.
You are not in control of the tide,
But you are absolutely in control of how softly you choose to ride it.
Imagine now a soft,
Luminous light,
The color of dawn breaking,
Entering through the soles of your feet.
It is a pure,
Cleansing frequency,
Carried on the gentlest of breezes.
Allow this soft light to travel slowly,
Deliberately upward,
Carrying with it the subtle debris of yesterday's news.
It flows past the tightness in your legs,
Clearing the heaviness of old journeys.
It moves into your root and your solar plexus,
Taking the hardened anxiety,
The clinging doubt,
And carrying it out,
Allowing these parts of you to feel open and wide again.
You are purifying by invitation,
Inviting your natural clarity to return.
As this light ascends and wraps around your entire being,
Your field of peace,
Feel your boundaries become clear,
Soft,
And resilient.
Any external noise,
Any projected fear,
Simply meets the cushion of your own stillness and is gently deflected.
You are simply whole within yourself.
Let the whispered intention settle into your bones.
I release the burden.
I trust the flow.
I am resting in my own calm.
This feeling of clarity is your home.
Carry this quiet,
Protected flow with you now.
Take one final,
Slow breath,
Soaking in the peace you have cultivated.
On the exhale,
Allow a little sweetness of movement to return to your body.
A soft wiggle in the fingers.
A slight nod of the head.
When you feel ready to greet the world,
Slowly,
Without rush,
Open your eyes.
Thank you for choosing to soften.
