Hello,
And welcome to session one of Stillness Speaks.
My name is Colleen,
And today's practice is called From the Seen to the Unseen,
A Journey Through Awareness.
This is your invitation to pause,
To breathe,
To listen,
And to return to the quiet space within.
I am so grateful you're here.
There are days when life moves so fast I barely notice it happening.
My mind gets tangled in the rush,
The to-do lists,
The endless pull of my phone.
Before stillness became a sacred part of my day,
I resisted it.
I filled my time,
My thoughts,
And my body with motion and noise.
I was anchored in the scene,
In the doing,
Achieving,
Producing.
But eventually,
I realized stillness wasn't asking me to stop.
It was asking me to listen,
To turn inward,
To cross the threshold between what I could see and what I could sense,
Between what I was doing and what I was becoming.
Guided meditation has always been my way back,
The gentle reminder to slow down,
Enough to see what I've been missing,
The way a breeze feels on my skin,
The sounds of life carrying on all around me.
When I pause long enough to notice the simple things,
Something shifts.
I return to stillness.
I return to myself.
Today's practice will invite you to notice both the world around you and the quiet world within.
The breath will be our bridge from the seen to the unseen.
Let's begin.
Please find a comfortable place to land,
Gifting yourself a moment to arrive wherever you are.
We begin with eyes open,
Looking outward.
Notice what you see.
Notice what you hear.
Notice what you feel.
In this simple act of noticing,
We step out of the loop of distraction and busyness.
We set down the endless pull of our phones and to-do lists and return to what is real,
Right here.
Awareness brings us into the beauty of the moment,
The way the world is speaking to us right now.
We see life happening all around us and within.
The outer world speaks in colors and sounds,
In movement and sensations.
It calls our attention outward.
And yet,
Beneath it all,
Another world awaits.
A world without edges or names.
A quiet landscape where presence lives.
The unseen that holds the seen.
Today we will listen to both.
We will notice the outer world and then follow the breath home into the deep stillness within.
With your eyes still open,
Allow your shoulders to drop.
Relax your jaw.
Rest your hands gently,
Releasing any grasp.
Soften your belly,
Allowing your breath to move more freely.
Breathing slowly in and out through your nose.
No rush.
No forcing.
Just a steady,
Natural rhythm.
Let your gaze soften as you take in the space around you,
Noticing shapes,
Colors,
And light.
Without naming,
Without reaching,
Simply seeing.
Now notice the sounds around you,
Near and far,
Clear or faint.
Feel the air on your skin.
Notice its temperature,
Its movement.
Now connect your outer awareness to your breath.
Breathing slowly in and out through your nose.
On your next inhale,
Silently repeat to yourself,
I am.
As you exhale,
Silently repeat,
Right here.
Again,
Inhale,
I am.
Exhale,
Right here.
Once more,
On your own.
Let the words root you in the moment.
Let the breath carry you deeper into awareness.
When you're ready,
Allow your eyes to gently close.
Inhaling I am.
Exhaling,
Right here.
Feel how the body rises with each inhale,
And softens with each exhale.
The breath becomes the bridge from the seen to the unseen.
Let your awareness rest in this inner space,
Nothing to do,
Nowhere to be.
Just enjoy the gentle rhythm of your breath.
When thoughts arise,
Simply return to your breath.
Inhaling I am.
Exhaling,
Right here.
Staying here for a few moments,
In stillness,
In awareness,
In peace.
My voice will be quiet for a little while.
Rest here,
Inside the stillness.
When you're ready,
Begin to bring your awareness back to the sounds around you.
Feel the earth beneath you.
Gently move your fingers and toes.
Roll your shoulders.
Take a deep breath in,
And an even deeper breath out.
When it feels right,
Softly open your eyes.
We live in both worlds,
The seen and the unseen,
The outer and the inner.
The breath is our bridge between them.
It connects us to the moment,
To ourselves,
And to the quiet that holds everything.
May you be well.
May you remember this bridge is always here,
And may you cross it whenever you need to come home.
