This is a practice for finding a place in your mind's eye where you can rest.
A place that belongs only to you and that you can return whenever you need it.
During this journey.
Allow images to emerge on their own.
And in their own time.
Some might come as clear pictures or feelings,
Some simply as a knowing.
And now finding a position where your body can be supported.
Lying down.
Or sitting with your back held by something.
Allowing your gaze to soften.
And if it feels right,
Letting your eyes come to a close.
And just for this moment,
Allowing yourself to do nothing.
Notice the places where your body meets what it's holding.
The back of your head,
Your shoulders,
Your rear,
Your heels.
Allowing yourself to feel held by those places.
The ground beneath you.
.
.
And now bringing your attention to your breath.
Noticing where it moves.
And onto your next exhale.
Letting it be just a little longer than your inhale,
Like a sigh with no sound.
And again.
Stretching your breath out a little longer.
And one more time on your own.
Allowing your breath to return to its own rhythm.
Letting your jaw soften and open just a little more your shoulders dropping away your hands and your limbs growing heavy.
And now in your mind's eye,
Imagining a path in front of you.
Allowing that image to emerge.
A path that gently slopes downward.
Noticing whether it's the earth's soil,
Stone or sand.
Taking a moment just to really feel the temperature and the texture beneath your feet.
We'll walk 10 steps down this path.
With each step settling and relaxing deeper.
10,
Stepping onto the path.
Nine,
Feeling the ground beneath your feet.
8.
Letting the day stay behind you.
Seven,
Body feeling softer.
Six,
Slower.
And deeper.
Five,
Nothing to do.
For nowhere else to be.
3… release to relaxing and letting go.
One.
Arriving at the end of this path is a place that is yours.
It might be somewhere you've been.
Or a place from long ago.
A beach forest.
A garden.
A room.
Or somewhere you've never been or never have seen.
It only exists here.
Letting it come to you rather than choosing it.
Allowing the first place that arises to be enough.
Notice what's under your feet.
Soft or firm.
Warm or cool.
Taking a look around you.
Noticing where light might be coming from and the color the time of day it might be.
And maybe it's timeless,
Sometime has no name.
Notice the air on your skin.
Temperature.
A breeze.
What do you hear?
It's silence.
Water.
Birds.
What are the colors that you see?
The different textures or earth elements Smoke.
Flowers.
A small fire.
That feels welcoming or gentle.
In your mind's eye taking a moment to see what you can smell is there a scent noticing if this place feels vivid and clear or faint more like a feeling.
Either way,
This place is yours.
Giving yourself and your mind permission to add what would make this place feel exactly what it needs to be so that you and your soul can rest and feel assured that this is your special place.
And now.
Exploring this place a little bit more if you haven't already.
Walking around at your pace noticing the sensation of walking here the soles of the feet,
The ankles,
The knees with each step letting the ease of this place move through you.
Noticing what draws your attention And if something invites you.
Allowing yourself to go towards it.
And interact with it in a way that feels right.
Paying attention to its texture,
Its temperature.
This place knows you.
Been waiting.
The way that a friend waits for us ready to come back.
Notice how your energy shifts as you explore.
Taking a look around,
Noticing if there is a particular spot in this special place.
A spot where your body wants to stop.
And rest.
Let your body choose it.
If you're not there yet.
Go there now.
And let yourself settle in.
Sitting or lying down.
Leaning back.
However your body wants to be held.
Feeling the ground beneath you receive you.
Your back softening.
Your shoulders,
Letting go of whatever they've been carrying.
Your arms,
Your hands and fingers releasing.
Your belly and your glutes releasing.
This spot is yours.
Nothing is asked of you here.
Noticing how your body feels when it's held when it can release and relax.
And let go.
What feels soft.
And warm.
Noticing the quality and the quiet inside of you This is what safety can feel like in your body.
Take a moment to really know it.
Stitching it into the fibers of your being.
Letting the cells of your body memorize it.
And remember it slowly.
.
.
And now,
While you rest here.
.
.
Giving this place a small gesture.
A hand resting on your heart.
Your belly a hand resting on this space And now making that gesture.
In your physical body here now.
And breathing in the feeling of this place the light.
The air.
The temperature.
The sounds.
The smells.
And the ground beneath you.
Letting the gesture and the place become one a way to transport and access this rest.
Instantaneously.
And in a moment,
We'll practice finding your way back.
As you're ready,
Letting your gesture go.
And letting the place soften.
Growing faint like a picture fading Coming back to the room that you're in,
In this physical now.
For a breath or two,
Keeping your eyes closed,
Keeping your energy soft.
And now making that gesture again.
Taking a slow breath allowing that place to come back to you in your mind's eye,
In the fiber of your being.
Your place,
The spot in your place.
The light.
The air.
The sounds.
The temperature.
Notice how your body quickly remembers.
Whenever you make this gesture,
This place is close.
Wherever you are.
At your desk.
And traffic.
Before a hard conversation.
In the middle of the night in an instant.
It goes where you go.
Now before you leave,
Looking around your place one more time.
Notice one thing you'd like to remember.
A color,
A sound.
A feeling,
Something you touched Let it be simple.
And letting that one thing settle into your body.
Where does it want to live within you?
Thanking your place in whatever way feels true knowing you can come back.
Anytime.
With a breath.
And your gesture.
And now rising from your spot.
Turning back towards the path.
Walking up it slowly at your own pace Carrying with you what you found.
And leaving behind anything you don't need.
Beginning to feel the weight of your body again.
In this physical now where it's been resting of a surface beneath you.
The sounds in the room around you.
.
.
Letting your breath grow a little bit deeper and feeling more alive when you're ready.
You might take a few moments to capture what came to you.
Writing it down,
Recording a voice memo,
Or even drawing it.
What your place looked like.
The special spot that you found or the thing that you wanted to remember.
Where in your body felt safe and soft?
Giving it words or images helps it bring it out of the mind's eye into your life.
And now thinking,
Thank you for taking this time.
Thanking your body for being willing to rest.
Ahhhhhh That kind of letting go takes courage.
So many of us move through our days without ever feeling safe in our own skin.
It's worth knowing that there is a place inside of you that's been waiting for you.
And as this practice begins to close,
Bringing yourself all the way back.
Opening your eyes wide.
Blinking,
Letting them know you are back in the room.
Wiggling your fingers,
Your toes.
Maybe tapping gently along your arms,
Your legs,
Wiggling your feet.
Pressing your feet back on the floor.
Allowing your breath to become fully alive.
Knowing you're here.
With lots of gratitude.
This session is now complete.
