Yesterday's tomorrow is now.
Hi there,
It's John here.
Thank you for joining me in this guided meditation.
OK,
So the title of this one is a bit misleading.
If you haven't guessed already,
It isn't about yesterday,
And it isn't about tomorrow.
It's about being here,
In the present.
We tend to get a bit obsessed about what happened yesterday,
And stressed about what may or may not happen tomorrow.
And when we can see the attraction to those two magnets,
We can also see the relief and freedom that lies in the present.
Let's settle in together,
And explore the gift that is the present.
You can start by closing your eyes,
If that feels right for you.
But you can also leave them open,
If that feels better.
Meditation is to be crafted and created by each of us.
There is no right or wrong way.
There is a key element of discovery in every practice,
And as we find our own unique path,
We can give ourselves lots of leeway in how we practice.
No one knows us better than ourselves,
So who better to know what it is that allows us to feel good?
And feeling good is how we design a time and space that draws us back in.
If you find that a daily practice is challenging to maintain,
It could be that either peace,
Joy,
Or freedom are missing elements.
This letting go of the past and future are important to allow joy to naturally flow.
When we practice self-compassion by creating a space of joy,
The body gravitates towards that.
Instead of thinking we must push ourselves to practice,
We feel pulled by the desire to feel good,
And by the experience of feeling good that we establish.
I invite you to take a nice,
Full,
Slow inhale and a nice,
Full,
Slow exhale.
And another nice,
Full,
Slow inhale and a nice,
Long,
Extended exhale.
One more time,
Slow,
Full inhale and this time on the exhale,
Let out an audible sigh if you can.
You may not be able to do so if you're on the subway or in the waiting room of the doctor's office.
That's OK.
But when you can,
This is a good exercise.
Even though we are the source of the sigh,
Our body also hears it,
And it's a signal to relax and let go.
Now,
Did you notice what else happened when we took those breaths?
We were present.
Just that simple,
Basic act,
If only for just a minute or two,
Allowed us to receive this gift of the present.
Our breath is a miracle for the life it provides all of us.
It is even more so for its ability to bring us into the present moment.
We don't have to push against the past or the future.
We simply find this home base and everything else falls away.
If you prefer,
Any other present anchor will do the same.
That could be a point of touch,
Like the hands cupped gently in your lap,
Or where your seat contacts your chair or cushion.
Or you could choose background sounds like a vent or traffic to focus on.
There's a very helpful saying,
Whatever we focus on gets stronger.
So training ourselves to focus on a home base or anchor that feels right and feels good is a very basic but also very profound pathway to peace.
A good practice also contains loving kindness.
When the mind wanders,
Which it will do for everyone no matter how long they have had a formal practice,
We then get the opportunity to practice that.
Each time we recognize that our attention has drifted away is a moment of awakening again back to the present.
A great cause for loving kindness.
This is enlightening.
If we discover or see that we have a tendency towards self-criticism for not holding our focus,
This too is a moment of awareness and awakening.
We only self-criticize because it is something we learned to practice.
It could be further justification for further self-criticism,
But let the awareness be justification for something else,
Something that serves our well-being.
We don't have to be perfect.
We may have been practicing self-criticism for years or decades,
So it may have become habit.
Each time we see all of it for what it is and make the conscious choice to practice something else,
We are doing the lifting of the training.
Every time we lift it,
We are training ourselves in compassion,
Kindness,
And love.
We are also training ourselves to be present,
To form a habit of giving ourselves the gift of the present.
This training isn't about trying to forget about the past or future.
Of course,
There are times when we need to review the past and allow it to give direction and maybe even purpose to what we do today.
Meditation and awareness simply give us a break from it.
Sometimes,
Let's admit,
We let what has happened in the past dictate how we feel today,
And that can be a rabbit hole of anxiety and depression that are challenging to get out of.
The past has happened already and there is no changing it no matter how hard we try to think it to being different.
Grounding ourselves in the present with loving kindness and sometimes forgiveness is our best hope to feel better.
And,
Of course,
There are times when we need to plan or prepare for the future,
And that may give purpose to what we do today.
Meditation and awareness simply give us a break from it.
Sometimes,
Let's admit,
We let what has not yet happened in the future dictate how we feel today,
And that can be a rabbit hole of anxiety and fear that are challenging to rise out of.
The future will come,
And while there may be challenges and difficulties to overcome,
There will also be joy and love and peace.
Grounding ourselves in the present with loving kindness and sometimes forgiveness is our best hope to have a good outcome.
Thank you for being present with me and with many others around the world that share this journey.
Please remember to thank yourself for the work that you're doing,
For this work we are doing here and now.
For now,
Goodbye.
