Let's take a moment to pause,
To tune in to our experience with presence,
Curiosity,
And self-compassion.
I invite you to begin by coming to a comfortable seated position,
Elongating the spine,
Letting the shoulders and arms rest comfortably,
Your hands gently placed on your thighs or in your lap.
Take a moment to connect with the surface of your breath,
To feel this sense of grounding.
And as you begin to settle in,
Take a few cleansing breaths,
In through the nose,
Out through the mouth,
Letting these breaths move throughout your entire body.
And as you come back to your natural breath,
Take a moment and connect with your heart.
Maybe you bring your palms to rest on your chest,
Feeling your heartbeat.
As you breathe,
Feel your hands rising and falling as your chest expands and softens.
See if you can connect with this part of yourself with love,
Tenderness,
As if you are sending yourself love through the palms of your hands.
Whatever you're going through in this moment,
Know that your experience is entirely human.
Every emotion,
Every thought,
Everything that we go through is part of our humanity.
Take a moment to honor your experience with care and warmth.
Now imagine that someone you love was going through what you're going through right now.
Whatever you might be struggling with in your life,
Consider that someone you love has or will go through something similar.
With this in mind,
What words of support,
Love,
And care would you offer to this person?
How would you show them compassion?
And then offer those words of support and love and care to yourself.
If this feels challenging at this time,
And maybe you can't find the words to say,
Try these instead.
May I be patient and compassionate with myself.
May I speak to myself with kindness.
May I honor my human experience.
May I love myself unconditionally.
Spend a few moments here.
Offer yourself any other words of support that you might need to hear right now.
And when you're ready,
Come back to the natural flow of your breath.
Reconnecting with the seat or the surface beneath you.
Feeling the rise and falling of your chest.
And just notice how you feel right now.
What sensations do you feel in your body?
Maybe warmth or coolness.
Lightness or ease.
Know that that's your self-compassion that's rooted within you.
You can come back to it any time that you need.
All it takes is a few breaths.
And when you're ready,
You can slowly open your eyes from bottom to top.
Placing your hands over your heart and just feeling the effects of your practice.
Thanking yourself for showing up,
Creating a little space.
If there's any goodness there,
Soak it up.
Thanks for practicing today.
