Hello and welcome.
The emphasis of these meditations has been to uncover the emotions that may arise and the willingness to accept those emotions when working the steps.
Step 10.
Continue to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admit it.
Let's start by getting grounded,
Settled,
Focused.
Find a comfortable position.
It helps to be upright and find some balance.
Noticing if you are balanced right to left and front to back.
Just becoming very grounded in your seat.
Keep your back straight and your front soft.
You are sitting up straight but in a relaxed position,
Letting your face and your whole body soften.
Let your upper eyelids rest gently on your lower eyelids,
Your lips gently touching or apart with your jaw relaxed.
Feel your whole body be at ease.
With hands resting on your lap or thighs,
The palms may be up in a receptive position,
Facing up,
Or the palms may be facing down,
Which is more grounded.
Feel your stability,
Your muscles becoming heavy.
Breathing allows your body to teach your mind to be relaxed and open.
Bring your attention to your breath.
Take a deep,
Slow breath in through your nose,
Pause,
Release slowly through your mouth.
Continue that pattern as you become relaxed and present.
If your mind wanders,
Focus again on your breath.
Step 10.
Suggest living each day with awareness of your actions and emotions,
Actively accepting responsibility and making amends as needed.
The result of this practice is developing relationships built on humility,
Honesty,
Courage,
And trust.
Promptly admitting your wrongs heals you and others.
Take a deep,
Slow breath in through your nose,
Pause,
Release slowly through your mouth.
Willingness is important when approaching Step 10.
It may be helpful to embrace your willingness in metaform,
Which allows you to express your desire for positive attitude about your behavior and awareness.
Focus on feelings of warmth and kindness,
And say these phrases to yourself.
Today,
I will accept my emotions.
Today,
I will acknowledge how I feel.
Today,
I am willing to make amends as needed.
Again.
Today,
I will accept my emotions.
Today,
I will acknowledge how I feel.
Today,
I am willing to make amends as needed.
Breathe in through your nose,
Pause,
Release slowly through your mouth.
Developing your awareness of both your feelings and your actions across the day may be enhanced by focusing on your surroundings,
On the people in your surroundings,
And on your personal interactions.
As you move through the day,
Your emotions may create barriers to staying in the present.
When that happens,
Pause,
Take a breath,
Experience the emotion.
Stay with the emotion and continue to breathe through it until it dissipates.
You may also break the cycle of the emotion with the following grounding techniques.
Spread the left hand fingers apart,
Take your right thumb and right forefinger and gently squeeze the fleshy area between your left thumb and your left forefinger.
Similarly,
Place a hand flat on a stable surface like a counter,
Desk,
Or wall.
Your mind will shift its attention to the new sensation of pressure.
Creating this new bodily sensation will refocus the mind on that pressure and help dissipate the emotion.
Breathe in through your nose,
Pause,
Release slowly through your mouth.
Needing to make an amend is rooted in the interactions with others.
Your interactions may be influenced by your beliefs,
Experiences,
And sometimes by your fear.
As you engage with others,
Stay in the moment.
Be mindful of others' emotions and be compassionate,
Both to them and yourself,
By saying this silently to yourself.
May I be here in the moment.
May I have compassion.
May I be loving.
May I do no harm.
Extend these well wishes to the other person.
May you be here in the moment.
May you have compassion.
May you be loving.
May you do no harm.
May you be here in the moment.
May you have compassion.
May you be loving.
May you do no harm.
As you do this,
The interaction and the emotions may resolve without the need for an amend.
It is helpful to use spot inventories across the day.
These spot inventories are done as soon as the awareness of the needed amend becomes apparent.
This may be experienced by a vague awareness that something is happening,
Something is going on within.
This is the time to step back and review what just happened.
Staying with the awareness may provide clues as to when an amend may be needed.
Breathe in through your nose,
Pause,
Release slowly through your mouth.
Not all amend situations are obvious at the time.
At the end of your day,
Taking a few minutes to examine the day's interactions may bring to mind an understanding of your behavior that was not visible during the moment.
To develop the willingness and compassion to follow up with an amend at the earliest opportunity,
You can say the following with the warmest sincerity possible.
I will be willing to make amends as needed.
I will accept my emotions.
I will acknowledge how I feel.
I will do no further harm.
As you move forward in your recovery,
This framework of self-awareness will support your willingness and ability to make daily healing amends.
Promptly admitting wrongs heals both you and others,
And that will deepen your recovery in a positive way.
Slowly move and stretch your muscles.
Gently wiggle fingers and toes.
Bring your attention back to the room,
To your breathing,
Back into the present moment,
And when ready,
Slowly open your eyes.
I wish you many blessings,
Along with willingness and patience as you proceed one day at a time.
