Hi there,
My name is Allison and I'd like to take you through a short mindfulness exercise.
So to start,
If you're seated or standing wherever you are,
Just keeping your eyes open for the time being.
And first,
Taking a moment to look around,
Maybe noticing details that you had overlooked a moment ago.
Just taking in wherever you are,
Your surroundings.
If you have very limited areas to look at,
Maybe just looking at the detail,
Maybe the pattern.
Just for a breath.
And now I would like to invite you to close your eyes if that makes you feel safe,
Or you can rest your gaze down at your nose or down at the ground or floor.
And now tune in to your sense of hearing.
Obviously you hear my voice in this meditation.
What other sounds do you hear?
Maybe sounds further away.
Maybe the sound of your breath.
Maybe just the sound of the music in the meditation,
My voice.
And now I would like for you to bring your awareness to your mouth and any tastes that are present there.
Maybe noticing whether your mouth is dry or filled with saliva.
Not judging,
Not adding a story line,
Just noticing,
Being a curious observer.
And now bringing your attention to your sense of smell and any smells that are currently in your environment.
Just noticing.
Again,
Not adding a judgement,
Just noticing.
And last,
I would like for you to bring your attention to your skin,
Your body,
Your sense of touch.
Feeling the air maybe blowing on your skin.
Perhaps feeling the clothing that's touching your skin.
Feeling the points of your body that are resting either on a chair or on the ground,
Even if you're just standing.
Feeling the points of your body being held.
Really feeling into all of your bodily sensations now.
When we bring our awareness into our bodily sensations,
Such as the five senses,
It drops us out of the thinking mind and into the feeling body.
This allows us some space from our thoughts and allows us to realize that we are not our thoughts and we can make choices when we have a little bit more space from these thoughts.
So dropping out of the thinking monkey mind and into the feeling body is a way to be more mindful and to bring yourself into the moment.
The one and only true moment that we have,
Which is now and then the next moment and the next moment.
So remembering not to live in the past or the future,
But to live in the current moment that you are experiencing.
This is where we will find the most joy.
I encourage you whenever you find yourself not living in the moment to use the five senses to drop into the moment with loving kindness.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be peaceful.
