This is Amy Iko with Meditations of Unlearning.
And the meditation that I share with you at this time is a grief meditation.
For this meditation to prepare,
I'd like to invite you to find a comfortable way to be in your body.
You might want to lie down,
You might want to sit up,
You might want to be in a comfortable chair,
You might want to be walking.
Whatever feels the most nurturing for you right now.
And it can change at any point during the meditation you can pause or stop to make sure that your body is supported in the way that you most need at this time.
Take a deep breath and center into this recording right now with me.
And bring to mind a teacher.
This teacher doesn't have to be a human.
This teacher could very well be an animal friend,
A furry friend.
It could be somebody that you've never met,
Somebody who's walked with you your whole life.
Bring to mind this teacher and see them in your mind's eye in front of you.
Is the wind blowing across their face?
What's their posture like?
Really see them.
Notice the details.
If it seems right to you to embrace this teacher or exchange a word of greeting,
Please do so.
Now you get a sense from your teacher that it's time to talk about grief or to be with the grief.
There's encouragement there from your teacher.
This grief that you're feeling right now isn't something that you'll only feel once.
It's in fact going through over and over to you.
And the teacher turns to the side and you see next to you beautiful seascape,
Beautiful sand,
The water coming up gently up the beach towards you.
And as you see this water and the beautiful waves rolling in,
You begin to be able to experience this grief as a wave that rolls in and rolls out over and over again.
Different times,
Different intensity.
The teacher's here with you.
So just feel that.
As you sit with your grief,
I want to make space now for the teacher to convey to you that there isn't a right way for you to feel.
That there's no way to grieve correctly.
That grief can feel in many different ways and many different times.
And in fact,
There isn't a limit as to when this grief has to stop.
The teacher and you sit by this beautiful scene,
The ocean coming in across.
Do you see the foam on the water?
The gentle sound of the water coming up.
The teacher looks at you with kindness and gentleness and a deep love and appreciation for who you are.
The teacher encourages this kind of gentleness to happen inside of yourself as the grief washes through you.
And as you sit with the grief,
Take a moment to find just the smallest bit or the most gentleness that you can find inside for yourself and for your feelings right now.
That's very good.
Your teacher gives you permission to feel everything and anything that comes up around your grief.
The teacher is always here to support you.
Know that you're loved.
And you look again at your teacher who looks back at you and has all the space for every feeling that may be happening.
The teacher understands your feelings,
But those feelings have a space there with your teacher.
Your teacher doesn't get swept away by your feelings.
The feelings can come strongly.
They're able to hold it for you.
See you in it.
Trust you with all those feelings and in every way possible.
You can feel this brief appreciation and recognition of your grief in this moment coming to a close.
And you look to your teacher in gratitude.
And in whatever way feels right to you.
You embrace,
Say goodbye,
And thank you and see you again.
Holding this loved one in your heart.
And the beach kind of sounds fade into the distance.
Your teacher goes back to the existence that they have.
You begin to feel your feet.
Your toes.
Your fingertips.
Make your hands into balls,
Into fists.
And circle yourself in just a protective glowing light all around you.
Right around your body,
As big as the room you're in.
Or as big as the outdoor area you're in if you're outside.
See this ball of light extending all around you.
As far as you can imagine.
Holding your fists and knowing that when you ball your fists you can bring this light around you again.
Tickle hands and toes.
Deep breath,
Feeling yourself back in this time and space.
Preparing your body for what's to come next.
Thank you for meditating.
See you next time.
