Knitting And Crochet Visualization Meditation

This video was recorded for the Power of Positive Crochet Summit.
You will be led through a guided visualization of untangling your yarn and, consequently, the parts of your life that are seeking clarity and peace.

Transcript

Hi, My name is Lauren. I am a knitwear designer, Fiber artist, And certified meditation teacher. I started Mother of Pearl in 2016, And that is the name under which I write knitting patterns, Teach fiber classes, Spin and dye wool, And offer in-person and online creative retreats. I have been on this meditation path consciously since 2012, And meditation has transformed my life positively in every way imaginable. I am a better parent. I am a better friend, A better person. It has helped me manage my PTSD, My postpartum depression, And it has helped me to manage my anxiety. Most importantly, It's helped me to transform these things. I said managed, But what I really meant was transformed. Meditation has also guided my creative journey, And it is a big part in why I am here speaking with you today, Which is an honor and a privilege, And I am so grateful that you have chosen to spend your time with me today. I feel that when I am tapped into this creative flow, Into the deeper currents that run through us, Through my meditation practice, I am more open to receiving through my intuition the artistic projects that want to come through me, Through my hands, Through my needles, And out into the world. I believe that creating is an act of transformation, Not just the raw materials that we use in our crochet and our knitting, Right, But of ourselves and of the world, And when we approach this work, This practice with intention and presence, We are able to make those transformations positively affect ourselves and everyone around us. Everyone has access to this creativity. Everyone has access to their intuition, And the only thing that we need to do is to get still enough to hear what that voice is saying, So that's what we're going to do here today in this session. A lot of people think that meditation is getting rid of your thoughts or sitting completely still and being perfect or renouncing all of your possessions and your desires, The world, And living on top of a mountain. I'm here to affirm to you today that there is nothing wrong with the fact that you have thoughts. Everybody has thoughts, And getting rid of them is not the goal, Nor do you need to be a perfect meditator to experience the vast benefits of meditation, And in that same vein, You don't need to renounce all of your worldly desires and pursuits to be a meditator. Our purpose here is to be present in the world, And while we are here, Bring our peace and our presence to everything that we do. So with that, I'm going to invite you now to find a comfortable place to sit or lay down, A place where you won't be disturbed for the next 20 or so minutes, And we're going to put this into practice. I know that this is the third day of our time together at the Positive Crochet Summit, So you've been absorbing lots of information, And this is an opportunity to let that information integrate. So hopefully you've found a comfortable place to sit or lie down. Maybe you want to have some water nearby or grab one of the shawls you've made or blankets that you've made and get cozy, Wrap it around you. When we meditate, We want to be as comfortable as possible so we can experience all of the wonderful insight that wants to come into us, And when we're distracted by, Oh, My leg is falling asleep or I'm too cold, That just gets in the way. So be as comfortable as you possibly can. I'm inviting you into rest and comfort, And when you feel ready, You can gently allow your eyes to close, Relaxing the eyes from the world of seeing and looking, Perceiving, And bring your awareness to the breath. Every day we breathe in and out hundreds, Thousands of times, And this is an opportunity to really notice that you are breathing. Invite in a deep breath and let that breath go. Let's breathe in together again, Deep nourishing breath in, And release the breath. One more time, The deepest breath you've had all day, Breathing in and let that breath go. Now, Breathing at your own pace, Your own rhythm. Allow the breath to come in gently and allow the breath to leave just watching and noticing. Today, We're going to do a letting go meditation. One of my teachers says that life is just a process of letting go and letting go again, And we can practice this by watching the breath. We can practice this in our crochet or knitting because inevitably, There are times when we need to let go of something we've made and go back a little bit and transform it into something else. If at any time during this practice, You find yourself drifting off into thoughts, Thoughts about where you have to go, What you have to do later, That's okay. Whenever you notice that you're drifting away to other thoughts other than this practice, Just gently bring your awareness back to the breath or the sound of my voice. If you find yourself drifting away to physical sensations or sounds in your environment, That's okay too. The practice is in noticing when your attention has drifted away and bringing it back, Back to the breath, Breathing in and out. Breathing in and letting the breath go. We're going to start now with our hands, Bringing our awareness to our hands. Our hands do so much work for us all day long, But especially in this practice of creating that we love. Our hands are often from our work, So we'll bring our loving awareness to our hands and appreciation and gratitude for all that our hands do and create for us. We'll do a short somatic exercise. Somatic means in the body, Something that you can feel and experience in the body. So with your awareness on your hands, I invite you to feel what it feels like to clench your hands making a fist, Balling your hands together and squeezing tightly, Tightly. You can do this on the in-breath, Squeezing tightly, As tight as you can. And on the exhale, Release. Release the breath, Release the hands, Gradually allowing that release to spread up into your arms, Spread into your shoulders, Allowing the shoulders to drop away from the ears. And one more time, Breathing in, Let's squeeze our hands tightly, Tightly, Feeling what it feels like to be in tension, To be in clinging and breathe out, Releasing, Letting go, Nothing to hold, Nothing to do. Allowing that release to spread all throughout your arms, Into your shoulders and your neck. This contrast of grasping and clinging and release helps us to understand where in life we are clinging and it gives the body an opportunity to let go. Breathing in and breathing out. Breathing in and letting the breath go. There's no point in holding on to the breath just like there's no point in holding any tension in our hands right now. There's no point in holding on to any tension in our bodies right now. This is an opportunity to release. There's nowhere else you need to be, Nothing else that you need to do right now. You can relax and let go of anything you think you need to be doing right now. And just breathe in and breathe out. Now that we've released some tension from our bodies, Let's take that a little deeper by bringing awareness to the whole body. And if you notice anywhere in the body that you can release even a layer of tension, Using the breath, Breathing in and breathing out, Allowing whatever tension is there to release into the surface that you're sitting or laying on. Allow it to be held by the surface that is holding you. Breathing in, Bringing awareness into the body, Feeling where you may be holding tension and releasing what you can on the exhale. Allowing your thoughts to come and to go. Allow in your mind a thought to arise. And we're going to practice with letting the attachment to that thought go. So if there's something in your life right now that is feeling tense, That you have grasping or clinging or a holding with tension around, I want you to bring that scenario up in your mind. On the exhale, Allow yourself to visualize needlework, Crochet or your knitting, And imagine that you are untangling. Every now and again, Our yarn gets tangled up on the way to what we're working on. Maybe the inside of the yarn has come out and wrapped itself around itself. With every exhale, Imagine untangling that yarn. We know from experience that the tighter we hold, The tighter the knots are, The more we need to loosen, The more space we need in between each strand that is looping around itself. And creating tangles. Breathing in, Visualizing this process. Breathing out, Allowing the yarn to have space in between each strand. Zooming out so you can see which strand needs to go under which, Which strand needs to go through, And which strand needs to go over to untie these knots and make your work smooth and easeful. And applying that to the thought that came up in your life, The something that you're working with in your life right now. And allow the question to arise, How can I give this more space? How can I release some of the tension that I'm holding? How can I zoom out for a broader perspective? Breathing in, And letting go. Imagining giving that scenario some space. Releasing. Breathing in, And breathing out, Loosening those knots. Breathing in, And breathing out. Seeing how all of the strands that have come together in one jumble can be straightened out into one free-flowing strand by the work of your hands, By the work of your release. Visualize this yarn now untangled and free-flowing and ready to be incorporated into the greater work. Breathing in, Breathing out. Let's begin to bring our awareness back into our body and prepare ourselves to enter into our day with some new perspective. Feeling the surface underneath you. Start hearing the sounds in the background. Feeling the temperature of the air. Feeling the weight of your clothing. Breathing, And feeling the breath. Breath coming in, And the breath going out. Together, Let's breathe in deep breath, And release. In this next breath, You can release with a sigh. So, Breathing in, And breathing out. An audible sigh. One more time, Breathing in, Allowing yourself to make some noise and let the space you're in know that you're here and when you're ready. You can slowly blink your eyes open and welcome back. You can use this visualization anytime. I know you've been in this situation before. You can bring this visualization into your life as a metaphor for what you're working through. Having patience, Maybe even having some fun along the way. I find it fun to untangle yarn every now and again. It's like a little puzzle. I thank you so much for practicing with me today. It's been an honor and a privilege and I'm so grateful that you chose to spend your time with me.