Start to get comfortable.
Notice where you are sitting.
Notice where your body makes contact with the chair,
The couch.
Where your feet make contact with the floor.
Start to focus on your breath,
Breathing in and breathing out,
Breathing in and breathing out.
Notice the air flowing into your nose,
Down into your lungs,
And then notice the air coming back out as you exhale,
Out through your mouth through your nose and back out into the world.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Let go of anything that happened today.
Let go of anything that's going to happen tomorrow and just become present right here,
Right now.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Now bring to mind a holiday memory,
One that is full of love,
Warmth,
Laughter,
And joy.
Try to fill in as many details as possible.
Maybe that looks like being with your family.
Maybe that looks like being with a loved one.
Maybe that's just a walk outside.
Just fill in as many details as you can and notice how it makes you feel.
Continue to sit with that memory,
Bringing you love,
Warmth,
Laughter,
And joy.
Continue to hold on to those feelings and then picture yourself in a snow-covered clearing.
In the distance,
There are woods.
There's also a cabin that you can see with smoke coming out of the chimney and light in the front window.
You are dressed warm and comfortable.
The air,
However,
Is chilly.
The sun is setting and you know you need to walk to this cabin.
Take a minute to walk to the cabin.
Notice the snow crunching under your feet.
The cool breeze meets your face and there's dazzling sparkles from the sun as it sets.
You are about halfway to the cabin and you spy a guy standing out front next to a sleigh with a horse and he waves at you.
You know you want to go see him and you continue to walk towards the cabin.
As you approach the man in front of the cabin,
He just smiles.
He asks you if you'd like to go for a sleigh ride.
You feel safe and say yes.
You climb into the sleigh,
Which has a quarter horse connected to it.
The man climbs in next to you and takes off through the snow.
He heads to a wide trail in the woods.
As you ride in the sleigh,
You feel the wind on your face.
The man is still smiling and you're full of joy.
The sleigh ride continues at a quick pace and the woods are whizzing by you.
The sun has set and now there's a full moon in the sky.
It reflects off the snow like little jewels.
You continue to enjoy the sleigh ride and as you come around a corner,
The sleigh comes out into a large clearing.
The driver leans over and winks at you and suddenly the sleigh becomes airborne.
Up into the sky,
Up over the woods,
You see the moon.
Your eyes are wide with wonder as you see the town below you.
You cannot believe that you are flying through the air.
Cool wind on your face and the man just laughs and smiles.
As you are flying over these towns and woods,
Occasionally you see somebody look up and wave at you.
You are full of love and joy on this journey.
The man banks the sleigh to the left and turns around and you head back over the woods and the towns that you had already passed,
Headed back to the cabin.
The man slows the sleigh down and you land safely in front of the cabin again.
Again,
He nods and smiles and he asks you to come in to sit by the fire and have some warm cider.
Once more,
You feel safe and say,
Yes,
I would love to.
You enter the cabin,
Take off your coat and sit on a lovely couch in front of the fire.
He hands you a mug of warm cider and you sip it and feel its warmth all throughout your body.
You can feel the warmth of the fire on the front of your face and your hands and you continue to sip your cider.
You feel safe.
You feel joy.
You feel loved.
Take a minute to enjoy this time by the fire.
Allow the image of the fire,
The cabin and the man to fade.
Return your focus back to your breath.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Reflect on your meditation today and notice how it made you feel.
Let's end our practice with three deep breaths.
Inhale and exhale.
Inhale and exhale.
One more,
Inhale and exhale.
Thank you for sharing your practice with me today.
I hope you have a wonderful day.
Namaste.
