Hello my friend.
Welcome to your night time meditation.
My name is Stephen Dalton.
And it's my great privilege to guide you towards sleep tonight.
You find me tonight.
In a beautiful garden.
By a crackling fire.
In a country village.
In a place far away.
From all that you know.
So let's cue the music now,
Which will only add to the calming atmosphere.
And OSO.
Listen to the sound of the crackling fire.
And imagine you are here.
You get to fall asleep tonight.
In this beautiful place.
In a moment.
I'm going to ask you to close your eyes.
And from then on you won't need this screen at all.
Just let the fire and my voice and the calming music do the rest.
So get comfortable.
Settle your pillow.
Pull your covers up to wherever feels right.
There's nothing to do tonight.
Except lie there.
And let me carry you.
Towards sleep.
So when you're ready.
Let your eyes close.
Take one slow breath.
In through the nose.
And let it go.
Out through the mouth.
And again.
And out.
Slow and long.
Like a sigh at the end of the day.
One more.
And all the way out.
Now leave your breath alone.
Let it find its own rhythm.
It knows what to do.
You don't have to manage it tonight.
Listen to the fire for a moment.
To crackle.
The shift of the logs settling.
That sound is old.
Older than houses.
Older than words.
Something deep in you knows that it means warmth.
And safety.
And the day being over.
So let your body believe it.
You're warm.
You are safe.
Dark beyond the firelight.
Doesn't matter tonight.
Feel the weight of your body,
Where it rests.
The back of your head.
Your shoulders.
You're back if you're lying on it.
Your legs.
You're fake.
Everything is being held.
There's nothing left for your muscles to do tonight.
So let them stop.
Let's move through the body once now.
Slowly.
As we name each part.
Let it grow heavy and still.
As if the warmth of the fire is reaching it.
Bring your attention down to your feet.
Imagine the warmth of the fire.
Reaching your souls.
Your toes Let your feet soften Let your ankles go loose.
And lower legs.
Growing heavy.
Your knees releasing.
The long muscles of your thighs.
Letting go of the whole day.
Your hips.
And the base of your spine.
Sinking down into the bed beneath you.
Your stomach.
Rising and falling on its own.
Your chest.
Slow and easy.
No efforts anywhere your hands.
Let the fingers uncurl in the warmth Let the palms open.
Your forearms.
Your upper arms.
And your shoulders.
Dropping down.
Away from your ears.
Lower than you thought they could go.
Or not.
Your jaw.
And clenching.
Let the teeth come apart a little.
Your tongue resting in your mouth.
You're back.
Softening now.
Really relaxing and letting go.
To your face.
And the space between your eyebrows.
Smoothing out.
The small muscles around your eyes.
Going still.
Even your scalp.
Letting go.
The whole body now.
Heavy.
Warm.
Lit by the glow of the fire.
If a sword comes in now.
Probably will.
You don't have to chase it.
And you don't have to fight it.
Picture as a source if you like.
Written on a dry leaf.
You pick it up.
And you lay it gently on the fire.
You watch the edge cut.
And curl.
And glow.
It's gone.
A small spark.
Rising up into the dark and then nothing.
Another thought comes.
Another leaf.
You lay it on the fire.
You let it burn.
You let it go.
There is no hurry.
The fire will take as many thoughts as you bring it.
That's what it's for tonight.
That tightness you've been carrying.
Lay it on the fire.
Watch it go up as smoke into the dark.
The things you didn't finish today.
Let them burn down low They'll keep until morning.
They are not for tonight.
A conversation you keep replaying.
Lay it on the fire.
And watch it go.
You are safe here.
You are warm.
There is nothing you need to solve tonight.
The day is finished.
It's behind you now.
And it can stay there.
Stay with the fire now.
In your mind.
Look into the embers.
That deep orange at the heart of it.
Watch them breathe.
Brighter.
And softer.
To rise to.
And softer.
The slow way embers do.
All on their own.
Let your breath fall in with them.
If it wants to.
Is slow.
Glow.
Breathing in.
A slow fade Breathing out.
With the light.
With the dark.
You don't have to make it happen.
Just lie here.
And let the fire breathe for you.
The garden around you is fully dark now.
And that's alright.
Out beyond the firelight.
The trees are still.
The air has gone cool.
And the fire is warm.
And you are hell.
In the one warm circle of light.
Between them.
You don't have to go anywhere.
You don't have to be anywhere else.
There is only this.
The warps.
The globe.
The slow breath.
And the dark all around.
Keeping its distance.
Let's sink a little further now.
I'll count down slowly from ten.
And with each number.
Let yourself go down.
One.
Step deeper.
There is no bottom to reach.
Just down.
And down.
10.
Heavier into the bed.
Or whatever you lie upon.
Warmer now.
Safer now.
Completely safe.
The last of the day's tightness draining out of you.
Knowing that Whatever has been.
Has been.
Whatever will be.
Will be.
7.
Slower now much slower.
6.
Down,
Past,
Sinking now Five.
Halfway down.
And still going.
For.
So heavy you couldn't lift a hand if you tried Three.
The fire low and warm beside you.
Almost there now.
Almost gone.
All the way down.
.
.
.
Soft.
Warm.
Safe.
Stay here.
All the way down.
There's nothing to picture now.
Nothing to imagine.
Only your body and your breath.
And how heavy you've become.
Notice the breath moving in.
And death All on it's own.
You are not doing it.
It's being done.
Or you.
Just feel it.
Feel the cool of the air.
As it comes in.
And the warmth of it.
As it leaves.
And with each breath out.
The body gets a little heavier.
Feel the weight of your shoulders.
Pressing down.
The weight of your arms.
Lying wherever they've come to rest.
You couldn't move them now.
Without deciding to.
And you won't decide to.
Feel your butt.
Your hips.
All of it pressing down into the bed the bed pressing back up to meet you.
Holding every part of you at once and the breath.
Still moving.
Slow and even.
In.
And out.
Each one a little slower than the last.
Each one.
A little shallower.
A little quieter.
The way the breath goes just before sleep.
There is a warmth that comes.
When the body lets go this completely.
You might feel it in your hands first.
Or your feet.
A heaviness that's almost like warmth almost like the body humming.
Very low.
Let it spread.
Up through the legs through the belly and the chest.
And the arms.
A slow,
Heavy warmth Settling into everything.
The way he Settles into a room and stays.
You have nothing to do here.
Nothing to hold on to.
Nothing to keep track of.
The breath has it.
The bed has you.
If your mind drifts off mid-soul.
And loses the thread.
That's good.
That's the right direction.
You don't need to finish the sword.
Let it trail away.
Breathing in.
Slow.
Breathing out.
Slower.
Have you with every breath.
Woman.
Quieter.
Further down than you've been all day.
And still.
The breath keeps going.
All by itself.
Asking nothing of you at all.
You don't need me anymore tonight.
You can let my voice drift away.
Whenever you like.
Rest now.
You are warm.
You are safe.
Let the fire burn low.
Let the night keep its distance.
The fire is warm.
You are one.
Nothing to tend now.
Let it settle.
The embers will keep till morning.
Let the dark be soft around you.
You're held here.
You are safe.
Let your breath go quiet.
Let the day burn down to nothing.
Evie now.
Warm now.
Now.
The garden is still.
So are you.
Let the last log settle.
There's nowhere to be but here.
Let it all go cool and quiet.
Warm at the center.
So that the edges The fire is low.
The nights long.
Rest.
Let your breath fall away.
Sleep now.
The fire will watch over you.
Rest now.
You are warm.
You are safe.
Let the fire burn low.
Let the night keep its distance.
The fire is warm.
You are warm.
Nothing to tend now.
Let it settle.
The embers will keep till morning.
Let the dark Be soft around you.
You're held here.
You are safe.
Let your breath go quiet.
Let the day burn down to nothing.
Heavy now.
Warm now.
Now.
The garden is still.
So are you.
Let the last lock settle.
There's nowhere to be but here.
Let it all go cool and quiet.
Warm at the center.
Suck at the edges.
The fire is low.
The nights long.
Rest.
Let your breath.
Pull away.
Sleep now.
The fire.
We'll watch over you.
Rest now.
You're warm.
You are safe.
Let the fire burn low.
Let the night keep its distance.
The fire is warm.
You are warm.
Nothing to tend now.
Let it settle.
The embers will keep till morning.
Let the dark be sucked around you.
You're held here.
You are safe.
Let your breath go quiet.
Let the day burn down to nothing.
Heavy now.
Warm now.
The garden is still.
So are you.
Let the last lock settle.
There's nowhere to be but here.
Let it all go cool and quiet.
Warm at the center.
Soft at the edges.
The fire is low.
The nights long.
Rest.
Let your breath.
Pull away.
Sleep now.
The fire will watch over you.
Rest now.
You're warm.
You are safe.
Let the fire burn low.
Let the night keep its distance.
The fire is warm.
You are warm.
Nothing to tend now.
Let it settle.
The embers will keep till morning.
Let the dark be soft around you.
You're held here.
You are safe.
Let your breath go by.
Let the day burn down to nothing.
Heavy now.
Warm now.
Now.
The garden is still.
So are you.
Let the last log settle.
There's nowhere to be but here.
Let it all go cool and quiet.
Warm at the centre.
So that the edges The fire is low.
The night's long.
Breath.
Let your breath.
All the way.
Sleep now.
The fire will watch over you.
