Welcome!
Allow yourself to settle into a comfortable position.
If it feels comfortable.
Gently close your eyes or soften your gaze toward the floor.
Take a moment to arrive.
Allow yourself to pause from the movement of life.
You don't need to solve anything right now.
You don't need to carry yesterday.
You don't need to figure out tomorrow.
For these next few moments,
Simply allow yourself to be here.
Feel the support beneath your body.
The chair.
The floor.
The Earth itself.
Allow yourself to be held.
Notice your shoulders.
Allow them to soften.
Relax your jaw.
Unclench your hands.
Soften the muscles around your eyes.
Today we'll spend some time exploring trust.
Trusting the process,
Trusting our higher power.
And trusting that growth happens when we remain connected to something greater than ourselves.
Many of us come into recovery carrying a great deal.
We carry worries about ourselves and about the people we love.
We worry about outcomes.
And about whether things will work out.
Sometimes we find ourselves holding so tightly to life that we become exhausted.
Recovery offers another way.
A way of surrender rather than control.
A way of trust rather than fear.
A way of allowing rather than forcing.
Now we'll use a breathing practice called box breathing.
Imagine tracing the four sides of a square.
We breathe in for a side.
We pause for a side.
We breathe out for a side.
And then we pause again for the last side.
Each side of the square is equal.
There's no rush.
No strain.
Let's begin.
Inhale slowly through your nose for a count of 4.
.
.
2.
.
.
3.
.
.
4.
Now hold gently for 4.
3.
Forward.
Now exhale slowly through your mouth for four.
Too.
Three,
Four,
And now pause for four.
Too.
Three.
Forward.
Let's do that again.
Inhale.
Too.
Three,
Four,
Hold.
Too.
4.
Exhale.
Two,
Three,
Four,
Pause.
Too.
3.
For work.
One more round.
Breathing in,
2,
3,
4.
Holding,
2,
3,
4.
Breathing out,
2,
3,
4.
Pausing,
2,
3,
4.
Allow your breathing to return to its natural rhythm.
Notice how the body feels.
Notice any softening,
Any settling.
Any space opening within.
The River of Life.
Imagine yourself standing beside a slow-moving river.
The water is clear,
Steady,
Peaceful.
The air is fresh.
A gentle breeze brushes against your skin.
The sunlight dances across the surface of the water.
Notice how effortlessly the river moves.
It doesn't force itself forward.
It doesn't resist the bends in its path.
It doesn't argue with the rocks.
It simply flows.
Recovery often asks the same of us.
Not that we stopped caring.
Not that we stopped showing up.
But that we stop fighting life.
That we stop trying to manage every outcome.
That we learn to trust the current.
As you stand beside this river,
Become aware of something you've been holding tightly.
Perhaps a fear.
A resentment.
A relationship.
A future outcome.
Maybe a situation you wish you could control.
Perhaps concern for someone you love.
No need to analyze it.
Just simply notice that.
Notice how it feels in your body.
Where do you carry it in your chest?
Your shoulders.
Your stomach.
Your jaw.
Simply notice.
Trusting the source.
Now imagine becoming aware of a warm golden light above you.
A loving presence,
Your higher power.
Save.
Wise.
Patient and always available.
With your next breath,
Imagine this warm golden light gently entering through the crown of your head.
No effort required.
Just simply receiving.
Allow this light to move into your mind,
Bringing clarity where there has been confusion.
Peace,
Where there has been worry.
Trust where there's been fear.
Allow it to move into your throat.
The place where truth is spoken.
The place where we ask for help.
The place where we admit we cannot do this alone.
Allow it to move into your heart,
Filling every corner with compassion.
Acceptance,
Understanding.
Love.
Feel this light softening the places where you've been gripping too tightly.
The places where fear has taken hold.
The places where control has become exhausting.
Now let this light move into your belly,
The center of courage,
The center of willingness.
The place where faith becomes action.
Feel yourself becoming grounded.
Supported.
Held by something larger than yourself.
The people we love.
Now bring to mind someone you love deeply.
Perhaps a child.
A parent.
A partner.
A family member.
A friend.
Someone whose well-being matters to you.
See them standing before you.
Notice their face.
Notice the feelings that arise.
Perhaps you want to protect them.
Maybe you want to fix something for them.
Perhaps you wish you could spare them pain.
Notice any urge to rescue.
To manage.
To control.
To carry what belongs to them.
And now remember.
Just as your higher power has guided your journey.
That same power is available to guide theirs.
Their lessons are not yours to learn.
Their path.
Is not yours to walk.
Their recovery.
Is not yours to manage.
You can love them.
You can support them.
You can pray for them.
And then you can place them gently into the care of your higher power.
Imagine doing exactly that now,
Placing them into loving hands far greater than your own.
Silently repeat.
I can love you.
I can support you.
I can pray for you.
But I can't walk your path for you.
Let's do that again.
I can love you.
I can support you.
I can pray for you.
But I can't walk your path for you.
The sound of creation.
Imagine now that beneath all the noise of the world,
Beneath the worry.
Beneath the fear,
There is a quiet current moving through all things.
The same force that turns seeds into flowers,
The same force that moves spring into summer,
The same force that brought you into recovery,
And the same force that continues to guide your growth.
Feel yourself connected to that source.
Connected to your higher power,
Connected to life itself.
Silently repeat.
My job is not to control the outcome.
My job is to stay connected to the source.
I can.
My job is not to control the outcome.
My job is to stay connected to the source.
Ask yourself gently,
Where in my life am I being invited to trust more?
Where am I being asked to loosen my grip?
What might become lighter if I allowed my higher power to carry this with me?
Bring your awareness back to your breath.
Notice the rise and fall.
The rhythm of life moving through you.
Take one final deep breath in.
.
.
Hold gently.
And release with an audible sigh.
May we leave here today a little more trusting.
A little more willing.
A little more open.
May we remember that we don't have to force growth.
We don't have to manage every outcome.
We don't have to carry everyone else's journey.
Our work is willingness.
Our work is trust.
Our work is conscious contact.
And the rest unfolds one day at a time.
May your higher power express and create in you.
As you.
And within you.
With gratitude and love.
Namaste.
