Welcome to day two of the seven day challenge to reclaim your balance.
Today we'll be focusing on practicing gratefulness and appreciating what you have.
Let's begin by finding a comfortable position either lying down or sitting up in a chair sitting cross-legged however you feel is comfortable for you.
Just get nice and comfortable gently close your eyes and as you do just begin by connecting with your breath.
Take a nice long slow deep breath in and release it fully feeling that natural rhythm of your own breath as it moves in and out of your body.
Allow yourself this time to become fully present in this very moment and as you continue to breathe just slowly and deeply just allow any tension in the body to drain away into the surface beneath you.
Allow your shoulders to soften your jaw to relax and feel yourself becoming more and more grounded more and more connected to the stillness within you.
Now bring your attention to your heart and with your next breath gently invite a feeling to come in of gratefulness of gratitude.
Let your breath be the gateway to appreciating all things in your life both big and small.
Sometimes it's the smallest things that are the most important so let's start by focusing on gratitude for yourself yes for yourself for the body that carries you through each day feel the rise and fall of your chest with each breath you may want to place one hand on your heart one hand on your belly whilst you do this and remember that your body is always working for you it's always supporting you even in ways you may not even notice.
So just take some time now to really appreciate everything your body does for you and appreciate yourself thank yourself for being here in this very moment for carving out time for your own well-being for being good to you and consider all the things you've achieved in your life now no matter how small just reflect on a time when you have felt proud of yourself it may be something recent or maybe a memory from a long time ago but just feel the warmth of that moment and allow that feeling to expand in your heart you've done already and for this you are deeply grateful and now I wonder if you could think about people in your life who bring you joy who bring you comfort or love picture their faces and feel a sense of appreciation for the ways that they love you that they support you think about kind words that have passed between you or thoughtful gestures or simply just think of their presence being near you feel that wonderful sense of gratitude and allow yourself to feel grateful for all these connections that you have for all these moments of shared humanity let the warmth of these relationships really fill you reminding you that you are never alone you have all these wonderful connections around you to tap into and to enjoy and then next turn your attention to the many blessings that you've had in your life some may be very very obvious and some may be easily overlooked think about the roof over your head the food that nourishes you the opportunities that have come your way the experiences throughout life that have shaped you feel the abundance that surrounds you even in the simplest of things gratitude isn't just for those massive grand moments but it's for everyday gifts that are often taken for granted the small little things that we see or do or experience every day recognize how fortunate you are and allow those feelings to grow with every breath that you take that you take now and now consider the challenges you've faced while they may have been difficult challenges to take on each one has brought with it something a lesson an opportunity an opportunity for growth think of a challenge that has made you stronger more resilient and breathe into that feeling that acknowledgement that in the end these struggles have served you helped you to become who you are today helped you to become more strong or resilient or resilient maybe changed your path just take a moment to feel grateful even for these things knowing that they have contributed to a journey your journey in ways that you can only fully appreciate over time and as we come to the end of this meditation i'd like to leave you with a final thought imagine your life like the most beautiful garden you've ever seen some plants are tall and full of vibrant petals and blooms easy to notice easy to notice while other plants are smaller a bit quieter in their beauty a lot more subtle some parts of the garden may be wild and untamed while other parts are neat and orderly everything's in their right space and now picture yourself walking through that garden pausing to appreciate each plant for what it is understanding that each has its place its purpose in the overall landscape this is your life full of variety full of experiences full of moments full of people all worthy of gratitude and take a deep breath in now and as you exhale imagine sending your gratitude out to this garden nourishing it and helping it to flourish and before you return to your day take one last moment to feel the gratitude within you it's there alive present and ever-expanding and know that you can return to this place of appreciation of gratitude whenever you need to and that this practice of gratitude will continue to grow within time stronger and stronger and when you're ready you can gently bring your awareness back to the room that you are in begin maybe by wiggling your fingers your toes feeling the energy returning to your body and when you're ready slowly opening your eyes with that wonderful sense of gratitude knowing that this is always within you so take one last nice deep breath in and let it go completely and finally have a great day
