Settle into a posture that feels steady.
Imbuing the body with kindness.
Allowing the spine to lengthen.
Feeling your height going upwards.
Your weight going downwards.
Letting the shoulders drop a fraction.
Softening the face.
Softening the little muscles behind the eyes.
Letting the tongue rest.
Loosening the jaw.
Let the throats be easy.
Open chest.
Soft belly.
And let the hands relax.
And taking a conscious,
Slow breath in.
And let the exhale be unhurried.
Another breath.
Allow yourself to arrive.
Now bring the same kindness to the mind.
No need to shut thoughts down.
Just notice thinking is happening.
Let thoughts have space.
Like clouds moving through a wide sky.
Let sounds come and go.
Let sensations in the body be included.
And keep resting in the simple rhythm of breathing.
In-breath arriving.
Out-breath releasing.
Before you try to change anything,
Notice what's already here.
Mood,
Energy,
Thoughts.
The feel of the day in your body.
If there's restlessness,
Let it be seen.
If there's heaviness,
Let it be felt.
If there is numbness,
Let that be included too.
Nothing needs to be pushed away to belong.
For these minutes,
You don't have to improve yourself.
You don't have to earn your place in life.
You don't have to be inspiring,
Wise,
Calm,
Or healed.
Just be here,
Breathing,
Human.
Notice the part of you that wants to do this well.
And without judging that part,
Let it rest a little.
Imagine placing a hand on its shoulder internally.
As if to say,
Thank you.
You can take a break.
Bring attention to something you can actually feel right now.
The weight of the body on the chair,
Cushion,
Or the floor.
The touch of clothing on skin.
The temperature of the air on your face.
Let sensation keep you close to what's real.
If the mind pulls you into planning or reviewing,
That's okay.
Return by feeling one contact point again.
Feet,
Hands,
Seat,
Breath.
Thoughts may continue,
That's fine.
You don't need a blank mind.
Let thoughts be like traffic in the distance.
Present,
But not the center.
Feel how there is something in you that can notice the noise without becoming the noise.
Rest as that noticing.
Bring attention to the center of the chest,
If that feels okay.
Not searching for a special feeling,
Just gently turning inward.
Ask softly,
What am I carrying that I don't need to carry right now?
You don't have to answer with words.
You might simply sense a weight,
A tightness,
A story.
If something becomes clear,
Imagine placing it down beside you.
Not to get rid of it forever,
Just to stop holding it in the center of your being.
Now,
Without straining,
Open to this possibility.
That the holy is not only far away,
But nearer than your thoughts.
Present within your own depth.
If that language doesn't fit today,
Let it be simpler.
That there is a loving presence,
Quiet,
Patient,
That does not demand you to perform.
Let yourself be seen by that presence,
Just as you are.
No mask required.
Receive these words as prayer in the shape of a poem.
I am tired of proving.
Tired of the inner courtroom.
The endless case I build for why I deserve to be here.
Let me come down from the tightrope of becoming.
Let me be human without calling it failure.
Where I am clenched,
Unfurl me.
Where I am braced,
Teach me the softness I can trust.
Let what is heavy be set down for a while.
Let what is true rise without force.
Meet me beneath my thoughts.
In the quiet place I usually rush past.
And if all I can offer is this one breath,
Let it be enough.
Let these words dissolve into quiet.
Return to the breath moving on its own.
Allow sounds,
Thoughts,
And sensations to come and go.
And simply stay.
Begin to deepen the breath.
Feel the room around you.
Wiggle the fingers and the toes.
And when you're ready,
Open the eyes.
May you move into the day with a little less proving and a little more being.
