Souls of the feet mindfulness.
If you're up to it,
Standing up perhaps with shoes and socks off,
But you can also do this with shoes socks on or even modify this for sitting.
Starting off by noticing the soles of your feet,
What sensations can you feel there?
Seeing if you can notice where your feet end and your shoes or the floor begins.
And you might like to very gently rock forwards and back,
Feeling the change of pressure on the soles of your feet as you do so.
Maybe a little bit from side to side as well.
Pretty amazing that this tiny surface area holds up our whole body.
Maybe even have a little sense of appreciation towards these feet.
And you might have a bit of appreciation towards the earth also,
The earth that's holding you.
It's having the sense that it's holding your body,
Heart and mind.
When you're ready,
You can start to really slowly and gently move,
Just watching your balance here.
Just noticing how if you step one foot forward,
You can feel the heel,
Then the ball of the feet,
Then the toes contact the ground.
Maybe at the same time feeling the other foot moving,
Slowly moving the other foot forward,
Noticing as the sole of that foot touches the floor.
Just experimenting here.
You don't need a lot of room to do this,
Paying attention to the sensations in the soles of the feet.
And like any meditation,
The mind will wander.
That's no problem at all.
As soon as you notice the mind has wandered,
Just gently acknowledging the thoughts and bringing the attention back to the sensations in the soles of the feet.
The monk Thich Nhat Hanh used to say,
Walk as though your feet are kissing the earth.
Perhaps you might prefer the idea of leaving an imprint on the earth of kindness,
Perhaps friendliness,
Perhaps even love.
As we come to the end of this meditation,
Coming to a standstill,
Taking a moment to notice the whole body,
Heart and mind,
Any effects from the practice.
A practice that can be done anytime as a lovely anchor to the present moment.
Thank you for joining me today.
