This is Alisha Davis and I welcome you to Soundbites for Serenity.
Today our theme is responding versus reacting.
Reacting means that in any given moment we are making a choice to be quick in our responses.
Often times when we are reacting we do things or we say things that we regret later on.
Often time when we are reacting it comes out of habit and it comes because we are unconscious of what's really happening inside.
Responding is about knowing that you have a choice.
In any given moment you can pause,
You can take a breath,
And you can observe from a place of being curious what's happening in that moment.
And then from that more objective perspective you are able to have a wider range of possibilities of what you want to say or what you want to do.
So notice today in any situation if you are reacting or if you are making a choice to respond instead.
If you would like to experience even more benefit from your guided relaxation please continue listening.
Let's explore more deeply our theme of responding versus reacting.
Reaction happens quickly.
Reacting takes just a few moments of extra time.
Reacting often means that we are not even clear about our real feelings.
We are acting on impulse,
On habit,
And we are acting in a way where we are not conscious of what we are doing.
When we respond we take time to consider our options.
We make a choice to manage our feelings.
We are proactive about what we choose to do.
To cultivate our ability to respond we must practice pausing.
We must practice getting control of our thoughts.
We must practice slowing down our quick impulses.
So to learn how to respond we must learn first how to slow down.
We must learn how to focus and how to just be.
So let's practice cultivating our ability to respond.
As you come into awareness of your body I invite you to settle.
Let's begin by shifting our attention from external to internal.
Begin by allowing your breath to be your guide.
Following the flow in and following the flow out.
Ride the wave of the inhale and ride the wave of the exhale.
And as you sit in this way you are learning how to deepen your foundation.
You are learning how to strengthen yourself from the inside out.
The more that you focus on your breath and on cultivating quiet space the more that you will have the resources when you are faced with any situation to have a capacity to respond instead of reacting.
So today if you find yourself wanting to say something or do something in a way that's reactive.
Remember to pause,
Remember to take a breath and remember to respond instead.
Many blessings and prosperity today.
