Welcome,
I am Anne-Marie Allen.
This sit is going to have the focus of finding that inner stillness point when things in our day may have become overwhelming,
Where we begin to feel maybe a bit out of control,
Not knowing where that stillness is.
We've all had this in our life,
Including me.
Life can at times take us away,
But we do have that space,
That pause.
I want to be able to help you find this in this moment when the heart might be racing,
Or your face might be tight,
Or you might have a headache,
And just seeming to resist everything around you,
And people around you.
Take a moment to find your seat.
Maybe it's on a cushion or a chair,
Maybe at your desk or a sofa.
Maybe it's lying down on your back,
Or in the astronaut type pose,
Maybe with your legs,
Lower legs on a chair and your back on the floor.
Also,
Taking time to find a blanket if you're feeling chilled.
It can be hard to do these when we're feeling cold.
I invite you to note the space that you occupy at this moment,
Maybe sensing what surface your legs might be touching,
Noting your hands,
Sensing the sit bones or the back on the floor,
And then the invitation to find your anchor.
It may be the breath,
Or maybe a sound,
Or a sensation in the body.
It might be the feeling of hands on lap,
Or maybe bringing awareness to an earlobe.
If there is significant pain or discomfort,
Physical discomfort,
It is okay to have your anchor become something that is neutral or has little sensation.
If the anchor is your breath,
You might note how on the inhale there is a sense of coolness on that soft tissue inside the nose,
And then possibly a sense of warmth through the exhale.
As we're navigating through this meditation,
There will be thoughts that come in.
This will also happen for me as I'm guiding.
Thoughts will come in.
I encourage you to not resist the thoughts,
Rather kind of say,
Hello,
I see you maybe naming the thought.
And then bringing yourself back to your anchor.
It's important to remember that thoughts are not the enemy.
The thoughts and the awareness of them become the Hallelujah moment.
That's that moment of awakening,
Or awareness and stillness,
Where we get to be in this moment just as it is.
So allow the thoughts,
The thinkings to come through,
The things you're resisting.
Say hello,
Knowing that you're going to have time later to give them more attention.
Following the breath,
You might also note how the breath moves the body.
So sitting with your anchor,
Allowing the thoughts,
The frustrations,
The discouragements to come through,
Saying hello,
And coming right back here,
I'm going to offer some time of silence for you to allow for the awareness of what's going on.
Being kind to yourself in the process.
At some point you might know that the thought's been there for a while,
And you're chewing on it or telling a story.
Again,
Saying hello to it.
Even offering yourself gratitude for becoming aware,
Waking up the prefrontal cortex.
And if this thought,
Or thoughts that are coming through are hard,
Or there's anger,
Frustration,
Fear,
I encourage you to take a moment here to note what you're feeling in the body.
So this is the thought form,
Or the story,
But this is the physical sensation of the feeling,
So noting where is it landing in your body,
Maybe the chest,
Jaw,
Throat.
And I invite you to come in closely to it,
Bringing breath to the physical sensation in the body.
You might note the dimensions of the feeling.
What are the edges like?
Are they smooth,
Bumpy,
Jagged?
Possibly sensing the thickness of the feeling.
When mind wants to go into the story of the difficulty,
Bring yourself back to the physical feeling of the difficulty.
Becoming curious,
If it had a color,
What color would you apply to this feeling?
Is this sensation solid,
Heavy,
Or like clay,
Or prickly?
Sensing your breath in this space.
You might know that the story form wants to show up again,
But now allow yourself to give yourself the compassion,
The care of seeing this feeling,
Feeling it deeply,
Possibly noticing how it changes,
How it moves.
And then coming to the breath,
Or the body as your anchor,
This place of stillness that is always there for us.
And again,
Allowing the thoughts to come in and go out,
Noting the thought and then coming back to your anchor.
There is no need to be frustrated.
There is no need to be frustrated if the thought keeps coming through over and over.
This happens to all of us.
You're not alone with this.
Instead allow,
Offer kindness.
Maybe even saying,
May I be kind to myself in this time of difficulty or frustration.
I know I'm not alone.
And come back to the breath.
Possibly noticing the waves of the breath come in and out.
Just this inhale and just this exhale.
I offer another invitation to note again what's going on in the body.
Knowing if a thought has arisen that has created a sensation in the body,
Possibly the shoulders,
Face,
Arms,
Gut,
Back,
Legs.
And giving space to feel this,
To honor the feeling.
This is all a part of being human and honoring this humanness,
This human thing of emotion.
Again sensing the details,
So detailed that you could even draw a picture of the feeling.
While bringing breath to the space.
The mind has gone off into a story or a thought again noting and gently coming back to your breath or your anchor.
And then bringing awareness to the breath,
To the rise and fall of the chest,
Shoulders,
Ribcage,
Or noting the sensation of the air as it enters into the nostrils,
Into the lungs and then back out the lungs through the nose.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
An invitation to come to the breath or your anchor.
Taking some time now to again notice the space that you're occupying,
So bringing some awareness a little bit more outward.
And offering yourself some true gratitude as you've just done something that we often avoid or completely resist.
We often think,
Why do I want to feel difficult things?
But you may have experienced that as you're with the very difficult thing,
It changes,
It morphs,
The body settles a bit.
And things can become a bit more clear.
And next I invite you to,
And again these are just invitations,
But maybe touching thumbs to your fingertips,
Sensing any light coming through your eyelids.
Maybe taking a deeper breath in with a long,
Sweet exhale.
And remembering my dear that you are not alone in this,
None of us are.
At any moment of difficulty,
We can be certain there are many others around the world that are having similar struggles.
I invite you to use this meditation when you're entering into these struggles.
Teaching yourself how to be with it,
Feel it,
Watch it change,
And possibly watch it pass through you.
Be well and namaste.
