First notice what is going through your mind.
What are the thoughts?
What are the worries or anxieties?
What remains unfinished?
What about tomorrow occupies your thinking?
What frustrations are there?
And what joys are you remembering?
What excitement is there for what's ahead?
Notice what's happening in the mind.
And then slowly let it go.
As if opening a door.
Allowing these to leave,
Knowing they'll come back if necessary.
And if it feels right to record these in a journal that you might keep beside your bed,
You might pause this and do that.
Otherwise scan the body for what sticking points there are.
Where you might invite relaxation and spaciousness.
Imagining the body sinking into the mattress.
And the mattress coming up around the body fully supporting it.
Inviting sleep.
Each breath brings openness and relaxation.
And as the relaxation and openness increase the breath becomes easier.
Relaxing the toes and the feet and ankles.
The breath we imagine moves easily to these parts.
The lower legs and knees and thighs.
All relax.
The buttocks and pelvic floor and hips.
They relax and so the breath is easy.
And the tummy and low back,
Upper back,
Chest,
Shoulders.
They all relax and the breath is easy.
The fingertips find a natural position,
Relaxed.
The hands and wrists and forearms and upper arms all relax.
Everything sinks into the mattress.
The head sinks into the pillow.
The face is relaxed.
The teeth unclenched.
The scalp relaxed.
Everything feels heavy drawn into the mattress which offers support and sleep.
No doubt some thoughts have come to mind.
And that's okay.
In your sleeping position imagine little sailboats appearing.
They're small and delicate,
Maybe made of paper.
So we don't want them to fall over.
But we do want to send them away gently,
Carefully,
Lovingly.
The sailboats might have a color,
A shape,
A size.
Each one is propelled by the breath and only by the breath.
The breath then is steady,
Not too strong,
Enough to propel the little sailboats.
And as each new sailboat appears,
Imagine inscribing a thought,
A unique thought,
On each sail.
So pay attention to a thought.
With your mind transcribe the thought onto the sail.
And with your breath propel the sailboat away.
As the sailboat gets further and further,
The thought becomes less and less legible.
As each sailboat approaches the horizon,
The thought vanishes.
And as a new thought arises,
So does a new sailboat.
Each sailboat awaits your steady breath to propel it away.
To take your thought beyond the horizon of your consciousness.
With each new thought comes a new sailboat.
Each breath sends the sailboat gently,
Steadily away.
The thoughts might return and that's okay.
As with each new thought or each returning thought,
Another sailboat appears.
And with your breath,
That sailboat with your thought inscribed on the sail moves toward the horizon of your consciousness.
The body stays relaxed.
The breath remains steady.
The thoughts fade into the distance.
The only ripples on the water are caused by your breathing.
Everything moves away from you because your breath propels it gently,
Steadily.
Your body and head remain supported.
There is no need for tension.
Only relaxation.
Only heaviness into the mattress as each breath carries away another thought until the mind is empty.
And as the heart rate slows,
You find deeper and deeper relaxation.
The breath is easier and easier.
The thoughts drift further and further.
The body feels swayed from Each new thought brings with it a new sailboat,
A sailboat ready to sail away with your thought,
To take it over the horizon and beyond your consciousness until there is nothingness.
The body remains heavy and relaxed,
Fully supported by the mattress,
The bed,
The floor,
And ultimately the ground,
The earth,
With which we are one.
May your mind remain clear,
May your body remain relaxed,
As each thought is carried further and further,
To the point of indecipherability and pure relaxation.
May you know love and may you know peace.
May you know love and may you know peace.
