Peace,
Health,
Grace,
Blessing,
Joy,
And love to you.
Reggie Hubbard here and welcome to a gratitude meditation that I just want to offer with a bit of a twist.
Sometimes in meditation circles,
In wellness circles,
The concept of gratitude can get a bit cliche and I want us to awaken the Baptist tradition that I grew up in of counting your blessings and naming them one by one and in so doing,
Seeing you may have a little bit better than you thought.
So I encourage you in this moment to adopt a posture that allows the body to feel supported.
Maybe it's supported by a chair,
Maybe you're laying down on the ground,
Maybe you're standing but be supported,
Allow things to just settle.
Notice where there's any tension in the body and to the extent that you want to or are able to,
Offer gentle movements or offer your focused attention on these areas and allow them to soften.
So maybe it's opening and closing the palms if that's an option for you,
Maybe it's just being present with the inhale through the nostril,
Exhale out the nostrils or the mouth.
But even here giving gratitude for functioning anatomy and giving gratitude for the ability to take a meditative posture.
If you took any movement,
Giving gratitude for the ability to do so.
I had a stroke in April of this past year and so I appreciate functioning anatomy more than I ever thought that I would because I had temporary paralysis and I'm grateful for that experience because I now have an acquaintance with the miracle of simple functioning anatomy.
And now devote your attention to the breath,
Perhaps even placing one hand on heart,
One hand on abdomen if that is of interest or ability to you.
Giving gratitude for the ability to experience an inhale and exhale in this moment.
Giving gratitude for the inspiration,
The uplift that happens neurologically,
Physically on an inhale and the softening,
The release that happens on an exhale and just giving yourself permission to be present with those mechanics.
Those mechanics connect you to the universe,
They connect us to trees,
They connect us to plant life,
They connect us to all things.
So in this moment,
To the extent that you're willing and able,
Give gratitude for functioning respiration.
So rather than take it for granted,
Give thanks.
Continuing to allow the body to soften,
Continuing to allow the mind to soften.
And our first category of gratitude,
I want you to consider,
Is what are you grateful for physically?
Sometimes we have a fraught relationship with the body or we have our opinions about it but the body loves us unconditionally.
So what mundane thing in your physicality can you now give gratitude for?
Maybe it's just to the extent that you have all five senses,
In whatever degree,
Give thanks.
As I mentioned earlier,
I give thanks that I can move my left foot again and have independent ambulatory ability.
Walking,
I had to learn how to walk again,
So I give thanks that I can walk.
I give thanks at the immune system,
I give thanks for the neurological system and neuroplasticity,
I give thanks for the ability to have a conversation and not be fatigued.
So what are you grateful for in your physicality?
Twenty seconds to count them or experience them with an attitude of gratitude.
Deep inhale through the nose,
Exhale out nose or mouth.
Now shift your attention to considering what you're grateful for and the prompt I'll use is whimsically.
So what are some whimsical things that you're grateful for?
I'm grateful for the cackle of a murder of crows,
When they're like,
I love that.
I'm grateful for my brother's dog who has this trick,
Fake wants to go outside because every time he comes back inside he thinks he gets a treat.
That is hilarious because we're like,
Yo,
Everyone knows that you're.
.
.
So whimsical,
Because in times like ours right now,
Which seem to be so serious,
I give gratitude for whimsical things,
The chance to be silly,
The chance to just giggle when other times I might be crying.
So whimsically,
What are you grateful for?
Inhale through the nose,
Exhale out nose or mouth with gratitude for the experience.
Now shifting your attention to focusing on what are you grateful for that occurs in nature?
It could be autumn leaves falling from trees,
It could be sunrise,
Sunsets.
I saw a rainbow around the sun recently,
Right?
So shooting star,
Let's get cosmological about it,
But could be the scent of the land when rain falls after a drought,
But what are you grateful for about nature?
Daydream,
Count the blessings that you're aware of occurring in nature.
Inhale through the nose,
Exhale out nose or mouth.
Now shifting our attention to what are we grateful for relationally?
So this could be friends,
This could be partners,
This could be cashier at the bodega,
This could be anything.
So in the realm of relationships,
What are you grateful for,
Who are you grateful for?
It could be random conversations you have with Uber drivers,
It could be all these different things.
So in the realm of interpersonal relationships,
What are you grateful for,
Who are you grateful for?
Again,
Just naming it either by specific given name or situational name,
Count your blessings,
What are you grateful for relationally?
Now lastly,
And perhaps most importantly,
What are you grateful for energetically and spiritually,
Creatively?
So in the realm of the mind,
In the realm of energetics,
In the realm of emotions,
Like I'm grateful for tears that I've shed recently and the healing that takes place when that happens.
I'm grateful for ancestors,
I'm grateful for guides,
Sages and saints.
I'm grateful for music and sound.
So in any definition of spiritually,
Whatever that means for you creatively and energetically,
Emotionally,
What are you grateful for?
I can't even say I'm grateful for unseen healing that takes place in the body from major events,
Right?
I can't explain the healing,
But I know that it happened.
Give thanks for the prayers I received,
The prayers I gave spiritually,
What are you grateful for?
Now in conclusion,
Either going through the list that you created on the fly or just freestyling about all that you named and the experiences that that brought on,
But really being with gratitude for a long spell.
How has it impacted your body language,
Your energy?
Just be with that and maybe even give thanks.
Take a deep inhale through the nose.
Exhale out the mouth.
One more deep,
Full inhale through the nose,
Full of inspiration.
Exhale lighten your load.
Grateful for the mechanics of the breath and as you're ready,
Release the meditation.
Thank you for participating.
All love,
Blessing,
Best wishes and peace.
Grateful for you.
Bye.
