Hello,
This is Maggie,
And I want to thank you for joining me today for this River of Yes meditation.
As you know,
There are certain things about life we can control,
And others that we can't.
And this practice is to cultivate equanimity,
Or peace with things as they are,
Especially things you can't control.
To cultivate mental calmness and composure,
Especially in difficult situations.
It is a practice to help you learn to flow with what is as it is.
Take a deep breath in together first,
Breathe in through your nose.
And let it go through your mouth.
Allow your body to settle into the support beneath it.
Notice the connection between your body and your support.
And if you can make yourself any amount more comfortable do that.
Notice if there's any obvious tightness or tension you can release,
Go ahead and do so.
Quite often it can be in your face,
Your jaw,
Your neck,
Or your shoulders.
As you allow your body to soften,
Allow your heart to soften as well.
To be gentle with yourself in this practice,
And also just to be open to receive whatever is here for you today.
As we begin,
I want to tell you a little story.
When John Lennon first met Yoko Ono,
It was at one of her art exhibitions.
One of the installments,
There was this white ladder that led all the way up to the ceiling where there was a magnifying glass hanging from the ceiling.
And so John of course went over to the ladder,
Climbed up to the top,
Took the magnifying glass to see what was written on the ceiling.
And it was just one word,
Yes.
And that's what won him over,
Yes.
And that yes is what will inspire our practice today.
See if you can create yes in your body right here.
Maybe a little more openness,
A little lightness.
Maybe a gentle upward bend of your mouth.
And allow that to spread throughout your whole body.
Now imagine you are at a river.
It can look however you like.
Narrow,
Wide,
Loud,
Or calm.
Surrounded by trees or rocks or not.
Now imagine you're getting into a boat on this river.
Again,
The boat can look however you like.
And in your boat,
Start to make your way down the river,
Allowing it to take you in its flow.
Imagine as you flow down the river in your boat,
Repeat in your mind,
Yes.
Yes.
The waters may be nice and calm today.
You may move very slowly.
Yes.
It might be a little more turbulent.
Maybe some swirling and crashing water.
Yes.
Any smells?
Like fresh air or damp grass?
Yes.
Just allow your boat to move with the water as it is.
Repeating in your mind,
Yes.
And if you get distracted during this process or find yourself lost in thought,
That's normal.
It's part of the practice to notice when that happens and just come back.
Come back to your breath.
Come back to yourself in your boat on the water.
Notice as your river flows,
It may stay the same,
Quite steady.
Yes.
You might notice your river changes as you move through it.
Sometimes calmer,
Sometimes more turbulent.
Either way,
Yes.
Stillmusicarde.
If the sun comes out to warm your face,
Yes.
If your boat scrapes a rock,
Yes.
Simply flowing with what is as it is,
Yes.
When you're ready,
Guide your boat to the riverbank.
Take a deeper breath in.
And let that breath go.
And when you're ready,
Blink your eyes back to open.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
