Hi.
So for the next couple of days,
Maybe even weeks,
We're going to go into self-love.
That is such a deep topic and so difficult for many of us that I thought I'd break this down into the many qualities of self-love.
So today the first one that we're going to go into is that of attentiveness or presence with ourselves.
We pay so much attention to other people,
To what they might think of us,
How we should behave around them.
We are often much more outwardly focused on giving to others,
On serving others,
On pleasing others,
Making sure that they don't get upset.
So today is about turning all that focus and attention and presence inward and actually genuinely being curious about ourselves and giving ourselves our own attention.
So let's start by closing our eyes and even being attentive to what would feel good to my body right now.
How can I put my body in a posture that feels supportive and kind and alert and present?
And just find that posture for yourself as a way to pay attention,
As a way to be present,
Like noticing where you put your hands.
Where do they feel good?
On top of your legs,
On top of the chair.
And as you have your eyes closed,
Focusing now on your inward experience and being genuinely and sincerely interested in yourself and then what might be arising in your present moment experience.
What is happening for me?
What's happening physically?
You want to turn that flashlight of your awareness,
This ability to witness yourself towards yourself with kindness and unconditional presence like everything that comes up is welcome.
Nothing is here,
Nothing is there to fix or improve or get.
All we're doing is just being attentive to ourselves.
And through the sensations in the body,
Both the pleasant ones and the unpleasant ones.
It might feel good somewhere in the body,
Like for me it feels good the way I'm resting my arms on this armchair.
And there also might be tension somewhere in your body or even pain,
Like I'm experiencing some tension in my shoulders right now.
And either way,
I'm giving it my full attention.
And then we do the same with our emotional state.
We just let ourselves be whether we're happy or sad or angry or scared.
We just say hello.
We just welcome,
We just accept what is here.
And we even do the same for our thoughts.
And we know there is so often so much thinking going on up there.
And sometimes they're not pretty these thoughts.
And we just let them be.
We're just present to them.
We just become aware of them.
And we don't leave our own experience.
We stay here.
We let things come and go.
Like sensations and feelings and thoughts.
Giving ourselves the benefit of the doubt.
That we are inherently good.
And no matter what arises in our thoughts,
In our sensations,
In our emotions,
We trust that goodness.
We just stay present.
Let nothing disturb us from this steadfast presence and space holding for our own experience.
And you can take this intention of being attentive and spacious with your own experience into your silent meditation now.
Just keep holding space for whatever arises and keep going deeper into what's underneath it,
What's between it,
What's behind it.
Where are you being taken?
So you can pause the video now and enter into your silence if that's what you're doing.
And then turn me back on.
You're ready to come out of your silent period.
Just sensing the spaciousness of your own attention and how you deserve that.
Just like the people in your life that you love deserve your attention and your presence.
So do you.
And as we're opening our eyes gently and receiving our surroundings.
Just making that commitment to not forget about ourselves now that we're going to get off this couch or the pillow or the bench.
And tune in several times,
Many times during the day into how am I?
What's happening for me and to hold space for ourselves?
Even as we now go into all the activities that might come right after this.
