Welcome to Breathing Space for Meditation,
Storytelling and Poetry.
I'd like to invite you to use this series of meditation and readings from different storybooks and poetry books to find your own breathing space when you feel it is right for you.
As I normally start,
We bring ourselves into the present moment just by tuning into our senses.
So I just like to ask everyone just where you are to look around your room and see if you can find five things.
Just note any five things in your room.
Just note them to yourself.
Looking for the textures,
Colors.
And then four things you can feel.
Four things you can feel.
It might be clothing on your back.
Might be the pressure of you sitting.
You might have shoes on,
You might be able to feel those.
Just notice four things.
Just notice three things now.
You might be able to hear where you are.
Could be your own breath.
Traffic outside.
And now two things you can smell.
There's only two things you can smell.
And then finally one thing you might be able to taste if there's a lingering taste.
Just tuning into the senses.
And if your eyes aren't yet closed,
I'd like to invite you to close your eyes.
And we're going to begin a short 10-minute breath awareness meditation.
The bell will denote the beginning of the meditation and the end as well.
So however you are,
Get yourself comfortable.
Setting a definite intention to engage fully with the meditation.
I'd like you to start by just being aware of anything that might be present for you right now.
Anything at all.
What's happening inside of you at this moment.
Bring a gentle awareness to whatever is going on within.
As you do that,
You may be able to perceive your breath.
You may notice your breathing rhythm.
I'd like you to focus on your breath now.
Bringing gentle attention to the breath exactly as it is without changing anything at all.
Just noticing your natural breathing rhythm as you inhale and exhale.
What is your inhalation like?
Do you notice any change in your breathing rhythm?
You may notice as you inhale the air rushing past your nostrils as it enters the body.
What does that feel like?
As you exhale,
Just noticing the air rushing out of the nostrils.
Is it warmer?
Is it deeper?
Is it longer?
As you breathe in,
Follow the air into the nostrils.
You may feel the air rushing past your top lip.
Just noticing any tiny sensations.
As you exhale,
Noticing if the air is brushing past your top lip.
Is it discernible?
As you inhale,
Following each breath.
As you inhale in your next breath,
Following the air all the way into the body.
You may begin to notice your body rising and falling with each inhalation and exhalation.
Notice the lungs expanding as you inhale.
Notice your body falling as you exhale.
Turning a definite attention to the body's rhythm as it moves with each breath.
You may notice your stomach expanding,
The diaphragm making room for the air to enter.
And as you exhale,
You may notice your belly contracting,
Squeezing out the air out of your body.
Begin to expand your awareness now from the centre of the body in the stomach area,
Outwards,
As if a circle is growing from the middle of your body in the solar plexus region.
Noticing anything at all that might be present in the body.
You may notice temperature differences on your skin.
You may notice pressure or tension lurking somewhere in the body.
You may notice any pressure or tension dissolving with each breath cycle.
Bringing the mind back to the body.
Just sweeping the entire body from head to toe.
Just gentle sweeping,
Noticing anything that might be present for you right now.
J borough.
As usual,
I'm going to read a story today.
I either normally read a story or a poem.
Today I'm going to read a story,
A very short story called The Butterfly.
A man once found a cocoon of a butterfly.
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through the little hole at the end.
Eventually the butterfly stopped making progress.
It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther.
The man decided to help the butterfly,
So he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining end of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily,
But it had a swollen body and small,
Shrivelled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that at any moment the wings would enlarge and expand and be able to support the body which would contract in time.
Neither happened that in fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shrivelled wings.
It was never able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body into the butterfly's wings so that it would be ready for flight and once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
That's the end of the story.
I like that story because I think there's a clear moral coming through that story.
One of the things that really speaks to me about that story is the seeming good nature of the assistant,
The person wanting to help this butterfly actually causing the butterfly's demise.
That sometimes we intervene in someone else's problem or we have this compulsion to want to help others when the struggle is actually theirs to own for their own benefit.
But I think there are wider meanings to that story and you're more than welcome to share anything if you desire and maybe let us know how was your meditation,
Whether the story means anything to you that resonates at all at this time or anything else you might want to share about your day,
Anything on your mind at this moment or in your heart at this moment.
I'd like to invite you now to reflect on the meditation or the stories or poetry that you may have heard.
When reflecting on the meditation,
Bring a gaze of non-judgment to your experience.
If you had difficulty during the meditation,
Whether it was pain,
Discomfort or a flitting mind,
Just appreciate that.
And if it was a great meditation,
If you deem it as a pleasant experience,
Just appreciate that equally as well.
Any thoughts or ideas to contemplate on from the storytelling and poetry,
I'd like to encourage you to take that with you for the rest of the day and I look forward to seeing you in the next breathing space.
