Make your way into a comfortable position,
Noticing if maybe you need to stretch,
Remove your body in any way before allowing the body to come to a place of still.
You may wish to take a nice deep inhale,
Holding at the top.
Before you exhale and let out a sigh.
Trying that again,
Allow your inhale to be a full body breath.
And as you exhale,
Let out that sigh.
Feel that feeling of letting go that comes with your out-breath.
The same way that we let go when we fall asleep at night.
And you invite that feeling of release and surrender to your exhale.
Stretch out-breath,
Allowing another layer to peel away.
And maybe that peeling away is of tension,
Whether physical,
Mental or emotional.
And perhaps as you tune into your breath,
You may also tune into yourself.
Just creating space for whatever is here for you right now.
And there's no need to judge anything,
No need to label good or bad.
Every exhale creating the space for you to soften just a little bit more.
And you may even invite a sense of curiosity to the breath.
What does it feel like?
And what does it really feel like?
And if you notice any mental chatter or activity in the mind,
Just notice what you notice.
And as you reawaken your attention to the breath,
You may use the breath as your refuge.
Perhaps even noticing how in this moment everything is okay.
Allow your practice to take on a certain quality.
Inviting a sense of allowing,
A sense of accepting.
While at the same time creating space for softening,
Relaxing into not only stillness,
But presence.
Aka.
The wings of mindfulness are first,
Awareness.
And second,
Compassion.
So as you notice what you hold in awareness,
Do so with compassion.
Treating yourself,
Treating your experience with a very gentle,
Inquisitive kindness.
When we give ourselves this gentle compassion,
We see that reflected to us in our world.
What is mirrored back to us is an experience of that same gentle,
Compassionate world.
Right now,
You have nothing to give and money.
Breathe deeply.
Inhale fully.
As we drop into being,
Suspending any doing,
We begin to shift.
And that shift includes from looking to seeing.
From reacting to responding.
We shift from seeking happiness to simply allowing joy.
We shift from living in time to experiencing the now.
Really present to the live unfolding of life moment to moment.
And as we give ourselves the permission to relax,
The permission to let go,
We slow down to the point of embodying natural peace.
To embodying gratitude that doesn't need a reason.
Gratitude for the journey,
Gratitude for breath.
Gratitude not only for the gift of life itself,
But for you.
Exactly as you are.
Just as you are.
Really present in this here now.
And as we give ourselves the permission to let go,
We slow down to the point of embodying happiness.
Noticing with your breath the gentle exchange of old for new.
So as you dive deeper into breath,
You dive deeper into yourself.
Allow yourself to be nourished by the feeling of melting.
The stillness of nothing.
As you use your breath as a channel to go deeper within,
Feel what it feels like to come home to yourself.
Connect to that part of yourself that knows everything.
Your highest potential.
Expanding that connection with higher self,
Deeper knowing.
Can you be open to receiving answers from a part of yourself that knows all?
To be curious about the experience of receiving answers rather than getting them.
To receive a message or an insight as easily as you receive your breath.
To be open to receiving answers from a part of yourself that knows all.
I'd like to offer you some mantras which you may wish to repeat to yourself.
Breathing in,
I hold the wisdom I need.
My inner voice is clear and strong.
I am powerful.
It is safe for me to trust my intuition.
I am worthy of receiving guidance and listening to it.
I easily and lovingly show my true self.
I am supported by myself and by the universe.
Let's clean ourselves up.
And with your next breath in,
Asking yourself,
What do I need?
World of And perhaps asking yourself,
How can I be more kind?
Gentle towards and compassionate with myself.
Kind,
Gentle and compassionate.
And maybe taking a moment to set an intention.
Allowing it to come from that deeper knowing,
Your intuitive higher self.
As we begin to bring our practice to a close,
I leave you with a poem by Ernest Holmes.
It reads,
She let go,
Without a thought or a word,
She let go.
She let go of the fear.
She let go of the judgments.
She let go of opinions swarming around in her head.
She let go of the committee of indecision within herself.
She let go of all the right reasons,
Wholly and completely,
Without hesitation or worry.
She just let go.
She didn't read a book on how to let go.
She didn't search the scriptures.
She just let go.
She let go of all of the memories that held her back.
She let go of all of the anxiety that kept her from moving forward.
She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right.
She didn't promise to let go.
She didn't journal about it.
She didn't write the projected date in her planner.
She made no announcement,
Put no ad in the paper.
She didn't check the weather report or read her daily horoscope.
She just let go.
She didn't analyze whether she should let go.
She didn't call her friends to discuss the matter.
She didn't utter one word.
She just let go.
No one was around when it happened.
There was no applause or congratulations.
No one thanked her or praised her.
No one noticed a thing.
Like a leaf falling from a tree.
She just let go.
There was no effort.
There was no struggle.
It wasn't good and it wasn't bad.
It was what it was and it is just that.
In the space of letting go,
She let it all be.
A smile came over her face.
A light breeze blew through her.
And the sun and the moon shone forevermore.
Bringing your practice to a close,
Take a moment to thank you for your practice.
