The fast pace of life and living in a culture that values quantity and speed feeds impatience.
For many of us it takes a strong intention and usually some sort of practice to counteract that.
Meditation is certainly a great antidote to our speedy culture and you can add to that an intention to come back to the present throughout the day.
It's a great help to be in tune with your body because it will tell you when you are rushing.
Next time you feel impatient check in with your body.
What do you feel?
Chances are you'll feel some agitation and restlessness.
Just let yourself be present to that.
You may then find that some of the feelings emerge,
Maybe sadness,
Anger,
Frustration or fear.
Just allow yourself to be present with that too.
Allow the emotions to be felt and see what happens.
See what else you experience by being present to yourself and the moment.
Patience allows us to meet challenges peacefully,
Get along easily with others,
Accomplish long term goals and enjoy life.
With patience we can handle bad drivers and computer glitches without tearing out our hair,
Master a musical instrument or raise a child with our sanity intact.
We are going to use this guided meditation to uncover and release old programming and bring patience and peace into your most challenging situations and all of your life.
To gain the maximum benefit you'll want to work with this meditation on a regular basis over time.
To begin I would recommend using it once a day for at least a week.
And then you might begin to listen every other day and so on.
Use your own judgement,
Be patient and make it work for you.
Ok let's begin our guided meditation.
Make sure that you are nice and comfortable either lying down or sitting in a chair.
Now close your eyes and relax.
With your eyes closed you begin to connect with your inner world of thought and feeling.
Gradually the external world will fade from your awareness.
For the next little while give yourself permission to enjoy this relaxing experience.
You are free from all your responsibilities at this time so put aside any thoughts of tasks or concerns that may be waiting for you.
If you find that your mind wanders during this meditation simply bring your awareness back to the sound of my voice.
And I will guide you to a place of deep relaxation and inner stillness.
Take a slow deep breath in and let go of any tension you are holding.
As you feel yourself sinking into the surface you are resting on becoming calm,
Even more comfortable and relaxed.
Take another slow deep breath in and release your thoughts letting them drift far away.
And another slow deep breath and know that in this moment all is well.
You are now in a state of deep relaxation and it's time to enjoy a guided journey to an inner place of serenity and bliss.
As I speak just allow images to form in your mind naturally in your own time.
If mental pitches don't come easily to you then simply sense your imagined surroundings rather than seeing them.
Let go of all of your expectations and allow yourself to experience this guided journey in whatever way comes naturally to you.
Now imagine you are walking in a lovely valley meadow on a beautiful spring day.
The sun is warm on your back and puffy white clouds float by lazily overhead in the soft blue sky.
A little stream winds its way into the meadow from the hills nearby.
As you approach the stream its gentle sounds begin to soothe and comfort you.
You can smell the sweet scent of the stream,
The grass and the wildflowers scattered here and there across the meadow.
You feel peaceful and quiet at home here and you find a comfortable place to sit by the stream and relax even more.
A little way upstream is a giant fig tree.
Now and then a gentle breeze rustles the leaves and sends one drifting down to the water.
One by one the leaves float softly towards you on the current until you can make out their shape and colour.
And then watch them float on their way downstream far out of sight.
As you watch you feel no concern about how long it takes for each leaf to reach you.
No pressure over when it will finally pass out of sight.
The current carries everyone at nature's pace and you're content to simply relax and watch.
As you continue to enjoy this lovely setting take some time to reflect on the following question.
What demands do I place on myself and others that interfere with my ability to relax,
Enjoy the flow of life and be at peace?
Just contemplate this question as you listen to the water flowing in the creek and the birds and the sky and trees.
Leaves continue to fall and drift by.
The creek continues to offer its music to accompany its play of nature.
All is calm.
Is there a situation in your life where you might normally feel pressure or impatience?
How could you modify your attitude or behaviour to come into greater harmony with the situation?
Could you be more accepting?
Could you take a few deep breaths?
Use your imagination to observe yourself and how you could adjust your response.
Just watch as you allow things to unfold at their most natural pace without any attachment to the speed or result of the outcome.
If it's your job to participate in the process,
Just imagine yourself doing so as simply and directly as possible from a peaceful and neutral state of mind.
Let's take some time to observe yourself as you soften your response and notice how the results of this change might feel in your body,
Your mind and your emotions.
Now allow your mind to wander back to the meadow and the stream in front of you.
Listen to the birds and the gentle breeze that brushes past you.
Hear the soft bubbling of the creek at your feet.
Take a closer look now down into the water before you.
If you concentrate on one spot for a while,
You'll begin to notice a few oblong shadows near the stream bed.
You've spotted some fish and now you can clearly see them facing upstream,
Holding in the current,
Now and then turning off to the side to feed upon something before they resume their post.
These creatures were born here in the water and live this way.
Their only job is to remain steady,
Wait for food to float by and catch it as it comes.
Consider something that you do that requires you to wait,
Perhaps for other people to do something,
For circumstances to be right or for an inspired idea to occur.
Imagine that while you're waiting,
You're able to drop down into a peaceful state of rest and relaxation,
Where you're perfectly comfortable to simply observe,
Reflect and allow life to unfold in its own timing.
Take some time to notice how this peaceful state of mind might affect you and feel it in your body,
Your mind and your emotions.
Would it be something similar to what you're feeling now?
A deep feeling of serenity,
Peace,
Relaxation and letting go.
Look across the stream to the other side and you'll now see a family of foxes making their way across the meadow looking for their dinner.
Softly and patiently they go,
Perhaps finding insects,
Mice or other food to enjoy.
And now and then they stop to play with each other or look around at the stream or the hills in the distance,
Just taking everything in.
You might like to consider another situation in your life,
One that involves a certain level of intensity,
Concentrated effort or hard work over an extended period of time.
Just observe yourself and notice whether you tend to let tension mount to the point where you lose patience.
You might visualize yourself doing something to break up that tension in the situation,
Whether that means taking short breaks,
Switching tasks,
Using humour or taking a few slow deep breaths.
Or just relaxing into the work and however you can.
Take some time now to watch yourself making these small adjustments and notice how it affects the way you feel.
I'd like you to listen to the following affirmations and allow them to resonate deeply within.
Notice whether any of these affirmations bring up any resistance or discomfort and if that happens simply breathe deeply and relax and let go.
I will say each affirmation once then you can join in in your mind the second time.
Really say the affirmation with conviction in your mind as if each affirmation is already part of your life.
I make inner peace a top priority and arrange my life accordingly.
I accept and appreciate myself as I am and enjoy life at my own pace.
When others try my patience I relax,
Breathe and become peaceful.
When life tries my patience I relax,
Appreciate and let go.
I expect the unexpected and easily adjust to life as needed.
When tempted to rush I relax and deepen my experience of each moment.
Time is a gift to be enjoyed and I relax and enjoy the journey.
It will soon be time to bring this journey to a close but first ask for a sphere of light to be placed all around you and this experience so that all the positive benefits will stay with you and anything that you've released can be left behind.
Just imagine this beautiful sphere of light could be golden or silver or whatever colour you like.
Just imagine filling you up and it's all around you and you feel so peaceful and joyful in this light.
Now take a moment to thank yourself for giving yourself this gift and gently bring your awareness back to your physical surroundings.
You can take your time and when you're ready open your eyes and feel awake,
Alert and refreshed.
Namaste.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
