The medicine of this practice is to slow down and be really truthful and honest with yourself.
And to reconnect with the part of you that knows exactly where it's going.
And trust the pace of getting there too.
This practice is for you if maybe you've been pushing yourself a bit too hard recently and you just need to find your footing again.
Or this practice is also for you if you're building something meaningful right now and you just need to reconnect with your why.
This practice is also for you if you're just feeling a bit scattered and you're craving that earth energy to feel grounded and to gain some clarity.
And I'm so glad that you're here right now.
To take this time for you.
Make sure your body is in a position that feels truly and deeply comfortable.
And take a slow breath in.
And let it go.
Sometimes in life we are walking our path,
We're taking our journey and sometimes that path feels really long and endless and sometimes it feels like it's taking every possible diversion.
Sometimes that path feels really steep and challenging and sometimes it feels uncertain and sometimes we wonder if we're even moving at all.
The earth energy.
That we are working with in this practice.
Is reminding us that it's okay to take your own time,
To find your own pace,
To be a gentle and steady climber,
Not a sprinter,
Not burning out.
Just taking it step by step.
Trust the wise and patient part of you.
And through this practice,
You will reconnect to that part if you feel like you've lost the patient.
Trusting part of you.
And if emotions rise through your practice,
Let them.
If your mind wanders off,
Gently bring it back.
All I ask is that you just be here right now and follow my voice through this practice.
Let your eyes close slowly if they're still open.
And let the weight of your body sink a little deeper into wherever you're resting.
Speak to your body now,
Let it know that it can release the holding in the muscles.
The muscles,
The joints,
They don't need to be active right now.
They can just let go for a little while.
Let your attention wander all the way down to the soles of your feet.
The part of you that generally spends the most time connected to the earth.
And even if your feet aren't touching the earth right now.
Feel the energetic connection traveling from the soles of the feet and all the way down until it lands softly on the earth.
And this earth,
This beautiful planet that's been here for billions of years.
Right now,
Holding us all in this moment.
Take a breath in through your nose.
And a gentle sigh out through the mouth.
Breathe in.
And release.
Breathe in.
And let it go.
Now you don't need to control the breath,
Just for a moment,
Let it find its own rhythm.
Just observe,
Observe it as it comes in and as it goes out.
Just like we observe the tide,
The ocean waves as they come in and roll out.
Is your body still holding any tension right now?
The jaw,
The teeth?
Or the shoulders.
Or the belly.
There's nowhere in your physical body right now that you need to grip and hold.
Let it go.
With every exhale.
A little bit more release.
With every inhale a little bit more space.
There is absolutely nowhere else you need to be.
So now we are going to work a little bit more with the breath.
To move out of the busy mind.
And drop down and turn inwards into the body,
Into the soul.
We're going to gently count in for four through the nose,
Hold for four.
And then release out of the mouth for eight.
This gentle breathing will activate the parasympathetic nervous system.
Telling the body to rest,
To relax.
Take a normal breath.
And then breathe in 2,
3,
4,
Hold 2,
3,
4 and out 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8 breathe in 2,
3,
4 and hold 2,
3,
4,
And out 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8 and breathe in 2,
3,
4 and hold 2,
3,
4 and breathe out 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8,
Once more in 2,
3,
4,
4,
And hold,
2,
3,
4,
And out,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7 and 8.
Let the breath go completely natural.
And feel that little shift.
Into relaxation.
Maybe the mind just for a moment went a little bit quieter.
And this is where we journey from.
The stillness and the quiet.
Ready to take our mountain path.
In your mind's eye.
Imagine that you are standing at the base of a mountain.
Take a moment to see it.
Its peaks reach up into a sky that's clear and wide.
The air clean and cool.
Look down and feel your feet on the ground the earth healthy dark rich and alive Then bring your gaze back up to the mountain again.
The mountain is not asking anything of you.
It's not judging you on how high you climb or how long it will take.
It's simply there.
It's offering you a path,
It's offering you a climb.
It's offering you the view from the top.
But only if you want to take it.
It holds no expectations.
One step at a time,
You begin to walk.
And the path is wide and clear and very easy underfoot.
A gem tool.
Rise.
And with each step you take it feels like the ground is rising up to meet your feet so this path feels effortless.
What surrounds you as you walk?
What is either side of your path?
Trees.
Old rooted leaning slightly over your path.
Maybe the branch is almost pointing in a certain direction,
Letting you know which way to go.
Maybe there is the sound of running water from somewhere nearby.
Maybe the sounds of nature moving through the bushes and the grasses.
Breathe it in.
And as you work Are you carrying anything?
Not bags,
Not things,
But are you carrying things inside of you?
Are you carrying worries?
Or precious.
Are you carrying the thought that you're not quite where you should be by now?
And just here right now on your path,
Feel the weight of it,
Really feel it.
How heavy is that within you?
And then very consciously.
With your next exhale.
Leave it at the side of the path.
If you really want to come back for it later,
You decide that you want to pick it back up,
You can,
But for now,
Set it down.
You don't need to carry it.
All you need right now is one step at a time.
The path rises a little more now.
The sky opening wider above you.
And as you climb,
Become aware of a shifting sensation in your body.
A steadiness settling in.
A calming sensation finding itself.
Breath after breath.
Step after step.
You.
And your unique path.
At your own pace.
Partway up the mountain there is a place to rest.
A wide,
Smooth,
Flat rock that's warm from the sun and positioned perfectly to look back at the past.
That you have already walked.
Sit here for a moment,
Feeling the warmth underneath your body.
And look back.
See how far you have already come.
Not just on this mountain.
But in your life.
The ground you have covered.
The things you have navigated.
The versions of yourself that you have grown through to arrive here at this moment,
At this time.
On this section of your path.
You have already climbed so much already.
And most of the time.
You didn't even give yourself credit for it.
Give that love and credit to yourself now.
Place a hand on your heart.
And acknowledge this.
I have come a long way.
I've done hard and challenging things.
And I am still here.
Willing.
To keep climbing step by step,
But also to rest and reflect too.
Now look up towards the path that continues towards the summit.
Somewhere up there is the peak of the mountain.
But it's not for today.
Today is for reflecting on where you are right now and asking yourself honestly.
What am I building?
What am I walking towards or working towards?
And not what you think you should be building or what you think it should look like according to others.
But what are you in your truest version?
What are you here to build,
To grow?
What matters to you the most right now,
Not what matters to someone else,
But to you,
Truly deeply to you.
What is important for you right now?
And if you did,
Push yourself right now to reach the summit.
What is there waiting for you?
Would you then try to push yourself to the next,
The next peak,
The next summit,
The next mountain?
Or would you be happy there just to stop?
The mountains medicine today is to remind you We don't always need to keep climbing.
And the stopping,
The reflecting,
The resting,
The pausing.
Is even more valuable than the pushing through.
So now begin to make your way back down the path.
Slowly Gently.
And maybe you're carrying back down with you something that you found up there.
A word,
A vision.
Energy The trees start to welcome you back down to the earth,
Every step down,
Feeling yourself returning grounded and clear and purposeful.
And choose a word or an intention that you are bringing back with you from the mountain.
Not a huge dramatic declaration,
Just one true solid grounded thing that you are choosing to softly walk towards.
And reflect on what.
Next step might be.
Not today,
Maybe not even tomorrow.
Hold it in your heart.
And the weight of it is not a burden.
Just a little reminder of what you want to build and where you want to go.
You can say this out loud,
You can silently say it in your mind.
My next step is.
.
.
Please remember that words are spells.
Your soul,
Your heart heard your words.
The spell has been granted.
The medicine from our practice.
Is reminding us to stop and to pause.
To remember how far you have come.
And when things feel overwhelming.
Come back to the energy of the mountain,
Of the earth.
Come back to the permission of one step.
One breath.
One moment at a time.
And carry this with you into your day,
Into your week.
Take a slow,
Deep breath into your heart.
And a long,
Slow,
Smooth,
Full breath out.
You are exactly where you need to be.
Right now.
Namaste.
