Welcome.
Find a comfortable position,
Sitting or lying down.
Whatever feels supportive for you right now.
Allow the body to settle.
There is nothing you need to fix,
Nothing you need to change.
And if it feels okay,
Softly close the eyes and allow your attention to turn inward.
Let your breath arrive,
Exactly as it is,
Natural,
Unforced,
Simply noticing the gentle movement of breathing in and breathing out.
For most of us,
There is a constant stream of thoughts,
Commenting,
Remembering,
Worrying,
Predicting.
An ongoing inner dialogue that rarely pauses.
Many of these thoughts are repetitions,
Echoes of the past,
Stories shaped by old experiences,
Conditioning or fears about the future.
And for a moment,
Don't try to stop the thoughts.
Don't try to change them or push them away.
Simply notice that they are there.
And notice something subtle,
Yet important.
There is the thought,
And there is the one who is aware of the thought.
You might begin to sense a gentle separation.
Not a pushing away,
Not a distancing,
But a soft recognition.
You don't need to follow every thought and you don't need to believe every story the mind tells.
Now see if you can quietly name what is happening inside you.
This is a thought.
This is a sensation.
This is an emotion.
Thoughts can feel loud,
Especially thoughts rooted in fear.
Fear shaped by the past or by imagined futures that haven't happened.
But fear too is a pattern of thought.
It arises and it passes.
It is not who you are.
See if you can rest just for this moment,
As the one who notices,
Rather than the one who reacts.
Gently,
Bring your awareness back to the body.
Feel the contact between your body and the surface beneath you.
Notice the support that is already here,
Without effort.
Feel the breath moving in and moving out,
Anchoring you in this present moment.
Right now,
In this moment,
You are not the story,
You are not the fear.
You are the present that is aware of it.
Allow thoughts to come and go,
Like clouds in the sky.
No need to chase them,
No need to push them away.
Simply noticing and returning,
Again and again,
To the sense of being here.
And gently remind yourself,
I can observe my thoughts without becoming them.
I am here,
Even when thoughts arise.
Take one slow full breath in,
And a soft easy breath out.
When you feel ready,
Begin to bring your awareness back.
You may gently open the eyes,
Carrying this sense of spaciousness with you into the rest of your day.
Welcome back.
Welcome home.
