Meditation for the Shower.
Hi,
I'm Cheryl Brouse.
Thanks for joining me.
This meditation is a way to turn your time in the shower into a beautiful meditation.
Have you ever noticed that you can be in the shower and your mind is lost completely in thought?
You may be thinking about a big meeting you have or planning your next vacation.
Your body is on a kind of automatic pilot,
Just going through the motions while your mind is wrapped up in thoughts about something else entirely that's not actually happening.
If you think about it,
We do this all day long and we often miss so many of life's simple pleasures because we're too wrapped up in our thoughts to notice them.
Today,
We're going to do a mindfulness meditation in the shower and use the shower as a way of focusing our attention and tuning into our experience and awakening to all of the simple pleasures of taking a shower.
Let's begin.
As you turn on your shower,
Pause for just a moment and think about how fortunate you are to have a shower and hot running water.
Just say a little thank you for the shower.
Expressing some gratitude for what we have each day allows us to savor our experiences more deeply.
Next,
As you step into the shower,
Notice how the floor feels beneath your feet.
Draw your attention down to your feet.
Can you feel the ground beneath you?
Can you feel the tiles or the floor,
The texture?
Is it smooth?
Is it warm or cold?
Now,
Just take a moment to listen to the sound of the water as it washes over your body.
If you pay attention and really listen,
Sometimes that sound that we hear so often can become much more interesting.
As the water falls onto your body,
Simply notice how that feels.
Now,
Let's start at the top of your head and slowly scan down your body.
First,
Noticing how the water feels as it washes over your hair and your head.
Can you feel the water droplets,
The warmth?
Notice next how the water feels as it gently hits your neck and your shoulders.
Can you feel the pulsing of the water droplets against your skin?
Can you feel the gentle massage of the warm water on your neck and shoulders?
Next,
Notice how the water feels on your back.
Notice the warmth,
The pulsing,
Or the gentle touch of the water hitting your body.
Now,
Turn around and notice the feeling of the water on your belly and chest.
And just notice how that feels.
Notice all of the sensations that you feel as you're moving your body around in a way that you can't feel it.
Notice how that feels.
Notice all of the sensations there.
Now,
Draw your attention to your legs and your feet and notice how they feel as the warm water washes over you.
Notice by paying close attention to how it feels,
You're awakening your body cell by cell.
Now,
Holding the shampoo or the soap in your hands,
Notice for a moment how it smells.
And as you wash your hair or your body,
Notice the gentle touch of your hands.
Notice the lather of the soap.
And notice how that feels against your skin,
In your hair,
And in your hands.
Now,
Take a minute to appreciate the warmth of the water,
The bloods in your hand and on your body,
And how it feels to gently clean your body.
You can take this time also to appreciate our bodies and all that it does for us each day,
How it gets us everywhere we need to go.
And as you rinse the soap from your body and the shampoo from your hair,
Really pay attention to all of the sensations of the water against your skin,
The soap as it washes away from your hair and your skin,
And how it feels to cleanse your body,
To rinse away all those soapy suds.
Look around,
Notice what you see.
Look down,
Can you see the soapy water running into the drain?
Do you notice any patterns or shapes?
Simply notice all that you see.
And as you rinse the soap from your body,
Notice how the soapy water is flowing down and is flowing down and flowing down.
Notice how paying attention and savoring this experience,
Pausing and slowing down to fully be present for it is different than how you usually experience taking a shower.
When you're fully engaged in this moment you're in control of your attention and alive and fully present for your life as it's happening right now.
By slowing down and breaking from your routine and from your automatic pilot,
You begin to really notice life's simple pleasures.
And this can bring you so much joy in each day.
So slow down,
Feel the warmth of the water on your body.
Feel the droplets as they touch your skin.
Notice any smells,
Notice the sounds.
And as you finish your shower and you turn off the water,
Notice how it feels to wrap up in your towel.
Notice how it feels to dry yourself off with that same soapy water.
Notice how it feels to dry yourself off with that same sense of awareness,
Feeling the touch of the towel in your hands and against your skin.
And see if you can foster a sense of appreciation or love as you dry yourself off,
Again,
Appreciating your body.
Give yourself a nice hug as you wrap up in your towel and enjoy the rest of your day.
Thank you so much for joining me today for this shower meditation.
I hope to meditate again with you soon on simple habit.
Thank you.
