Let's start by first focusing on our body.
Taking your seat,
Which could be a chair,
On the floor,
Or even lying on your back,
Whatever is comfortable for you.
And if you're sitting in a chair,
Be sure that your feet are flat on the floor and that your ankles aren't crossed.
Want your back to be straight but relaxed.
And feel your sit bones connect to the surface of the chair.
Then place your hands,
Palms down,
On your thighs.
And then roll your shoulder blades back and down to open your chest to allow your breath to really flow.
Slightly tuck your chin to align your spine from its base all the way up to your head.
And then just sit and feel your body.
Feeling the points of contact between the surface that you're sitting on,
The openness of your torso,
And the length of your spine.
Don't try to force this.
Just feel as it is right now.
Now beginning at your feet,
Feel for any sensations that you might have on the soles of your feet,
The tops of your feet,
Into your ankle.
And slowly move up your legs,
Through your knees,
Into your thighs.
Then moving into your hips and your pelvis.
And just look for any sensations that might be coming up for you.
Continuing to move up your back and all the muscles that are along your sides and your shoulders.
And if you find any areas that are really uncomfortable or tight,
Just try to relax them by taking a deep breath in through the nose and sending it to that area.
Then a long,
Slow exhale through your mouth.
A nice cleansing breath.
And continue moving through your stomach and chest,
Just feeling what those areas are like.
Moving up the neck,
The back of your neck,
The sides,
The front,
Including your throat.
Now passing through your jaw,
Which can be such a tight joint.
We talk,
We eat,
We use it so much.
Moving on to your cheeks and your nose.
And then your eyes.
Just try to soften the muscles around your eyes.
Moving across your forehead and up to the crown of your head.
Just scanning for any sensations that you might be coming up with today.
And if you do find anything,
That's okay.
There's no right or wrong here.
If you find anything that is too much for you,
Just send it another cleansing breath and ask it to soften.
Release.
Now let's place your focus on your breath,
Which you do all the time without even thinking about it.
In through the nose.
And then where does it go?
Down your throat and into your lungs.
And then back up through your throat and nose when you exhale.
So feel the cool air when you breathe in,
Passing through your nostrils.
And how the air warms when it passes out of your nostrils on the exhale.
And with each breath in,
Your ribcage expands as it fills with air.
Then it contracts as the air leaves your lungs.
Maybe you feel the rise and gentle fall of your stomach as you breathe in and out.
Whichever place you feel your breath the most is your anchor.
This is where you place your attention on your breath and that can change every day.
Or maybe there's one or two areas that really resonate for you.
Tip of the nose,
The ribcage,
Your belly.
Whatever's accessible for you today is where you want to place your attention on your breath.
And there's no need to change your breath.
Just be aware that you are breathing.
If your mind begins to wander,
Thinking about what happened this morning or where you need to be later today,
Just realize your thinking and then gently return to your breath.
Always returning to your breath.
The mind is designed to think so it's totally normal.
You're not doing anything wrong.
You're just being human.
Some days our minds are busier than others and we call that monkey brain.
And sometimes you have to return again and again.
No problem.
Noticing that you are often thought and returning is the practice here.
So let's spend some time just breathing.
Breathing in and out.
Breathing in and out.
Breathing to thought from thought to your breath again and again.
Now that you've spent this time for yourself,
Being mindfully aware of your breath and your body,
Start to place your attention on your body's points of contact with your chair and your feet on the floor.
Feel your sit bones grounding you to the earth below.
Your feet connected to the ground.
And just feel yourself really centered here.
Then take a deep breath in and hold it.
And then slowly breathe out through your mouth.
And take another deep breath in and hold.
And again exhale completely through your mouth.
Now coming back into your space.
Gently taking some movement in your fingers and your toes.
And then when you're ready,
Slowly open your eyes and return to your space.
