Hello,
Lovely.
This is a walking meditation.
Walking meditation is a versatile,
Powerful practice to add to your repertoire.
It looks like very slow pacing.
To begin,
You can be standing with a relaxed,
Reasonably aligned posture.
Take what I like to call a vacation in a breath,
Meaning as you stand comfortably and breathe,
Just for now,
Release every single thing that is mentally effortful or stressful.
Let the in-breath nourish you and let the exhale carry away with it every bit of tension or concern.
Breathe in and lift your chest to a nice open posture.
Breathe out and in your mind's eye,
Put down your work,
Put down your projects,
Drop your worries,
And let your body be at ease.
You don't have to do this perfectly,
But you might surprise yourself at how well you actually can let go and relax as we take this pause.
Now let your attention pool in your feet.
Feel where they touch the ground.
Feel the insides of your toes,
The balls of your feet,
Your arches,
Your heels.
Start to walk very slowly.
The anchor for your awareness in this meditation is the rise and fall of your feet,
Their motion through space,
Their placing and adjusting as your weight shifts and as you move slowly forward.
Thoughts will still happen in the background and that's fine.
You don't have to control your thoughts or struggle to quiet them.
You can take a vacation from your thinking mind just by bringing curiosity to the feel of your feet as you continue to walk slowly and breathe fully.
Depending on the space you're in,
You can take a few steps and pause,
Turn,
And slowly walk back and forth or you can keep going in one direction.
As you move,
Shifting,
Balancing,
Maybe wobbling and returning to steadiness,
Feel the aliveness of your body.
Let awareness expand upward from your feet into your legs,
Your hips,
Torso,
Shoulders,
And arms,
Neck,
And head.
Feel your whole body moving through space,
Fueled by the breath and your beating heart.
Feel your mind as part of your body,
Muscle,
Bone,
Skin,
Brain,
All moving together as a whole.
Notice yourself as a miraculous machine and also as a being who notices.
Recognize consciousness itself in you,
As you,
A mysterious spiritual presence alive in this moment.
Maybe you can connect to the simple enjoyment of being alive.
Maybe you feel relaxed and engaged,
Content and curious.
Or if this moment holds pain or struggle for you right now,
See if you can make room for that in the spaciousness of your awareness.
Treat yourself with kindness here,
Knowing that things will continue to change.
Keep it simple,
One step,
Then another.
Midway through this day,
Perhaps midway through this life,
What do you want to do with your power,
Your presence,
Your strong body,
Your brave heart,
Your beautiful mind?
What would be marvelous,
Ingenious,
Satisfying,
Or simply fun?
What would bring more love into the world?
You don't have to know the answers.
Just let those questions land in your brilliant body,
Mixed in with your breath,
Dropped into your being,
Where they might meet the still small voice within you.
You could make walking meditation a formal practice and continue on your own for 10 or 20 minutes,
Or you might choose to finish for now,
Standing on your own two feet,
Feeling refreshed and recommitted to enjoying your life and sharing your gifts with the world.
