So just take a moment to allow your eyes to close and allow yourself to begin to relax.
And as you begin to comfortably drift to sleep,
I don't know whether you'll drift to sleep faster to the sound of my voice or whether it'll be to the spaces between my words.
And as you comfortably fall asleep,
You can just take a moment to allow yourself to get comfortable and imagine a healing light softly,
Slowly and gently passing down from the top of your head to the tips of your toes,
Relaxing gently down through you as I count from ten to one.
And with each count,
Your mind can quieten and calm as the muscles soften and relax and you can begin the process of drifting peacefully asleep from ten.
That healing light relaxing the muscles around the top of the head,
Around the back of your head,
Gently,
Carefully relaxing the muscles around the side of your head,
Around your temple,
Around your forehead.
And with each out-breath that relaxation can deepen so peacefully,
So comfortably as it flows down around the eyes and around the ears,
Nine.
That relaxation moving down around the jaw,
Relaxing the jaw,
Allowing the tongue to relax,
The gently relax.
With that relaxation moving carefully and slowly as that healing light passes down the back of the neck,
Softening and calming those muscles around the sides of the neck,
The front of the neck,
Down from the head,
Gradually moving that calming healing light out across the shoulders,
The shoulder blades,
Relaxing those muscles like a deep and comfortable massage passing through your mind and body.
As that relaxation begins to move down those arms and I don't know which arm the relaxation will move down fastest,
Whether it'll be the right arm or the left arm,
But you can be aware of that healing light spreading gently down those arms,
Around the biceps,
The triceps,
Down into the forearms,
Moving all the way down to the wrists,
The palms of the hands,
Down to the fingertips and perhaps as that relaxation continues through those arms,
With each out breath,
The arms begin to feel heavier or lighter or some other sensation as relaxation sets in.
Seven,
And you know the process for sleep is that the body begins to relax,
And while the body becomes physically relaxed,
So the mind begins to drift and dream,
Initially to brief reveries before settling on the first dream of the night.
Six,
And that healing light can spread down from the shoulders and down around the chest,
The upper back,
Softening and relaxing those muscles gently,
Calming the breathing,
Helping you drift deeper and deeper into the experience.
The healing light moving down towards the stomach,
The lower back,
The sides,
Relaxing those muscles as it goes,
Bringing a deep sense of peace and calm to your upper body,
Releasing any tension,
Perhaps occasionally finding yourself shifting just a little to get a bit more comfortable.
Four,
With that relaxation spreading down around your buttocks,
Down into the upper parts of your legs.
Three,
Passing that relaxation down towards the lower parts of your legs,
Perhaps those legs feeling heavier and heavier.
Maybe as the body becomes deeply relaxed,
And your focus drifts inside more on what's going on for you and your mind,
You lose some awareness of the body as it becomes incredibly still.
Two,
With that relaxation spreading down to your feet,
Calming,
Softly,
Relaxing,
All the way down to the tips of your toes.
One,
As a final wave of relaxation,
Pulses gently through you from the top of your head,
Down through your body,
All the way down to the tips of your toes.
Three,
As your mind begins to drift and dream and wander into tonight's sleep story.
And you find yourself at Faraway Cottage,
The most beautiful cottage in this landscape.
An old thatched roof,
With shaped birds perched on top,
Stone walls,
Slightly arched windows,
And a garden that attracts so much wildlife,
And gives off the most beautiful scent of flowers.
And you're resting within Faraway Cottage,
You're sitting in front of the crackling log fire,
You're enjoying a good book,
While resting in the most comfortable and cosy armchair.
And on the floor is the softest of rugs,
And in the heart of the rug,
Is a sleeping kitten called Ginger,
Snuggled down into the fibres of the rug.
Breathing in and out,
Occasionally Ginger's paws twitching as Ginger dreams,
And shadows dancing on the walls,
As that firelight flickers in the fireplace.
The warmth of the fire,
Casting the cottage in the most cosy orange glow.
Bringing a deep sense of peace and comfort to your mind and body.
And you sit in that armchair,
Reading that book,
Feeling a deep sense of peace and relaxation,
Feeling like this moment is almost timeless.
And the living space is all one space within this cottage,
It's an open plan kitchen,
Dining room and living space.
And at one side,
Is that fire,
Directing its smoke up a broad chimney.
And above the fireplace is the most beautiful picture,
And ornaments adorn the shelf above the fire.
And rustic bookcases line the walls,
And rugs are dotted across the wooden floor.
Then at the far side of the room,
Is a kitchen space,
With wooden work surfaces.
An island,
Where you occasionally bake,
And use that space for your baking.
And around the sides,
Is a sink in front of the window,
Gazing out across the garden.
An agar,
Giving off the most comfortable warmth,
And the agar and the fire together.
There are old pots and pans,
Hanging on hooks.
And china plates,
Decorated with the most beautiful,
Ornate patterns.
Resting in a rack,
In front of the front door.
Is a draft excluder.
And over the windows,
Are the most beautiful curtains.
And this space is so cosy and comforting.
You get to just sit and read,
Listening to the quiet,
Here in the faraway cottage.
And you read all the way through to bedtime.
You close the book and place it down beside the chair.
And the fire burns down,
To the faintest of glows.
The room still warm and comfortable.
Ginger awakes,
And scrambles up onto your lap.
You carry Ginger to your bedroom.
And in the bedroom,
Is a thick and soft mattress.
Blankets draped across the bed.
Soft pillows,
Propped at the back of the bed.
A couple of cuddly toys,
Resting in the bed.
You sort the bed out.
Climb into the bed,
Having a low light on,
Just a little lamp beside your side of the bed.
Ginger,
Crawling over to the other side of the bed.
Resting down.
Looking at you in a way that makes you know they want you to just gently stroke them.
And so you gently stroke them,
As they drift back asleep purring beside you.
While you read a little bit more book in bed.
Under this dim and cosy light.
Before feeling tired,
Placing a bookmark into the book.
Closing the book,
Placing that down beside you on the bedside table.
Turning off the light,
So there's just the faintest moonlight.
Penetrating through the curtains,
Into the room.
Not really noticeable until your eyes begin to adapt to the dark.
In the moments before you close them,
And easily and effortlessly drift so comfortably asleep.
And as you rest and drift and dream.
Your mind and body heals.
You feel a deep sense of physical relaxation,
Passing through you.
As your awareness drifts deeper and deeper into the most pleasant dream.
And the next morning,
You awaken to the gentle sound of birds outside.
The faint glow of daylight shining through the curtains.
Feeling fully awake from the most perfect night's sleep.
You head through to the kitchen.
You make yourself some breakfast.
You head out into your garden.
Sitting on a metal chair.
With a soft cushion on the chair.
At a metal table.
Enjoying the breakfast and a drink.
Breathing in the fresh country air.
There's a slight coolness to the air as the sun is just beginning to warm the earth.
Then you can smell that freshness of the air.
As you listen to morning songbirds.
Singing to each other throughout the garden.
You see a butterfly resting on a plant.
In a beam of sunlight.
Wrapped between shadows.
Its wings spread,
Absorbing the warmth of that light.
You see bees already working their way from plant to plant.
Starting their work early in the morning.
You hear the sound of the pond at the end of the garden.
And the waterfall that gently trickles into that pond.
Creating rhythmic soft ripples.
Which dance across the surface of the water.
You see a dragonfly flip into the garden.
Dart over to the pond.
And seem to hover for a time above the water.
Before darting off again.
And the sky is the most beautiful morning blue.
With just the faintest wisp of some clouds.
Painted sparingly across the scene.
And after enjoying your breakfast.
You head back into the cottage.
You wash up your plate and cup and cutlery.
You place them on the draining board to dry.
You place some cat food into a bowl for ginger.
You pet them as they come over before they go and eat.
You keep an eye on them as they go over.
Nuzzling their nose into the food.
You smile ever so slightly.
Before turning and walking through to the living room.
And in a heavy drawer.
In a cabinet below the bookshelves.
You open the drawer.
You take out.
A roll of thick wool and two knitting needles poked through that roll of wool.
You close that drawer behind you.
And head back outside.
The sun continuing to gently rise up into the sky.
You sit.
On a swinging bench.
Overlooking the garden.
The sun shining down onto you and the bench.
And onto the garden.
Bringing a deep sense of warmth and comfort.
You place that roll of wool beside you.
With the knitting needles you begin to knit.
The sound of those needles tapping against each other.
The movement of your fingers moving the needles.
Weaving your fingers out and back.
As you move the wool around those needles as you knit.
And you knit at a comfortable pace for you.
Feeling that wool as it passes through the palm of your hand.
Almost tickling while passing past your fingers.
Noticing out the corner of your eye.
The wool moving slightly.
As more of that wool is pulled towards what you are knitting.
And you knit at a very comfortable pace.
You don't try to knit fast.
And you're not knitting slow.
You're knitting so that the whole experience feels and sounds relaxing.
Falling into the most comfortable rhythm.
And you're actually knitting.
A small item of clothing for ginger.
Something that will keep them warm.
On cold evenings when they want to head outside.
And sit resting outside on the swing chair.
Or at the table.
And you continue knitting that.
And while you continue knitting so the sun continues.
Passing across the sky.
Rising higher in the sky as lunchtime approaches.
And you stop at lunchtime.
You head back into the cottage.
To the kitchen.
You grab a plate,
Some cutlery.
You grab some items from the fridge and from the cupboards.
You make yourself some food.
You prepare that food.
Place it on the plate.
You check on ginger again.
Before heading back outside.
Enjoying your lunch under the warmth of the sunlight.
Relaxing in this cosy garden.
At the back of your cottage.
Sounds of leaves rustling as the wind gently blows a breeze.
Songbirds singing.
A blackbird landing on the lawn.
Hopping around and pecking at the grass.
Before launching back up to a tree.
A robin out on a limb.
Singing so beautifully.
It's red breast vibrating and fluttering with each note.
And after eating you continue to knit.
And later than expected.
The post is delivered to a mailbox at your gate.
You wander down to the front of your property.
To grab the mail from the mailbox.
And among the mail is a postcard.
And you look at the picture on the postcard.
It's a picture of the most beautiful beach scene.
The setting sun.
A palm tree stretching into the image.
Fluffy white sand reaching down to the seashore.
As your blue wrapped around that shore.
Delicate waves rolling in onto the shore.
You turn the postcard over.
You see the stamp on the back.
The markings across the stamp.
Your address.
And the handwriting.
From a friend.
Addressed to you.
And you begin to read that postcard.
As you walk back to the bench.
Sitting back down on that swinging seat.
Rocking so gently as you read the postcard.
And it's only a couple of paragraphs long of text.
Maybe no more than 300 words.
And yet it's surprising.
How much your friend has been able to squeeze into that text.
About what they've been doing.
About where they are.
Asking how you've been.
Saying it'll be great to catch up when they're back.
You turn the postcard back over again.
Looking at the image.
Imagining what it would be like.
To be visiting that beach.
Resting on a deck chair.
On that white fluffy sand.
Feeling the warmth of the sun as it beats down on you.
Smelling the salty air of the sea.
The broad rustling of the leaves overhead from the trees.
The gentle sway of those trees.
The sound of the ocean softly lapping onto the shore.
Pulling a little bit of sand into the water as it goes.
The clear sea.
The clarity of the water.
Perhaps struggling to define where the sky ends and the ocean begins.
As at the horizon.
The colour of the ocean and the sky almost blend together.
Maybe walking down to the seashore barefoot through the warm sand.
Feeling that tickle touch of the sand underfoot.
And the coolness when your feet pass beneath the surface of the sand.
The way the sand firms up as you approach the water's edge.
The warmth of that tropical water.
And standing a little way into the water,
Perhaps just above your ankles.
And watching small fish swimming around your ankles.
And feeling that sensation of the water tension around your legs as waves pass by.
The water rises and lowers around you.
And what a sunset here would be like.
And how sunsets can bring a sense of peace and silence and stillness to the air.
And then night time setting in on a beach where there's no light.
And so the environment becomes incredibly dark.
But overhead the stars look like a dusting flower splattered across the sky.
With a cloud of dust stretched across the middle.
The occasional shooting star fizzing past overhead.
The moon seeming so large when it's near the horizon.
It's light stretched across the surface of the ocean.
From the distance all the way to the shore.
Like a streak of silvery light sparkling across the blackness of the sea.
And you place that postcard down beside you.
Ginger jumps up and sits beside you and you continue knitting.
As the sun continues to mark out it's afternoon trajectory.
And you relax deeper and deeper into the experience of that knitting.
Becoming so absorbed that it's almost like time stands still.
And as the sun marks out the end of the day you head back in to the cottage.
You place your almost finished knitting,
The needles and the wool back in the drawer.
You place the postcard under a magnet on the fridge.
You make yourself some tea.
And sit back down in the living area eating the tea.
And after eating that tea you light the fire,
Place some logs on the fire.
Ginger settles down in front of the fire.
You read some more of your book.
Enjoying how slow and comfortable life is.
How relaxed you feel.
And as another night sets in.
So you head to bed.
You relax down in bed.
Thinking back over your day.
Pondering tomorrow.
Before drifting and floating so peacefully,
So relaxed asleep into slumberland.
Thanks for watching!
