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 asleep,
I don't know whether you'll drift asleep 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 more 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 down from 10 to 1.
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 10,
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,
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,
9.
And that relaxation can move down around the jaw,
Relaxing the jaw,
Allowing the tongue to relax,
The lips to relax,
The nostrils to gently relax.
With that relaxation moving carefully and slowly as that healing light continues to pass down the back of the neck,
Softening and calming those muscles around the side 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.
8.
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,
Triceps,
Down into the forearms.
7.
Moving that relaxation 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 can begin to feel heavier or lighter,
Or to develop some other sensation as relaxation sets in,
Or perhaps they become so deeply relaxed,
It's almost as if you become unaware that they're even resting there.
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.
6.
And that healing light can spread down from the shoulders and down around the chest,
The upper back softening and relaxing those muscles,
So gently calming the breathing,
Helping you drift deeper and deeper into the experience.
7.
That healing light moving down towards the stomach,
The lower back,
The sides,
Relaxing those muscles,
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,
With that relaxation spreading down around your buttocks,
Down into the upper parts of your legs.
3.
Passing that relaxation down towards the lower part of your legs,
Perhaps those legs feeling heavier and heavier,
Maybe as the body becomes deeply relaxed and your focus drifts inside,
You can lose some awareness of that body as it becomes incredibly still.
2.
With the relaxation spreading down to your feet,
Calming,
Softly relaxing,
All the way down to the tips of your toes.
1.
As a final wave of relaxation pulses through you from the top of your head,
Down through your body,
All the way down to the tips of the toes,
As your mind begins to drift and dream,
And wander gently into tonight's sleep story.
And in tonight's sleep story,
You find yourself taking shelter under a tree in the middle of a meadow,
And it's early in the morning,
The sun is just in the process of rising,
But there's heavy rain pouring down around you,
And you're sheltered beneath the tall tree,
It's branches arching overhead,
Like nature's umbrella.
The view from under this tree,
Of a dense curtain of rain,
No sign of the sunrise,
Just a gentle grey in all directions,
Barely able to see that far through the rain,
Unable to see any features around you,
As the landscape disappears into the haze of that rain.
The occasional sight and sound of water dripping from overhead,
As some drops of that heavy rain manage to find their way down the assault course of branches,
Through that canopy overhead,
But barely a drop reaches the ground underneath this tree,
And the air smells so soft and fresh,
And you can smell that scent of the damp soil and grass of the meadow,
The way the heavy rain changes the scent of wildflowers and freshens the air,
The sound of that rain as it pelts the leaves of the tree,
And strikes the ground around you,
And the streaks of that rain passing through the sky,
And gusts of wind whipping up some of that rain,
Changing its direction as it tries to flow to the ground,
And you rest with your back against the tree,
Unsure how long this rain will last,
You can feel the bark of the tree against your back,
And smell the scent of this tree,
And something about the experience just feels so peaceful and relaxing,
Although for now,
There's nowhere else you can really go,
The sound of the rain,
The smell of the fresh air,
Just brings a deep sense of peace and comfort,
That for now you're very happy to remain in this location,
And you would love to have seen the sun rising,
But you're comfortable to just be here and dry,
And after quite some time of resting here,
Beneath this tree,
You notice the sky seems to be lightening very slightly,
The rain still seems to be just as heavy at the moment,
But you notice that the sky is getting lighter,
And so you anticipate the rain will shortly begin to calm down,
And you sit yourself down onto the ground beneath the tree as you wait,
And after a while longer,
It sounds like that rain is calming,
And even longer still,
You notice the rain calming,
And the sky lightening,
And those rain clouds beginning to move on from this area,
And there's still moisture in the air,
But there's something deeply refreshing about the environment after the rain,
And as those clouds move away,
So the sun shines on the ground,
A gentle mist begins to form,
As the warmth of the sun begins to evaporate that rain,
And as the sun shines from behind you,
You can see your early morning shadows stretched out before you,
The long shadow of the tree,
The gentle golden light of this morning,
And a rainbow forming before you against those dark receding clouds,
It's striking colours arched across the sky,
Like an ethereal moment in time,
And you think to yourself how everyone has their own unique rainbow,
No two people see the same rainbow,
And you notice that within and outside of that rainbow,
As the rainbow gets bolder and brighter,
So some additional rainbows form,
And then no sooner have they formed,
And they begin to fade away,
And as the rainbows fade away,
So you walk out from under the tree,
Walking through the damp grass of the meadow,
Smelling the freshness of the air,
Still,
The occasional bit of moisture in the air,
Reaching your cheeks,
Catching in your hair,
And now you can see the whole landscape,
Now the shroud of rain has lifted,
And as you walk through this landscape,
You see something poking out of the mud,
Something that the rain had begun to uncover,
And you reach down with curiosity,
You tuck your fingers around that object,
You move it a little beneath your fingers,
Feeling its shape and weight,
And realise it looks a bit like a mask,
And you carefully pull it out while uncovering it more with the other hand,
Separating that mask from the mud,
And it looks like an old wooden mask which has probably been buried for many years within this mud,
And this mud here is very peat-like,
And so when things have been buried here over the years,
They've remained preserved,
And so it's very difficult to tell an exact age,
And you wipe the mud off the mask,
And you crouch down and wipe your fingertips among the damp fronds of grass,
Using the grass almost to wash and clean your hands,
And then wiping the mask in the tall grass,
To use the grass to try to clean the mask off a little more,
And then you hold that mask in front of you,
You look at the front of the mask and see its shape,
The curious expression on that mask,
The texture of the wood,
The peaty smell of the mask,
You turn it round and look at the rear side,
And it almost appears a little bit smooth,
As if worn down from frequent wear,
Like it's an item which someone had owned and worn for many,
Many years,
Very frequently,
And you feel this compulsion to move the mask towards your face,
Just to see what it looks like,
And its size compared to your head,
And as you move it to your face,
And get it so it's almost touching your face,
You suddenly feel it almost stick in position for a moment,
As through the eye holes,
The world around you shifts and changes,
And then you hear the world as different,
And you see the landscape change and undulate,
Almost as if different realities are flashing by,
As if you're in space,
Watching moving images in clouds,
And then you hear a noise,
Like a whispered voice,
Directing you to go in search of a dream catcher,
A dream catcher,
That went with this mask,
And some ancient rituals,
And to reunite the two,
And give them a proper burial together,
Storing them in the same location,
And you don't know where the voice came from,
It was almost as if it came from within your mind,
But it most definitely wasn't your voice,
And it was an unusual accent although the words could be understood,
And you move the mask off your face,
And the world around you shifts back to normal,
But as you look around you,
You now notice there's a gentle glow,
And this glow seems to almost guide you,
As if it's marking out a path through the landscape,
And so you begin to follow that glow,
Walking through this meadow,
And as you walk so you place the mask in a backpack,
Placing that backpack onto your back,
And it's as if a change has happened within you,
That that glow just seems to remain,
You continue on through this meadow,
And the dark clouds continue on into the distance,
The sky now turning the most perfect blue,
And as you walk so you hear the sounds of songbirds,
The rustle and dull thud of each footstep that you take,
You watch as bees and butterflies come out after the rain and begin to flit from plant to plant,
And you follow that glow in the direction of some woodland,
And you wander into the woodland,
And the ground is firmer in the woodland,
Each footstep like a dull thud,
The gentle rustling of the leaves of the trees,
The echoing of songbirds singing through the trees,
And you continue to follow the glow,
Curious where the glow is going to lead you,
Whether it's somewhere you can get to on foot,
But feeling an almost compulsion to want to continue on this quest to find that dream catcher,
And as you continue through the woodland,
So the day continues,
To get later and later,
And gradually afternoon approaches,
You decide to stop and have something to eat,
You light a small fire,
Cook yourself some food,
Sitting on a log by that fire,
Before continuing on your journey,
And you notice as afternoon moves to early evening,
That the glow remains,
And is now more visible as the sun is beginning to set,
And in the distance,
You see the lights of a cabin,
You decide to head towards the cabin,
To see if they'd let you spend the night,
Somewhere dry and warm,
And as you approach the cabin,
So you smell,
The sweet scent of different herbs and spices,
At the cabin door you knock,
And you wait,
And after a few moments,
A small hunched over elderly man,
With a long grey beard,
A very toothy smile,
And a pair of thin wired rimmed spectacles perched on the tip of his nose,
Answers the door,
And with an incredibly friendly voice,
And perhaps over enthusiastic,
They invite you in,
And inside their cabin,
The fire is crackling comfortably in the fireplace,
The warmth permeating the space,
With the most gentle,
Comfortable,
Cosy glow,
A small ginger cat,
Resting on a sheepskin rug in front of the fire,
Softly purring,
While breathing in and out so delicately,
You share your journey with this person,
And say that you are wondering if it would be ok to spend the night somewhere dry and warm,
And this person says that that would be fine,
They'll make up a spare room,
And they make you a drink,
And suggest you sit by the fire for a while,
Before they disappear off,
You hear them pottering around,
And as they potter around,
Out of sight,
You hear them mumbling away to themselves,
And they come back in,
And they sit down opposite you,
They tell you that's all done,
It's all set up,
You ask them who they are,
And what they do,
And they explain that they're a herbalist,
They mix herbs and spices,
And other ingredients,
To get curious and healing effects,
You explain about the mask,
And even show the mask,
And they take the mask from you,
And they try the mask on,
And nothing happens to them,
They get no experience at all,
And they hand the mask back,
But you feel there's a certain energy with this mask,
And you gaze up from the chair and look out the window,
And you can see that glow out of the window,
The glow you've been following,
And you ask the herbalist what they can see out the window,
And they just say that all they can see,
Is a darkening woodland,
And they can't notice this light you speak of,
And they offer to make you some food,
And they head off to the kitchen to do that,
And while they're in the kitchen preparing some food,
You stand up with your drink,
And you walk around and take a look at their bookshelves,
Reading the titles of the books,
Placing that cup down,
And occasionally picking up and putting back different books,
Picking a book up,
Flicking through,
Looking at the contents,
Perhaps reading a few pages,
Putting it back,
Picking another book and doing the same,
And as you look at those different books,
You eventually begin to smell the cooked food,
And the herbalist lets you know that dinner's ready,
And you sit down at a dining room table,
And continue talking as you both enjoy that food,
The herbalist says they don't get many guests out here,
They rarely see people,
But they enjoy their time alone,
They enjoy this place out here in the woods,
And after eating,
You settle down for a bit longer,
Reading in front of the fire,
Before saying you're going to head to bed,
And they show you to the room they've prepared,
You head into that room,
The smell of fresh bedding,
You sit down on that most cosy and comfortable bed,
And prepare yourself to settle down for the night,
Wrapping yourself so comfortably within the sheets on the bed,
And drifting and floating deeply asleep,
And as you drift and float deeply and peacefully asleep,
So your mind wanders to thoughts about that mask,
Those who perhaps made the mask,
Wondering whether the voice that you heard could be the owner of the mask,
And you drift into the most pleasant dreams before passing into the most comfortable deep recuperative sleep,
And the next morning you awaken to the clattering sound from the kitchen,
And the gentle glow of light through the curtains into the bedroom,
And the scent of the most beautifully cooked breakfast,
You head out of the bedroom,
You enjoy some breakfast and thank your host for letting you stay the night,
Before continuing on your journey,
And you're surprised to see that that glowing light is still outside the cabin,
And you follow that light,
Initially deeper and deeper into the woodland,
As the woodland gets darker and darker the deeper you go,
But then the woodland begins to thin out,
And the weather today is so dry and clear,
And you head out of that woodland,
Finding yourself,
Heading through another meadow,
Following that light,
Heading towards a valley,
And some cliffs that line that valley,
And you follow the light along the edge of a cliff,
Having to work your way through the trees that are at the base of the cliff,
And you find your way to a cave,
And the light passes into that cave,
And you head into that cave,
The gentle echoing sound of wind reverberating within this cave,
And you don't need a torch of any kind,
Because that glowing light lights your way,
Even though you know no one else seems to be able to see it,
And this cave opens up into a vast chamber,
And around the walls of the chamber,
You see different cave art,
You see outlines of hands,
Painted figures,
Painted animals,
What looks like figures engaged in different rituals,
And those figures look like they have masks on,
Although they're just basically drawn,
There's a line,
Like a separation in front of the faces of many of the figures,
And then there's something that looks like a spider's web,
Painted onto the wall,
And you continue to follow the glowing light,
And it takes you right to one specific spot at the back of this chamber,
And you go to that spot and find that there's a cavity,
And you reach in with an arm,
And pull out a box from within that cavity,
And you carefully open the box,
And inside the box,
You see what looks like the dream catcher,
In such good condition,
And you feel a tingling from that mask,
Even though it's in your backpack,
There's a tingling seeming to reverberate as if it's vibrating within your backpack,
And so you take it out of your backpack and feel compelled to place it on your face,
And as you do,
You hear that voice again,
And the world shifts around you,
You hear the sound of drumming,
You hear the crackling of a fire,
As you look through the mask,
Around you,
It appears like there's a tribe of people,
Dancing around a fire,
Wearing those masks,
There's a dream catcher hung up near the fire,
And it seems to be catching the sparks which find their way up into the air from that fire,
And the voice in your mind,
Talks about that dream catcher,
And the ritual and the masks,
And how the masks allow you to access an altered plane of reality,
And the dream catcher then captures the negativity from that other level of reality,
And holds onto that negativity,
So that you can live without it,
They explain that it takes on the negativity of negative thoughts and ideas that come to mind,
It takes on doubt,
And it holds onto all that for you,
So that you can be free of it to live your life,
But it was important that the masks and the dream catcher should be buried together,
But they had been separated from their tribe,
And their mask had ended up elsewhere,
But now's the time to be able to return that mask,
And a glow of light appears in the centre of this chamber,
And a voice says that's where to bury the mask and the dream catcher,
And you remove some stones that seem to be piled up in that centre location,
And with your hands you carefully dig down a little way into the mud,
You notice there are many masks carefully laid atop each other,
And the voice in your mind tells you that these masks were placed here,
Awaiting this final mask before the dream catcher is also buried with them,
And then all that negativity gets buried and freed from the world,
So that it won't infect anyone else's mind,
And their spirit can then rest,
And you take the mask off,
You place the mask down in the same pattern as the other masks,
You then place the dream catcher on top,
Carefully reburying,
Placing the stones on top as you found them,
The light now faded,
Silence within this chamber,
Knowing you've helped bring peace,
And close a chapter on a very old story,
And feeling like a weight is lifted from your shoulders in some way,
And a connection deeper than you could ever understand has been formed,
You find your way out of the chamber,
Out of the cave,
And begin making your journey back to where you came,
You stop once more at the herbalist's cabin,
You explain the experience you'd had,
The journey you'd been on,
They tell you they think they have a book of ancient history of the area,
That perhaps talks about that tribe,
And as they make some food and drink,
You settle down and read that book,
Learning more about the tribe and making a note to want to learn even more in the future,
You spend another night at this cabin,
Before continuing your journey all the way back to that meadow and then making your journey home the next day,
And once home you write down a few notes of the experience you've had,
What you've got still to learn,
Some key points of what you would like to look up and research,
And feeling a deep sense of peace and calm.
That night,
Feeling good to be back home,
You settle down in bed,
And drifting into the most pleasant dreams and the deepest of sleep,
You drift and float,
Peacefully asleep,
Into slumberland.
