Hello and welcome.
Thank you for joining me,
Dawn Jelly,
Today as we journey to a small river in New Hampshire and to meet an otter called Skyzel.
Otters are a symbol of good luck,
Playfulness and adaptability.
They teach us about our feminine side,
The need for more balance in our life and the power of receiving through surrender.
We are all familiar with holding on tightly to what we want.
Our ego is addicted to instant gratification and will hold on even to the detriment of ourselves.
But the universe does not resonate with the control of the ego and instead the very moment that you let go,
You receive.
When we focus on control,
We are limited by our own imagination.
Let go and often the universe will reward us in exciting ways and with more than we could ever have imagined.
So let's begin by first getting comfortable and closing your eyes.
We will start by taking three deep breaths together in through your nose and out through your mouth.
In and out,
In and out.
As you breathe in,
You start to hear the wonderful sounds of nature on a summer's day.
The air is alive with anticipation and excitement of what the day will bring.
It is early morning but you can already feel the heat building up and the promise of a hot day.
As you look around you realise you are in a wooded area walking along a trail.
You are flanked by the wizened trunks and branches of old crab apple trees,
Their fruit growing rapidly in the summer sun.
As you continue along the trail there are a few fir trees,
A large cottonwood with a mighty base separating into three trunks that reach up in the sky.
You notice a splash of red flying between the trees and say hello to Mr Northern Cardinal as he goes about his day.
And as you walk along you notice a small trail leading off to the left and dipping down slightly towards a river.
You follow the path and see a wooden bench looking out over the river and the shrub,
Diverse vegetation of the wetlands beyond.
You settle onto the bench and drink in the summer's day.
The river is wider here,
The water restricted by some old branches blocking the way and creating a small pond.
This place is wonderful and a welcome respite from your day.
You look over to the centre of the pond,
About ten feet in front of you and see at first what you thought was a log but then realise it is a little brown mammal floating on its back,
Stomach open to the sky receiving the sun.
It floats there for a few minutes and then turns over and its sleek long brown body dives under the water,
A second later cresting and swimming around with such silent grace and flexible ease.
Suddenly the playful antics stop and the little head pops out of the water and looks in your direction.
You expect it to be frightened of you and swim away but instead you see a small flattened triangular shaped head with tiny ears creating a wake as it swims across the pond towards you.
In a moment it is at the shore and its little legs climbing up the river bank towards you.
As it comes closer you see a thick flat tail,
Evidence of how it propelled itself so easily through the water.
Then it stops directly in front of you,
Sits up on its hind legs,
Head cocked in a curious fashion looking directly at you and then speaks in a high distinctly feminine voice,
Welcome to the little river,
I am glad you found time to play today,
Away from that continual sensory bombardment of that crazy human world out there.
My name's Skyzel,
I'm a river otter in case you are wondering.
Her fur is wet from the river and lays sleekly across her body.
Would you mind if I join you?
She asks almost as an afterthought,
As in two bounds she is first at your feet and then on the bench beside you,
Spraying water as it settles in and both of you now looking out to the river.
She then continues,
I love the summer in this spot,
The shade from the trees keep it a little bit cooler for us but then again I love the winter too when the river is frozen and oh boy it's so much fun sliding up and down on the ice.
She turns to look at you and continues,
I'm glad you are taking time to rest.
Resting can often feel like a luxury rather than a necessity required to restore us and resting here looking out over the river is especially good.
Resting can also be about surrendering to the moment,
Letting go of your to-do lists and learning to be vulnerable,
To just be in the moment.
I know you are worried that if you let go and be vulnerable that everything will unravel like a kite pulling from the reel when it's caught up by the wind.
It feels unintuitive in that moment,
We try to hold on tighter to what we have,
What we know and what we think we need but it is in that letting go that the kite can travel to new places,
Have new experiences beyond the string that kept it tethered.
When I lay on my back in the river to sun myself I'm completely vulnerable but it is in that moment that I feel liberated,
No longer distracted by what might be lurking in the dark depths below and just living right now in the wonderful moment.
You humans spend so much time in places that don't count,
Like in the past reliving regrets,
Always stuck in its shadows and then there are those that are already in the future trying to manipulate events that haven't even happened yet.
We cannot change the past,
We cannot change the future,
We only have the experience and the freedom of right here,
Right now.
So let go,
Be vulnerable,
Bask and float in the sun.
You both sit staring at the river for a while,
You think about the times you have ruminated and replayed events in your past and also how you have needlessly worried and tried to control the future and all your worries changes none of it except your freedom to live in the moment.
So as you sit on this wooden bench beside a little wet otter you start to embrace the moment,
The feeling of the wood beneath you,
The earth beneath your feet,
The wetness of the otter beside you gently soaking into your clothes,
The smell of the woods and the riverbank and the sounds of the birds in the trees and the nature around you.
She speaks again,
Be patient with yourself,
Accept the uncertainty of life and trust that you will be taken care of no matter what and then when you start to loosen your grip on control and you are open to receiving you'll become a magnet for that which you seek and receive something far greater than your limited desires.
She stretches out taking up the rest of the bench,
Yawns,
Well my dear it is time for me to leave,
The family is waiting,
I've got three pups back home and just like you they are learning how to swim with the currents.
She hops off the bench,
Bounds back towards the water and as she slides down the bank she calls out remember life is uncertain,
Live in the moment,
Play when you can and always take time to lay on your back and soak in the sun.
As she disappears under the water you notice that the river is starting to fade and then the wood around you begins to fade and finally the sounds of the wood begins to fade and then you realise that you have returned.
When you are ready and when you feel it is time take a stretch if you are able and when you are ready open your eyes and look around,
Take a moment to just be and remember the words of the river otter,
Life is uncertain,
Live in the moment,
Play when you can and always take time to lay on your back and soak in the sun.
