So let's get comfortable in our seats and Take a couple of breaths.
And I'm going to invite us to set an intention if that feels right for you.
Um I.
.
.
Usually do not think that far ahead about what we're gonna talk about in these sessions tonight.
Trust my inspiration to just feed me whatever it's going to be.
And I wasn't really coming up with anything.
And then last night,
This song,
Very old Doobie Brothers song popped into my head.
While I was lying in bed,
It's called You Never Change.
It's a great song.
And it just started playing in my head and I thought,
Wow,
I haven't heard that song in a long time.
It was playing in my head and then I thought.
Oh,
Okay.
So I'd like to offer the intention.
Of something that you would like to change.
Whether it's for this session,
For this day.
For the season.
For your life.
Whatever.
And we'll go back to that later.
That's.
.
.
I invite you to hold that.
While we do this.
Practice.
So let's start with awakening,
Expanding our awareness of our senses.
As always,
You can keep your eyes open.
And look around,
See if you notice something different.
Something beautiful.
Something you'd like to change,
But without judging.
Or you can keep your eyes closed and see what you notice in your vision.
And when you've had enough of that sense,
You can move.
Into what you can hear.
In your room,
In your body.
Outside.
Not with judgment,
But just.
For the sake of noticing.
And in this expanded awareness of your ears.
See if you can make your breath.
More audible.
Maybe a little bit deeper.
Can you hear the in-breath?
Can you hear the out-breath?
It's so remarkable when we.
Make our breath more audible.
How much it sounds like the ocean.
The waves coming in.
The waves going out.
And if there's any other senses that you are experiencing.
Taste.
Smell.
And maybe putting them all together.
As this sensory being.
That you are.
And now tuning into the rise and fall of the chest or the abdomen as you breathe.
You can stick with that ocean.
Idea.
Things swelling up.
As the wave comes in and things receding as the wave goes out.
And as always.
When thoughts arise as they are sure to do.
You can just pause and notice that that's what it is,
And then you can send it out with the next wave.
As you breathe in.
And hear that wave.
Coming in.
To the shore,
Whether it's crashing or it's just rippling.
And then as you breathe out.
Imagine that wave going back out into the ocean.
And when your mind starts thinking or planning.
Or there's any fear.
Or worry.
You can send it out to see.
For the next few minutes.
On a raft.
So today we're going to talk about the fifth chakra,
Which is the throat chakra.
So.
Bring your attention to your throat.
But not necessarily in the front of your throat,
Like the whole.
360 area around your throat which includes the back of your neck.
And all the parts that are in there.
Around your throat,
Thyroid and your voice box.
And send it some.
Beautiful light.
The color of the throat chakra is blue,
So you can imagine.
Of blue.
Ball of energy or light forming in the throat.
And the flow of breath going right through it.
Bringing even more energy there.
And because the fifth chakra is where we communicate from.
I was thinking about communication and expression.
And because the fifth chakra is between the fourth and the sixth chakra.
The fourth is where we have feelings,
Our heart chakra.
And the sixth is where we have thoughts.
It's like the fifth chakra can take our feelings and our thoughts and make them into new realities.
Transformation.
And what's happening outside.
Today.
This week.
Is the best example of a visible transformation.
These trees are literally transforming from sticks,
Bare sticks.
And now there's all these little neon green.
Fuzzy things on them.
And we know that in the next couple of weeks,
There's going to be full canopies forming.
Everything will look different again.
I got an email from an old yoga teacher of mine.
So while you're breathing and thinking about your beautiful blue throat chakra.
I'll read what he wrote.
As spring awakens open all your senses.
Be on the lookout for the magnolias and the dogwoods to pop.
The first dandelion.
The first bumblebee.
Butterfly.
Bluebird.
The first spring salad.
Savor and delight in your favorites.
And adopt new ones,
And just like that,
Life becomes richer.
The other day I freed seven ladybugs.
I hope they found a warm place to tuck into.
And our resident beaver has returned and we're keenly watching for heron.
And our otters to return to our little pond.
So much to look forward to.
I love this year-long,
Lifelong practice.
And as life in our world becomes more disturbing.
Deep appreciation for the tiniest of things.
Helps keep my heart full and restores my cheerfulness.
So transformation.
So the Doobie Brothers were wrong.
Transformation needs rest.
And going inward.
At first.
And then transformation asks us to release fear.
But just like the caterpillar,
We are all capable of changing and transforming.
So going back to your intention that you may have set.
At the beginning of the session.
Try to sit for the next few minutes with the visualization of it already happening.
Come into reality.
And that audible breath that we.
Called up earlier.
Just helps bring energy to that throat chakra and helps bring our intention.
Into its manifestation.
Or if you just want to sit and breathe,
That's fine too.
So as we.
Bring our attention back into our body,
Into the room.
Take a couple of last Deep ocean breaths.
Move your body around a little bit,
Wiggle your toes,
Fingers,
Whatever.
Shrug your shoulders.
And when you're ready,
You can open your eyes.
Thank you so much.
For being with me.
Today.
We still have a little bit left of our candle.
And leave you with a fifth chakra metta prayer.
May you easily change and shift with life's uncertainties.
And may you allow your inner truth to guide your outer reality.
