Once you've found the right spot to do this meditation,
Place where you won't be disturbed,
Right temperature,
Right setting,
Blankets where you want them,
We'll begin with the bell,
Just to acknowledge this time that we share and the preparation we're giving our body and mind to let go,
To say goodbye to the day that was and to release ourselves from the day that could be.
Settle in,
Make yourselves comfortable.
Notice your breath,
Where it is,
Where you find yourself.
Be steady,
Let gravity do the work.
You can spend all day resisting,
Straining,
Kicking,
Fighting,
Walking,
Wrestling.
Now,
As you prepare to rest,
Surrender to the Earth's pull.
Let it draw you down.
As you breathe,
You might wanna direct your breath to any places in your body that are tight or tense,
Just need a little extra attention right now.
Feeling your energy start to slow down and quieter,
Becoming more still,
Blessings of rest coming your way.
Settle yourself,
Make yourself just letting go,
Beginning to drift.
You can't stop thoughts,
That would be a death,
But you can give yourself permission not to think about any one thing in particular.
Let your thoughts drift and discombobulate as we do in dreams.
In any given day,
Mistakes have a way of creeping in.
Errors,
Transgressions,
Small and large injuries,
Someone giving you the wrong change,
Disrespecting you.
It happens all the time.
Perhaps the first act of getting ready for bed might be forgiving,
Letting go of any resentments,
Not wishing to blame or punish anyone in particular,
Because we all make mistakes.
And also extending that same freedom to yourself.
You've made mistakes,
You've hurt someone,
Bumped into them,
Said the wrong word.
May you be forgiven.
Even if you're not yet ready to apologize,
You can still ask forgiveness.
As you do that,
You might notice the lights beginning to dim,
Daylight fading,
Your eyes getting heavy,
The possibility of beautiful dreams filling up your evening and sleeping time.
You feel the pupil of your eye starting to lose focus,
The light fading.
This would be a good time to acknowledge the unity of all creation,
All life plants to animals to minerals,
Started at the same time,
From the same point.
So diverse yet so connected and unique.
And you might allow yourself to acknowledge that shared unity of all creation,
From the pebble to the ruby.
That might fill you with a great awe and a faithful joy and a deep and abiding love that spreads out to every moment of your waking and sleeping day.
You are protected and provided for.
Great,
Good,
And merciful wings cover you,
Shielded and protected from darkness and illness.
You are gathered up,
Carried.
Great,
Good forces are with you always,
Even in moments of distress.
No matter how many things may be arrayed against you,
There are powerful forces wishing only the best.
You can and you will lie down.
You will rise up again to the fullness of waking life as you go out and depart your conscious self,
Enter into the unconscious and dreaming self,
And come back eventually.
You are guarded and watched over the whole time.
There are great and good forces surrounding you.
Great and good forces that preceded you and looked over those before us.
Awesome,
Amazing forces that will look over those who follow us.
And we will be great.
You're breathing,
You're being embraced by the quiet,
Beloved in the stillness,
Gathered up under the protection of a loving universe.
You are blessed and protected.
And the universe is shining down upon you with grace.
And the universe turns its face to you,
Revealing to you wholeness and well-being and peace.
And while you sleep,
Great and good forces are there with you.
During the day,
You may question,
You may wonder,
You doubt.
You can let go of all of those questions and put them to your right side.
The great and benevolent force responsible for all mysteries.
When you're awake,
You strive mightily.
You endeavor,
You struggle.
And when you will sleep,
You can deposit all of that furious energy on your left side.
The great and good force responsible for strength and endeavor.
During the day,
Your time might be spent wandering or wondering,
Seeking out but not finding,
Looking for the right way,
The clear path.
And at night,
At your feet,
There is a great and good force holding a simple light to guide you through the dreams of rest and sleep.
During the day,
You may have aches and pains,
Suffering and distress.
And when you sleep,
You can rest all that discomfort with the great good force behind you,
Responsible for healing.
You are settled right,
Left,
Center,
Above you,
Kind and gentle presence,
Blessing and embracing.
Your mind may have already started to wander and depart,
And bits and pieces,
Edges and fragments of the dream may already mingle with your conscious thought.
Let your brain unspool,
Fire haphazardly.
Maybe there's a little bit of shifting or fidgeting you need to do still.
Last adjustments before you let yourself surrender to sleep.
We'll take one last conscious breath.
We'll breathe in ancient breathing sound.
You can rest your body in the palm of the universe,
Merciful master of all holding you.
The universe is cradling you and you have.
