Let's start with the bell.
Come into a space of evenness,
Lefts and rights,
Top and down.
Balance yourself.
You might want to rock back and forth to find an even seat or lying position.
If you'd like,
You can close your eyes,
Go inward to an increasing sense of quiet and stillness.
Recognizing that the mind can never stop.
That is not the goal.
And that quiet is not silence and stillness is not unmoving.
They're just directions to go in and enjoyments to be had.
Settling down.
Feeling heavy where your body contacts the ground or furniture.
Perhaps noticing parts of your body that feel light as if they could drift away.
Moving inward.
Slowing down.
Becoming more comfortable with lack of action.
Allowing a little boredom and casting a generous awareness around your body.
Noticing where your body is tight or relaxed,
Happy or agitated.
You could breathe into spots of tension.
Breathing in a little deeper,
Out a little slower.
Slowing down again.
Taking another step towards the quiet and the stillness and the rest.
Giving yourself permission to take a window without activity or planful thought.
You don't need to be productive just now.
Breathing deeper,
Slower,
Longer.
We're going to take cycles of activity,
Sufficiency and rest.
And notice in our body with each of three cycles of three periods what we feel.
Where we experience it and what it might mean to us.
And as with any meditation or any part of life's experience,
If your mind wanders to places uncomfortable,
Just come back,
Listen to my voice,
Take a deep breath,
Settle down.
There's no reason to think you could stop your mind.
Your brain is always firing for your good health and safety.
As you breathe,
Consider the word diligence.
What does it mean to be diligent?
What images,
Feelings or sensations does the concept of diligence call up for you?
Just noticing.
Taking note of where in your body you might experience that sensation.
Is it a rushing or an excitement?
Preparedness or activity?
You don't need to judge or evaluate,
Just notice where is that feeling?
What does it conjure up to think about diligence?
Breathing in.
The other word we're going to think about is sufficiency.
What does it feel like to have enough?
To be full.
To be materially secure and capable.
How do you experience that concept?
Is it a wholeness in your body?
A completeness?
Where do you notice sufficiency?
Let it in.
Let the awareness be generous,
Kind and curious.
Breathing.
And when you get distracted,
As we all do,
Just come back.
Notice your body or your breath.
My voice,
Sounds around you,
Whatever cues you need to bring you back to right now.
Our last concept is rest.
When you hear the word rest,
What does it make you feel?
What images or sensations,
Emotions,
Thoughts come up?
Maybe it's a heaviness or a settling.
Maybe rest is difficult for you,
Surprising or seemingly impossible.
Where is the concept of rest in you?
What do you notice?
Take stock of it.
What does it mean to rest for you?
Breathing into all of that possibility.
Then we'll take two more cycles of three parts.
I'll probably just say the word and a few words related to it,
And let you explore what it means to you as we breathe.
Diligence.
Productivity,
Alacrity.
Breathe into that idea and explore it.
Sufficiency.
Having enough,
Being enough,
Becoming resilient.
Sufficiency.
Explore that idea in yourself.
Rest.
Taking a break,
A Sabbath.
Notice where you experience that,
What it means to you.
Breathing it in.
When you get distracted,
When your mind wanders or wonders,
Be grateful that your brain is healthy and functioning.
Then come back to this meditation,
This time,
This very moment.
We'll do another cycle of the concepts.
This time I'll just say the word and give you time to explore without much cue.
Diligence.
Sufficiency.
Rest.
Where does all of this leave you?
What are you feeling right now after these cycles?
Has anything shifted or changed since the beginning of this meditation?
Take stock one last time of your body,
Sensations,
Feelings or thoughts.
Just registering,
Not much more.
