Hello and welcome to this meditation.
Today's meditation is called sharing gratitude.
During this guided session,
We will practice a heartwarming technique to foster gratitude and connection.
Whenever you're ready,
Go ahead and become as comfortable as possible,
Settling in and letting go of anything that you had to do prior to this time and anything that you have to do after our time together.
It will all still be there when we're complete.
Begin by relaxing your head,
Including the muscles behind your eyes,
Your jaw,
Your lips,
Releasing your breath as it naturally flows in through your nose and slowly releasing through your mouth,
Through your nose,
Letting that breath relax your shoulders and your back,
Relaxing your arms and your legs.
And if you have not done so already,
Allowing your eyes to slowly close,
Continue connecting with your breath,
Simply following the inhales and exhales,
Listening to your breath,
Feeling the gentle rhythm of your breath,
Nice and easy,
Nice and slow,
Slowing your breaths even more.
With your next long exhale,
Begin to disconnect from all outside sensations,
Releasing with the intention of bringing your focus within,
Deeper and deeper within.
Now bring to mind the most important people in your life,
Your closest family members and friends.
Imagine each person appearing before you.
Notice each and every one.
Look them in the eye and feel their presence here.
In your mind's eye,
See yourself reaching out to one of your loved ones and holding their hand in your own.
Make it real,
Feeling your fingers entwined with theirs and the warmth and softness of their skin.
Imagine the bright glow of gratitude emanating as a light from your heart as you bring to mind all of the ways in which this person makes you feel loved.
What gifts does this person bring into your life?
In what ways does this loved one support you?
Feel the gratitude growing and growing and becoming brighter and brighter with each and every beat of your heart.
Now feel this light moving from your chest all the way down your arms to your fingertips,
Flowing from your hand to the hand of your loved one,
Moving all the way up their arm into their heart,
Filling it with gratitude and love.
Imagine the look of joy on your loved one's face as they accept this gift of gratitude from you.
See the warm glow shining brightly within them,
Their heart beating in sync with yours.
Stay in stillness for a few moments,
Enjoying this heart to heart connection.
Now with your free hand,
Reach out to a treasured friend.
Once again,
Feeling their hand in yours.
Feel the light of gratitude shine brightly within your heart as you think of all the happiness,
The lessons and the experiences this person has brought into your life.
What is it about this person that you appreciate most?
Be specific as you bring these precious memories to mind.
And once again,
Encourage the glow of gratitude to flow from your heart to theirs,
Moving in and around both of you,
Enveloping you with gratitude and appreciation.
Continue to enjoy this divine moment of true connection.
Now imagine all of the people who are present joining hands and forming a circle.
Watch the light spread from the hearts of the loved ones by your side to the next heart and the next and the next forming a glowing ring of gratitude.
Once again,
Take a moment to notice everyone who is present here,
The people who you hold dearly,
The ones who you may or may not take the time to appreciate as often as you like to.
This is the time to offer your thanks.
If any distracting thoughts or memories come into this experience,
That's okay.
Acknowledge them and simply take a few deep cleansing breaths,
Feeling the glow of gratitude becoming stronger,
Brighter,
Burning away anything that does not serve this experience.
Remember that there is no room for judgment,
Grudges or holding on to the past here.
There is only acceptance.
You are here in the now.
Embrace this moment.
Keep deeply allowing the light within your heart to glow and grow,
Spreading through the circle once more,
Feeling each heart beating as one,
Each breath taken as one,
Allowing into this circle only unconditional love and appreciation.
And now it's time to release this visualization,
Gently letting go of the hands of your loved ones and seeing everyone in the circle release their hands as well.
Hold your hands up to your heart in gratitude for this loving experience and thank each person in your circle for being present.
Knowing you can come back here anytime you like.
Now allow the scene to fade and gently bring yourself back into your body with your next few breaths.
Deeply inhaling as you allow your eyes to flutter open.
Give your body a nice stretch,
Hands above your head and chest open to life.
Returning to your day feeling loved,
Appreciated and deeply grateful for every connection in your life.
Take a few moments to reflect on your experience.
Perhaps opening a journal and sharing anything that came up for you.
And if you feel called to reach out and connect with a loved one,
This would be a beautiful time to do that.
Blessings for the journey and I'll see you for the next episode.
