Closing your eyes,
Let your spine be straight.
With your eyes closed,
Begin by focusing on the breath first.
As you inhale,
Say in your mind the word inhale,
And as you exhale,
Say in the mind the word exhale.
Follow your breath for a few moments,
Noticing it fully,
Noticing its rhythm,
Noticing that three-dimensionality of the breath.
Put a hand on your heart,
And now let the hand feel into the breath,
Let the hand witness the breath.
From the heart,
Bring to mind a time when you were given care,
When you were given something incredibly meaningful,
When someone gave you your time,
When someone gave you their affection,
When someone gave you an important gift or taught you something,
When someone made something important possible for you or gave you warmth,
Encouragement,
Kindness,
Believed in you when you weren't even expecting it.
Feel into that memory,
And let the body believe it,
Let the body feel that experience of having received that gift.
Feel it in every cell,
And say I accept,
I receive,
Universe,
Thank you for creating this person.
Sit with that sensation of generosity,
Of connection.
Feel that glow,
And say to that person thank you,
Thank you,
I am grateful,
What you did meant so much.
And now imagine that you can give this person a beautiful bouquet of flowers.
Imagine beautiful orange flowers,
Red flowers.
Imagine giving them a huge bouquet from your heart.
Imagine this person's face light up.
And with them holding that bouquet,
Give that person a hug,
And tell them the words you think they most need to hear.
I care about you,
I respect you.
I am grateful to live in a universe that you are also part of.
I'm grateful to share this earth with you.
And now acknowledge with gratitude the people who fill your life every day with something positive.
In your mind send a thank you to family that supports you,
To friends,
To teachers,
To mentors.
Feel your heart and feel that there is space in your heart for all these people.
Send gratitude to the people you don't know personally who have also impacted your life in a positive way.
Send gratitude to the people who have cared for you since you were a child,
And who have given you care as an adult.
Gratitude to your pets,
Gratitude to your neighbors.
Gratitude to the people who make it possible for you to do your work.
Gratitude for the young people you know.
Acknowledge this world with gratitude,
Its amazing animals,
Its insects,
Its plants,
Its birds,
Its fish.
You are a part of nature and connected to all of that.
You belong in a web with all of these people and animals and creatures and we are all connected.
Acknowledging that your words and your actions play a supportive role in the lives of countless people daily,
Many of whom you don't know.
Your contributions,
Your words,
Your actions change the lives of people daily.
Acknowledging with gratitude that we are part of community on this earth.
And let's end with gratitude to yourself.
Gratitude to yourself for meditating.
Gratitude to this heart that you feel beating under your hands.
Gratitude that you can be kind to yourself in every moment.
You can choose self-compassion every moment.
Gratitude for this breath,
This body,
This presence,
This heart,
This life.
And take a deep breath in.
A deep breath out.
And when you're ready,
Opening your eyes gently.
Thank you.
