Between stimulus and response there is a space.
And that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.
As Viktor Frankl said.
So we're going to explore that space that Viktor Frankl is talking about by exploring the pause and experimenting with noticing the pause.
Investigating the possibilities of pause and noticing what the pause can bring for us.
As it offers a great deal of power.
So arrive in your space,
Arrive in time.
As I speak,
Drop into your breath.
In and out.
Deep and calm.
Long and slow.
And drop into your body.
Allow your breath to release your body into softness.
Mindfulness is about being very aware of what your mind is doing.
What your thoughts are doing.
And that gives you choice.
That gives you opportunity to choose whether to follow those thoughts or even believe them.
Whether to go ahead and think them.
And you can notice the impact of your thoughts.
Do they make you tense?
Do they soothe and relax you?
Do your thoughts bring you despair or do they bring you joy?
In this meditation we'll explore the pause,
That tiny moment between stimulus and response.
That tiny moment where you have the power to choose.
To have that power you need to firstly know that you can choose.
It might not feel like we choose our thoughts.
They appear out of nowhere.
But we can definitely choose our response to those thoughts.
And you need to be able to watch your thoughts.
Watch what they're doing.
Someone cuts you off in traffic or you open that email and we react.
But if we can learn to pause we have a tiny moment in which we can assess.
What are my thoughts?
How are they driving me?
Are they telling me a story that may not even be true?
Can I choose other thoughts?
Can I choose a response rather than this reaction?
So we'll focus for the next little while on the pause.
That tiny moment where you do get to choose to respond rather than react.
Respond rather than react to something that has happened in your world.
And also to your own thoughts.
Can I choose a thought in this moment?
Can I choose a different thought?
Is your breath in a long comfortable rhythm deep into your lungs?
Pushing your breath deep down into your lungs and then as you release empty,
Empty,
Empty your lungs.
And reconnecting with the softness that your breath can bring into your body.
In.
Out.
In and out.
Long and deep.
Notice too that tiny moment of stillness at the top of the breath when you have finished breathing in but you are no longer breathing out.
There is a tiny moment of stillness and then breathing out,
Out,
Out.
Before you breathe in again another tiny moment of stillness and then breathing in,
Breathing in.
Stillness.
Breathing out.
Out.
Stillness.
We can notice this stillness as a pause.
A tiny moment of pause.
Breathing in.
Pause.
Breathing out.
Pause.
Draw your attention into that pause.
And to that moment.
That moment of stillness.
That moment of pause.
Practice noticing it.
Breathe in.
There it is.
The pause.
Breathing out.
There it is.
The pause.
Take a few breaths.
Noticing the pause.
Breathing out.
The pause.
Our breath connects us to the other rhythms in our world and to the other pauses.
The wave rolls in.
Pause.
Pause.
The wave rolls out.
There it is.
The pause.
The moon builds to full and there it is.
A pause.
And the moon empties.
A pause.
Even your heartbeat.
Between each beat,
There it is.
A pause.
Into your breath,
Breathing in.
Notice.
Attend to the pause.
Breathing out.
Notice.
Attend to the pause.
Breathing out.
As you have been focused on your breath and focused on the pause in your breath,
Have your thoughts also settled?
Notice your thoughts arise.
Feel them arise just like an inward breath.
They simply arise,
It seems,
Without your input.
Practice bringing the pause to your thoughts.
A thought arises.
There is a pause.
A moment.
How do I choose?
Do I respond?
Do I react?
And let the thoughts settle.
Drop away again.
We are practicing noticing that pause.
If your mind does run away with a thought,
Simply bring it back to your breath.
Deliberately,
Intentionally noticing the pause.
Thoughts arise.
Pause.
Choose.
Thoughts drop away.
Settle.
Breathing in.
Pause.
Breathing out.
Breath arises.
Breath falls away.
Thought arises.
Thought falls away.
For the next few minutes,
I will not speak and we can practice together.
Simply noticing thoughts arise.
Noticing,
Feeling,
Practicing the pause.
And allowing the thoughts to fall away.
And you can anchor this practice using your breath.
Breathing in.
Notice the pause.
Breathing out.
Notice.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Breathing out.
Watching your thoughts arise.
Noticing the pause.
Allowing them to fall away.
Watching your breath arise.
Rest in this breathing cycle with a sense of allowance.
If there is any sense of effort,
Concentration,
Allow this now to just fall away.
And have a sense of allowance and ease in watching your breath.
And watching the pause.
And watching your thoughts.
And watching the pause.
And watching the pause.
And watching the pause.
And watching the pause.
Releasing your attention now.
And coming back to your body.
Notice any unease that might have settled in your body while you've been focusing.
And allow that to soften.
Release.
Let go.
Your feet.
Your legs.
Hips and back.
Your shoulders and arms and hands.
Your neck and jaw and forehead.
Soften.
Release.
Let go.
Allow your body to also pause.
I invite you to take the practice of noticing the pause in your breath and in your thoughts.
Take this practice of intentional choosing in the pause.
Into every moment of your life.
The pause is the space between stimulus and response.
In that space is the power to choose.
And that choice is your power.
Breathing in.
Pause.
Breathing out.
Pause.
You may be ready now to return to time and space.
You may choose to stay a little while longer.
Whatever you choose in this moment.
May you be safe.
May you be happy.
May you live with ease.
