This is a process I like to return to frequently,
And you can too.
Come back to it as many times as you need to wire it into your subconscious,
Fortify your life,
And give you the focus you need.
So let's grab pen and paper and take a few short moments to first start by writing three things down that you are currently most grateful for.
Aim to be as specific as possible.
So grab a piece of paper and a pen and ask,
What am I currently grateful for?
It can be a person in your life,
A destination you recently went to,
A meal you ate,
Friendships you have,
It can be for your current state of health,
The nutritious food you fed yourself this morning,
It can be as basic as the fresh water that runs from your tap or the hot shower you had this morning.
It could be someone who makes your life easier.
We aren't sharing these,
So there's no need to censor them or create the perfect answer.
Just allow it to be meaningful to you.
When you have three things written down,
You can start to make your way into a comfortable position.
If you want to pause this recording and come back when you're ready,
We will begin our meditation.
Setting ourselves up now to begin our practice,
Sitting up tall,
Notice the breath as it enters and exits the body.
Without forcing it or changing it,
Just allowing it to naturally find its rhythm.
Start to soften areas of tension in your face,
Beginning with the eyebrows.
Drop your tongue away from the roof of your mouth as you release your jaw.
Shoulders melt away from your ears.
Arms are heavy.
Giving into gravity and start to feel support from the ground beneath you.
Release any gripping around your glutes,
Your hips.
Feel weighted throughout your legs and heavy in your feet.
And find your breath as it moves smoothly in and out of the nose.
Bring to mind the first thing you wrote down that you are grateful for.
And as you think of this thing,
This person or place,
Maybe even bring a soft smile to your face.
Breathe this feeling of gratitude down into the body.
Breathe in and breathe out,
Embodying gratitude.
Using the breath to carry this gratitude from the mind all the way down into the body,
Into the heart,
Allowing it to expand and radiate outwards.
And recalling now the second thing you wrote down that you are grateful for.
Breathing this in and breathing it out.
Sensing what sort of feeling arises when thinking of this person,
A place,
Or a thing.
Does monumentally thinking of this bring you a sense of peace,
Ease,
And relaxation?
And allow those feelings to radiate inwards through you and expand your being outwards.
Finally,
Bring to mind the third thing you wrote down that you are grateful for.
Breathe this in and breathe it out.
Allowing the soft smile to remain on your face.
Breathing it down into your body,
Into every cell,
Radiating gratitude.
Using the breath to guide this gratitude down.
Inhale,
Breathe in,
And breathe out.
And now bring a sense of gratitude towards your current senses right now.
Bringing attention to what you can hear.
Give thanks to your ears for working so well.
Now notice your sense of smell.
Offer your appreciation to your nose and give thanks for the ability to smell.
Do your sense of a taste for letting you engage with all the flavors of the world.
And give gratitude to your felt sense.
Noticing the temperature of the room on your skin,
The material of your clothing,
The warmth or coolness of the room you are in.
And now to your eyes.
To whatever degree your eyes let you see,
Thank them for all they do.
Take another deep breath and connect to this moment.
Offer your gratitude for everything in your presence that is holding space for you.
To be meditating right now.
Give thanks to your circumstances and livelihood,
Which give you the chance to sit in stillness and be grateful.
To your health and physical capabilities that make it possible to sit quietly and improve your outlook and well-being.
To the silence,
The calm,
The life,
The love,
The tears,
The joy,
And everything in between,
Being grateful for this moment.
With that,
Take a final deep breath and smile.
Notice how you feel and set the intention to bring this gratitude to you.
Gratitude forward into the rest of your day.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
