Welcome.
I'm so thankful that you decided to join me today for your daily meditation.
I'm going to ask you to set everything aside and for the next handful of minutes,
Choose yourself.
Keep this moment for you.
Settle in.
Let's get started.
Begin by settling into a comfortable position.
There's nothing that you need to fix right now.
Nothing that you need to achieve.
Let your body arrive before your mind does.
If it feels safe,
Gently close your eyes or soften your gaze.
I want you to take a slow breath in through the nose and a longer breath out through the mouth.
Again,
Inhale,
Letting the chest rise gently,
Exhale as if the day is leaving your body entirely.
Notice where your body is holding you right now.
Notice the ground beneath it all.
You are supported even if you have forgotten.
Bring your attention to your breath,
Not changing it,
Just noticing the way it moves in and the way it leaves.
With each exhale,
Imagine the body becoming just a little heavier,
Not weighed down but anchored,
Settled.
Let your shoulders soften,
Unclench your jaw.
Allow the tongue to rest.
Remember you do not need to hold yourself together here.
Now imagine you're standing at the edge of a quiet clearing,
The air.
You've walked such a long way to get here.
Notice what you're carrying,
Not just in your hands but in your chest,
Your belly,
Your hands,
Unspoken worries,
Pain,
Responsibilities that never end.
You don't need to name them all,
Your body already knows them well.
With the next breath out,
Imagine setting something down,
Just placing it on the ground.
The belief that rest must be earned.
Nothing breaks when you do this.
Nothing is lost.
Take another slow breath in,
And as you exhale,
Loosen your grip again.
Release what was never meant to be carried alone.
You were not designed to hold everything.
You were designed to breathe.
Let the earth receive what you've been gripping.
It knows what to do with it.
Now feel the space that opens where the weight once lived.
The chest a little wider.
The breath a little deeper.
With the inhale,
Imagine drawing in softness,
Warmth,
A quiet sense of enough.
With the exhale,
Sink further into permission.
Permission to pause.
Permission to rest without explanation.
Permission to stop proving.
Nothing more is required of you in this moment.
Place one hand on your heart.
One hand on your belly.
Feel the rise and fall beneath your palms,
Even when you didn't notice.
With each breath in,
Silently repeat,
I.
.
.
Let those words settle into the body,
Not the mind.
If thoughts arise,
Let them pass like clouds.
No chasing,
No fixing.
You,
My friend,
Are not behind.
You are not failing.
You are here,
And being here is enough.
Imagine now that you are being held gently by the ground,
By the breath,
By something older and wiser than effort.
You don't have to know its name.
Just feel the safety of being supported.
Let your nervous system remember what it feels like to be unguarded,
To soften without fear,
To rest without guilt.
Take a final deep breath in,
And a slow,
Complete exhale.
When you're ready,
Begin to bring gentle movement back into the body.
Wiggle your fingers.
Roll your shoulders.
Carry the softness with you.
The world will wait.
You do not need to carry everything back with you.
