For this experience with nature today,
I invite you to create what Eugene Gentlin called a friendly space for anything outside or inside that you encounter during this time.
And I encourage you to adopt an attitude,
Patience,
Openness,
Curiosity towards the natural environment in which you find yourself and also towards your own experience of all of that.
So we'll begin,
I suppose you call this kind of an attunement.
So bringing your awareness into your body,
This body with these people on this day,
In this virtual place.
And maybe you'd like to take a deep breath or two.
And just allow this breath to travel down through the middle of your body,
Right down to your feet.
And just notice your feet on the ground,
Feeling the earth beneath them.
And noticing the support that flows upwards from the earth.
And maybe noticing how your body has already been responding and interacting with where you are.
And just noticing how your body is in this moment.
And maybe just tuning into how your body feels,
Whether your body needs to sit or stand or lie,
Lie down maybe.
And just checking that where you are is comfortable,
How you are is comfortable.
And making whatever adjustments you need to become comfortable in this space at this time.
So for the next while,
We're going to take some time being aware of our sensory perceptions.
And if you have your eyes closed at the moment,
I'd invite you to open them maybe.
And just to recognize,
Suppose your senses as our doors into the world of nature.
And not just the five senses,
But the many other ways that our bodies perceive,
Experience and interact with our environment.
So take a few moments to look slowly around you.
Taking time to meet this place in this moment.
And just beginning to take in the colors,
Shapes,
Forms,
Patterns in your surroundings.
All around you.
High up,
Low down.
Just getting your bearings.
Just becoming aware of other living beings around you and your interconnectedness with them.
And just knowing that you and everything there is either breathing or involved in exchanging something in its own way.
All beings taking something in and releasing something back.
All this life around us.
All exchanging chemicals,
Gases,
Molecules.
All of the time.
And you might notice if there's something in this natural world that surrounds you,
That in particular,
That your eyes or your body is drawn to.
Something from this more than human world with which you feel some kind of connection.
And maybe sending some indication that you have that sort of connection with it.
And knowing that whatever you are sensing also senses you.
And now when you're ready,
You might like to close your eyes or soften your gaze.
And just begin to notice your sense of touch.
You might be able to sense the air moving around you or the breeze.
Noticing the effects of the air or the breeze on your skin.
You might be in sunshine or in shadow.
And noticing how differently either one impacts on your skin.
And just sensing the earth under your shoes and feet.
And what that contact brings.
Maybe you're surrounded by plants or even beside one plant.
You might be touching your skin and noticing what that feels like.
And just with your fingers,
Maybe reaching out and touching your skin,
Your clothes,
Your jewelry,
What you're standing beside,
What you're sitting on.
And just noticing the textures.
And maybe different parts of your body are in contact with one another.
And noticing what that contact feels like.
And as you give your attention to your sense of touch,
You might notice what's happening in your body.
And slowly moving your attention now to smell.
And just directing your attention into your nose as it picks up smells,
Scents,
Fragrances carried on the air or moving about wherever you happen to be.
You might try breathing more deeply or just doing a little sniff.
You could try tilting your head back the way that animals do to catch the subtle sense on the air currents.
And just checking if it feels okay to lower yourself down closer to the earth.
You may not be in a position to do that and that's okay.
And maybe you might notice new fragrances there for the earth itself.
And maybe noticing if the scents and smells that are coming towards you are pleasant or unpleasant.
You might notice some that are hard to identify and just allowing them to remain mysterious.
And as you're giving your attention to your sense of smell,
What are you noticing in your body?
And now invite your awareness of taste.
Perhaps there is the taste of toothpaste or something from whatever food you last ate.
You could try opening your mouth,
Sticking out your tongue,
Tasting the air.
You might try sucking the air into your mouth as if you were drinking through a straw.
And maybe noticing if there is any relation between the taste that you're having and the smells that we had earlier.
And as you give your attention to your sense of taste,
What are you noticing in your body?
And now we turn our attention to sound.
And just notice the sounds in your place that are falling on your ears.
And maybe directing your attention to the sounds that are furthest away at the moment.
They might be human or something from the more than human world.
They might also be industrial or mechanical.
You might just make a space for all sounds from the human and the more than human worlds.
And as you move in from the distance,
Noticing the sounds in the middle distance.
Human,
Maybe more than human,
Birds,
Animals,
Voices.
And then noticing the sounds as you move your awareness in closer to yourself.
See if you can notice the silence between the sounds.
And you might be able to hear the sound of your own breathing.
And now noticing all of the sounds that you can hear,
Waving together,
Flowing in and out of one another,
As if in a piece of music.
Something like a symphony of sound.
And you might just check if there is a sound in you that would like to join this symphony.
And you could make it just as loud so that only you can hear it.
And as you give your attention to your sense of hearing,
What are you noticing in your body?
I'm going to invite you to keep your eyes closed or your gaze softened just for the moment.
And I'm going to ask you to move.
But if there is any chance that this would pose a difficulty,
Then open your eyes.
So I'm inviting you to hold out your hands,
Your palms facing outwards.
And you might sense in which direction would your body like to turn?
And just allowing yourself to follow that inclination.
And as you sit or stand or lie where you are,
You might sense how you are now in this moment.
Seeing how your body carries all of these sensory experiences.
And you might find some way to describe what all of that feels like.
Some symbol that fits or expresses somehow the quality of your whole experience.
And just noticing how your body responds to whatever has emerged.
And you might notice if your experience feels complete or if there's something that needs more space,
More attention.
And as we're coming towards the end of this invitation,
You might notice if gratitude feels appropriate here.
And just let that too become part of your experience.
And just beginning to come back.
Bringing your attention to your feet,
Your breath.
Slowly allowing your eyes to open.
And just taking in the world around you as though this is the first time you're seeing it.
And just acknowledging what is offered to your eyes,
Your senses.
And then gradually coming back.
Kind ofces throughout the next 20 minutes as well.
So,
Heaven loves you.
