This 10-minute meditation is designed to support you in connecting to your present moment experience.
I'll be guiding the meditation using breath as the anchor of attention.
If focusing on the breath is not supportive to you,
You can use a different anchor such as sound or physical sensations in the hands or feet.
I invite you to take a comfortable seated position.
You might feel your feet flat on the ground or the support beneath your legs and sitz bones.
Creating some length in the torso,
You might imagine a string pulling the crown of your head gently towards the ceiling,
Then dropping the chin slightly to create length in the back of the neck.
You might keep your eyes open,
Perhaps with a soft downward gaze or gently allow the eyes to close.
Bringing the attention now to the breath.
Noticing the breath in the body,
Wherever it's strongest for you right now.
You might feel the rise and fall of the chest or the belly,
Or the expansion and contraction of the ribcage.
Perhaps you feel the temperature of the air in the nostrils,
Cool on the inhale and warm on the exhale.
No need to change anything about the cadence of the breath,
Simply noticing.
Whenever you notice the mind wander to your to-do list,
Memories,
Stories,
See how gently and kindly you can bring the attention back to the breath.
It's not a problem that the mind wanders.
Thinking is its job.
You simply notice that the mind has wandered and bring the attention back to the breath.
Whatever we notice the sensations most strongly.
As you continue with your focus on the breath,
You might get curious.
We breathe thousands of times each day without even noticing.
What does the breath feel like in this moment?
And in this one?
Can you drop into the body and feel the breath from the inside out?
Perhaps you feel the flow of air from the nose down into the belly on the in-breath,
And feel it reverse its journey on the out-breath.
The next time the mind wanders,
You might label it thinking,
And then gently return your attention back to the breath.
You might continue with the felt sensations of each inhale and exhale.
Or you might add a label,
Noting to yourself,
Inhale as you breathe in,
And exhale as you breathe out.
As you continue to breathe,
You might notice that the mind has wandered into the future or back to the past.
Each time we notice the mind wandering is an opportunity for kindness.
How kindly and gently can you bring the attention back to the present moment?
Back to the felt sense of breathing.
What would it be like to get even more curious about the breath?
Where do you feel the body moving as you breathe?
What temperature do you feel?
Where do you notice stillness?
There's no right or wrong answer.
Simply asking the questions invites us to ground in the present moment.
What does it feel like to breathe in this moment?
And in this one?
As we start to bring this meditation to a close,
You might gently let go of the attention on the breath and shift the attention into the grounded sensations in your feet,
Your legs,
Or your sits bones.
Reconnecting to the supports beneath you.
And whenever you're ready,
Gently lifting the gaze or opening the eyes.
Thank you so much for practicing with me today.
