Bells Feelings like feathers It has been a while since the sad thing happened and Little Owl is still feeling sad.
The sadness hangs around Little Owl's heart and makes his wings feel heavy.
He no longer feels like playing with his little brother.
He doesn't want to go flying with his friends either.
He just wants to sit.
One day,
As Little Owl sits on a branch overhanging the river,
He becomes so sad that he starts to fall.
He tumbles straight down into the river without flapping his wings once.
Luckily,
Lily sees Little Owl fall.
She quickly flies over to Little Owl and pulls him out of the water.
What is wrong,
Little Owl?
Lily asks softly.
I saw you fall from the tree and you didn't even try to fly.
I'm so sad,
Little Owl sighs.
Since the sad thing happened,
It feels as if the sadness will never go away.
Lily gives Little Owl a gentle hug.
I'm so sorry to hear that,
Little Owl.
Sometimes heavy feelings can get stuck inside of us.
It's a bit like when your feathers get wet as they are now.
It's hard to fly with wet feathers,
Isn't it?
Everything feels harder to do when we are having heavy feelings too.
Lily gently rubs Little Owl's feathers dry with a soft towel.
We need to find a way for your sad feeling to become lighter again.
And perhaps one day it may become light enough to go away.
How can I make the sad feeling feel lighter?
Little Owl asks.
Remember when I showed you how to meditate?
Lily asks.
Little Owl nods slowly.
We can try another meditation exercise that can help.
We could practice feeling lighter feelings even though you still feel sad.
Then perhaps the sadness will start to feel lighter too.
Would you like to try that now?
Little Owl nods again.
Alright,
Let's close our eyes and take a deep breath together.
Breathe slowly in and out again.
Let's do that two more times.
Take a long,
Slow breath in and breathe out again.
One more time.
Breathe in and slowly out again.
Now I want you to spend just a few moments paying attention to where you are feeling the sadness in your body.
Is it hanging around your heart?
Do you feel something around your tummy?
Is the feeling of sadness what makes your wings feel slow?
Just take a few deep breaths and try to feel where in your body the sadness is sitting.
I would like you to remember that our heavy feelings can also tell us what we need.
Perhaps your sadness is telling you that you need a hug or to spend some time with a loved one.
Think about what your sadness is trying to tell you.
Now before we let the sadness go,
Thank it for letting you know what you need today.
Let's take a deep breath in and when you breathe out I want you to allow the feeling of sadness to leave your body with your breath.
Next I would like you to think about something that makes you happy.
If you find it hard to think about something that makes you happy now,
We can try to remember something from before the sad thing happened.
If you can feel the tiniest spark of happiness,
We can try to grow it into a warm glow.
Can you feel a small spark of happiness yet?
Little owl keeps his eyes shut but Lily sees him nodding lightly.
Focus on feeling happy and pay attention to where you are feeling it in your body.
Perhaps you feel a little warmer around your tummy.
Perhaps you feel like you can breathe a little deeper.
Can you feel your heart becoming just the tiniest but lighter?
Try to grow your happiness even bigger and lighter.
How does this feel?
See if you can grow happy enough to feel a warm glow in your tummy.
Let's take a deep breath in and when you breathe out I want you to allow the feeling of happiness to leave your body with your breath.
Shhhhh.
Now let's spend some time thinking about how grateful we feel for the feeling of happiness we just felt.
Where in your body do you feel grateful?
Does it make your heart feel warm?
Do you feel like hugging someone?
Spend a few moments feeling into this feeling of gratitude.
See how many things,
Big and small,
You can think of to feel grateful for.
Let's take a deep breath in and when you breathe out I want you to allow the feeling of gratitude to leave your body with your breath.
Shhhhh.
I would now like you to think about everything and everyone you love.
Remember the things you love to do.
Think back to things you love to see and hear and taste and smell and feel.
See how many things you can think of to love.
What does love feel like in your body?
How does your heart feel when you feel love?
Can you feel love anywhere else in your body?
Allow the feeling of love to grow bigger and lighter in your body until it feels as if you are light as a feather.
Now we are going to take another three long,
Slow breaths together.
When we breathe in I would like you to imagine that you are breathing in even more love from around you.
When we breathe out I would like you to let go of any heavy feelings that you might still be feeling in your body.
Let's begin.
Take a deep breath in and slowly out while you let any heavy feelings go.
Shhhhh.
Breathe in love and lightness and breathe out heavy feelings.
Shhhhh.
Let's do this one last time.
Breathe love and light into your body and breathe out heavy feelings.
Shhhhh.
When you are ready you can open your eyes.
Lily watches as Little Owl's eyes open slowly.
How do you feel now?
Do you feel different than you did when we started this exercise?
She asks softly.
Little Owl thinks for a moment.
I… I think I do,
He answers.
I still feel sad.
But the sadness doesn't feel so heavy right now.
That's wonderful,
Lily smiles.
I think it might help to practice feeling lighter feelings again tomorrow.
Would you like me to visit you again so we can do that?
Little Owl gives Lily a small smile.
I would like that very much,
He answers.
Lily gives Little Owl another big hug.
Then I will see you again tomorrow.
We can practice feeling lighter feelings for as long as you like.
Little Owl waves at Lily as she flies off.
Suddenly he realizes that he feels light and dry enough to fly back home himself.
He looks forward to practicing light feelings with Lily again tomorrow.
Bells.
