Good morning.
Thank you for joining me for today's morning meditation.
Today's focus is finding joy.
But more specifically,
Finding joy in a dark world or a chaotic world,
The world we live in now.
Before we begin,
Find yourself seated or lying in a comfortable position.
Letting go of any distractions like your phone or computer.
Setting aside the book or your breakfast or your coffee.
Allowing yourself to become fully present in this moment.
How we start the day sets the tone for the rest of the day.
So honor yourself by giving yourself just a few minutes to check in,
Reflect,
Listen to your heart and set an intention.
With our feet flat on the floor,
Sitting upright in the chair,
Palms at our lap,
Eyes gently closed,
Start to notice your first breath.
Exhaling all your breath out.
Breathing deeply through the nose,
Feeling the cool air enter the nose.
Go down the airway,
Fill up your chest and belly.
And then as you exhale,
Letting it go.
Feeling the dreams or the nightmares from the night before,
Simply dissipate.
Inhaling again deeply through the nose.
Feeling your chest rise and your stomach expand.
And then as you exhale,
Exhaling slightly longer than the inhale.
That way it reminds the body that you're in a safe place.
This is a time of rest and restoration and you are okay.
One more time together,
Inhale deeply.
And exhale completely,
Feeling your muscles soften,
Areas releasing in your body that you didn't even know needed to be released.
And again as you sit or lie down,
Snuggle in,
Feel rooted,
Reminding yourself you are safe.
And it is okay to contemplate joy even though our lives are hard.
As you breathe,
Noticing if there's any tension in the forehead or around the jaw,
Let these areas soften,
Expand.
Allow the back of the head or the neck to become supple and loose.
Allowing the next breath to roll down the back of your neck,
Shoulders and spine like a wave of relaxation grounding you to the present moment but alleviating unnecessary stress.
Breathing,
Settling,
Noticing any sensation in the throat area or the chest area.
Letting your body soften with each exhale.
Allowing the muscles in your stomach to be loose,
Gooey like jello.
Allow the muscles in the upper back,
Mid back and low back to unwind,
Unravel.
Allow your arms and your legs to be soft.
Allow yourself a sense of joy as you feel sensation in your hands and your feet.
Maybe wiggling the toes or the fingers,
Feeling a sense of aliveness in the joy,
The excitement that's going through your body at all times as your blood flows,
Your muscles contract and relax,
All the different workings of the body.
Breathing and settling and if your mind wanders,
Being kind,
Noticing it wanders and come back.
So how do we find joy in the world we live in?
Times of war outside of our homes,
Inside of our homes,
Inside our minds.
How do we find joy when we feel like everything is happening to us?
When we don't feel that we have any control.
Breathing,
Settling,
Let something go if something tends.
Joy comes from within ourselves.
Joy comes from helping others or animals or mother nature.
If you are stuck in your own story,
It plays over and over in your head about how you've been wronged,
What they did to you,
How it's not your fault.
Allow these thoughts to come and go.
Take ownership of the life that is yours.
In actuality,
You have created it.
You are an active member in how your life has turned out.
Allow the blame to wash away.
Take ownership.
Be proud of the life that you have and know that you are continuously making changes.
Where can you find your little joys?
The pink nose of a kitten.
The scruffy ears of a puppy.
A young child's open eyes.
A loved one's gesture.
A cup of warm coffee or tea.
Birds singing outside,
Signifying a change in the weather.
I encourage you to find little joys in your life while you're going through the turmoil,
The muck.
The lotus cannot blossom anywhere except for the mud.
And right now,
This might be the muddy time of your life.
And sometimes the muddy times last years and decades.
Allow the joy to penetrate through,
Giving you signs of hope.
Allow yourself to not be the victim.
Take ownership.
Take pride.
Change the story that you've been telling yourself in your mind.
And if you don't know how to change your story,
I encourage you to write down the life you want to live.
What does it look like?
And be very specific.
Who is in it?
Where does your joy come from?
Talk about it with a friend.
Find a support group or network,
A doctor,
A therapist,
Someone at church.
Allow yourself little pieces of joy every day.
As we close,
I encourage you to think of one time in your life where joy overcame you.
It can be a big event.
It can be a small event.
Whatever it is,
Think in your mind's eye when you felt joyous.
And it is okay if it's been a decade since you felt joy.
Or that place.
Think about it.
Breathe it.
Feel it in your body and remember what joy feels like.
That way you can cultivate more.
As we end our time together,
Let's take three deep breaths.
Inhaling deeply through the nose and through the mouth,
Sighing it out,
Letting it go.
Two more times.
Inhale through the nose and out through the nose or the mouth.
One more time as you inhale,
Notice if your heart is telling you something.
What bubbled up for you during this time of self-care and self-reflection?
As you exhale,
Let something go and listen to your heart.
You will not be led in the wrong direction if you follow your heart.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes.
Come back to the present moment knowing you can find joy in these dark days.
Thank you so much for allowing me the precious gift of your time.
Until next time.
