Hello,
My name is Jacinta.
I'm honored to be here with you.
Today,
We're going to reflect about change and transformation,
Something that is completely natural,
Yet it feels so difficult sometimes.
The reason why accepting change feels hard,
It's because we've been mostly taught the opposite.
We believe some things are forever.
We've been taught life is linear.
And we've been led to believe we're in control.
Well,
The bad news is nothing is forever.
And the good news is nothing is forever.
Change is the only constant.
Impermanence is the only permanent thing in this lifetime and in the next one.
The Buddhists say the cause of all suffering comes from not accepting.
So if we're not accepting change,
And change is the only constant,
We're really swimming against the current.
In this practice,
We're going to connect with nature,
One of our wisest teacher,
Who's always changing and transforming.
Whenever you're ready,
Find a comfortable position.
Make sure your back is straight,
Your shoulders are relaxed.
Unclench your jaw.
And most importantly,
Make sure your heart is open.
If there's any other part of your body that needs to be softened,
Now is the moment to do it.
Whenever you're ready,
You may close your eyes.
Begin to reconnect with your breath,
Inhaling and exhaling through the nose.
Breathe naturally,
But slowly.
Inhaling and exhaling.
Feel the ground underneath you.
Feel the weight of your body.
Feel the gravity pulling you down.
Feel the earth holding you.
And as you keep connecting to your breath,
You keep connecting to yourself.
We're going to set an intention for this practice.
And it can be around change and transformation,
Or whatever is calling you at this moment.
Trust that whatever comes to your heart,
That's the right answer.
That's the right intention for your practice today.
We release our intention for now.
And we're going to take three breaths together.
Inhale deeply through your nose.
Hold for a few seconds.
Exhale slowly through your mouth.
Exhale slowly through your mouth.
As slow as you can.
Inhale deeply through your nose again.
Hold.
Exhale slowly through your mouth again.
Inhale.
Hold.
Keep holding.
Exhale.
Let it all out.
And go back to your natural breath.
Inhaling and exhaling through the nose.
First we're going to visualize the ocean.
The beautiful,
Vast,
Infinite ocean.
We're just going to observe how the ocean changes.
Has different colors.
Different shapes.
We're just going to see the waves coming.
Some bigger ones.
Some smaller ones.
One after another one.
With no beginning and no end.
As you keep breathing,
We're now going to visualize the moon.
Shining above us.
The beautiful,
Feminine moon.
That is always,
That is constantly transforming.
No matter what,
It will change.
And it goes from new moon to full moon in a couple of weeks.
In another couple of weeks,
New moon again and so on.
And every single phase in between.
Now I want you to visualize yourself surrounded by beautiful trees.
And listen to them.
Listen to the branches.
Look at the leaves moving.
One same tree might have a tiny green leaf just growing.
While at the same time,
One yellow leaf is falling down from the same tree.
Seasons will pass through this tree and through us.
We're no different than the ocean,
Than the moon and than the trees.
We are nature.
We are cyclical living beings in constant change.
Keep breathing.
You don't have to do anything else.
But know that you are not alone.
Know that just by being here,
Just by breathing,
You are changing.
If your mind is wandering off,
It's okay.
Just come back to your breath.
Let the waves pull you back to the present moment.
Let the wind bring you back to the here and now.
And keep breathing.
I know change isn't always easy.
It can feel heavy,
Difficult and even very painful.
But the moment we stop fighting it,
The moment we stop resisting it,
Is when we're able to see and find the truth.
We're able to see and find beauty in every season.
Waves will keep on coming and there might be some big ones.
Cycles will keep on passing and there might be some dark ones.
Just remember the moon shines brightest in the darkest hour.
We are the moon.
We are the ocean.
We are the trees.
We're living,
Changing beings.
But we're also change itself.
We're the waves.
We're the faces.
And we are the seasons.
Start deepening your breath slowly.
Inhaling and exhaling a little deeper each breath.
So much that you can hear your own breath.
We're going to feel the ground underneath us again.
The weight of our body.
Listen to the sound around you.
Keep listening to your breath.
Deepen it even a little bit more.
You can wiggle your toes and your fingers.
And whenever you're ready,
There's no rush of any kind.
Slowly and gently,
You can open your eyes and begin to come back.
May we embrace our nature.
May we accept change.
And may we love all of our cycles,
Phases and seasons.
Thank you for being here.
And thank you for being you.
