Hello and welcome.
Thank you for being here today.
And most importantly,
Thank yourself for being here today.
My name is Jasmine.
I am a mindfulness meditation teacher.
And this is Mindfulness in Challenging Times,
Part 3.
My creativity has no bounds.
We are constantly selling ourselves narratives that are not true.
Our mind is an expert at drafting new stories based on old experiences.
Trauma from our past often leaks into our identity.
And oftentimes our own voice is the toughest critic.
But what if you started believing you were deserving of good things?
What if you knew that in the purity and simplicity of this belief there is power?
All you have to do is make yourself available.
All you have to do is acknowledge your own indisputable existence.
All you have to do is believe that basic goodness is who you are.
Start there.
I invite you to notice the edges of your mind where your thoughts stop being gentle.
And when you find them,
Breathe in love and grace.
Take every negative thought you have about yourself and replace it with an affirmation and a knowingness of your worthiness.
Make room for your own creativity.
Make room for your own self-love.
And just like every cloud has its moment and every ripple and every wave has a chance to kiss the sun,
You are still here.
Despite every season of doubt,
Hurt and confusion,
Through your practice you can transform pain into compassion,
Heat into a sauna of dreams,
And rain into a pool of cool beginnings.
And the only way out is through.
The only way out is to process all you've been through and sit with the places that scare you.
There will be days where your practice feels so difficult you can't stand it.
Where the process of sitting and being still can feel so hopeless,
So illusionary.
And you may wonder,
Why am I even here?
Why am I even doing this?
If there's one thing I've learned about pulling yourself out of a dark place or making the brave decision to explore your own wounds,
It's that the very things that cause us the most pain are the exact same portals to discovering our own innate joy.
A creative opportunity to look deep into the window of our own wisdom mind.
Just by taking your seat you are creating limitless possibilities for your own experience.
A chance to notice each and every thought and to transform your pain into compassion for yourself and towards others.
A precise but gentle chance to turn up the volume of your own life from a dull hum to an orchestra of spaciousness,
Silence,
Stillness,
And self-compassion.
You are always worthy and you have always been worthy of love,
Creativity,
And abundance no matter your state of being.
Whether you are up or you're down,
Joyful or sad,
Winning or losing,
The journey to healing is expression and the only way out is through.
It can be challenging and heavy but you are worthy of every single creative beautiful opportunity to experience peace.
Right now in this very moment is the time to notice that everything you need is already inside of you.
When you practice mindfulness meditation the fresh canvas of your own mind is always available to you and your innate creativity has no bounds.
Now let's take our seat.
Take your seat.
I want you to imagine everything from the waist down is firmly rooted like the space where a mountain meets the earth,
Connected and strong and everything from the waist up is light and open and curious.
Hip bones raise slightly above the knees if you're seated on a cushion and your feet planted firmly on the ground if seated on a chair.
Palms face down,
Rested either on your knees or the middle of your thighs holding an upright but not uptight position.
Your chin about 90 degrees parallel to the floor,
Shoulders relaxed not too tight not too loose.
And now place your attention on your breath.
Notice the rising and falling as the air fills up your entire being or simply the tip of your nose as you breathe in and out.
Either way it's a light touch,
Gentle and easy.
Even while your breath is the object of your attention it doesn't have to be a big deal.
And just like the clouds might pass through your window on a train or in your car thoughts or emotions will arise.
Label them as thinking and let them go.
Remember that in this practice keep your eyes open,
A soft diffused and downward gaze seeing but not looking at anything,
Just being.
Let's begin.
Give yourself thanks for being here right now.
Rarely during our awakened state do we make room for spaciousness or allow silence and yet here you are.
You are creating space and if at any moment you start to feel overwhelmed remember that your breath is your lighthouse to the present moment.
You can always come back to it.
Use this time as an opportunity to let go of any expectations of what comes up or what you should or shouldn't be doing.
That is your own ego.
Simply notice what arises and let it go.
Your capacity to love and to create is unstoppable and when nurtured can expand without limit.
Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh You
