Okay,
So you've found yourself needing to infuse a little joy into the season of joy.
Maybe there's some stresses,
Maybe there's some people coming over,
And maybe you're just a little tired,
Overfed,
Overdrank,
Or overworked.
So take a seat.
Let's bring some joy to your world right now.
Let's start by taking a deep breath in through the nose for a count of three,
Two,
One,
Holding it for just a second,
And on the exhale,
Count for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Another deep breath in for three,
Two,
One,
Holding it for one,
And exhaling for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
You can continue practicing that pattern of breathing.
And as you do that,
Just gently align your body.
If you're seated in a chair,
Try to make sure your feet are flat on the floor,
Your arms and legs are uncrossed,
You're open and ready to receive the joy that is around you and actually celebrate the joy that is within you.
If you haven't yet,
When you're ready,
You can gently close your eyes.
Take another deep breath in,
And on the exhale,
Try to let go of any fears or anxieties you might be experiencing right now.
They may be fears or anxieties about the season,
About the gifts,
About the gifts you forgot.
None of those matter in this moment.
So let's take another deep inhale.
Send that breath through all the parts of your body.
Hold that in and then exhale.
As you continue practicing this pattern of breathing,
Just imagine that you're letting go of all of that fear and all of that anxiety that's creeping out of your body.
Just by breathing,
It's leaving.
The exhale gently guides that out.
The inhale gently ushers in joy and a slight smile across your face.
Scanning your body from head to toe,
See if there's any remaining physical tension,
Any tightness or bouncing.
Send the breath down to that area.
And on the exhale,
Allow that physical tension to leave your body.
Now we're calm.
We're centered.
We're open to receiving joy.
Gently recall one of your favorite memories from this time of year.
Maybe you were a kid.
Maybe it was of your kids.
Maybe it was the year you skipped Christmas and went to Europe.
All of those are okay.
That happy memory without overthinking it,
Inhale the essence of that.
Allow that to sink in.
And gently exhale.
Maybe you remember senses like smells or sights.
Keep inhaling those,
Those smells,
Those sights or sounds.
Then the exhale,
Just relax a little bit more.
Allow the inhale to bring a slight smile to your face.
Not a forced one.
Just a gentle one.
And then on the exhale,
Just let go of any shouldn't be smilings or have to dos.
Or what about nows?
You're in the now.
You're in the moment.
Just accessing the joy that we've experienced.
We return to our breath.
At our own pace,
We're inhaling and exhaling.
Just not forced or just being.
Maybe in your heart too.
When you're ready,
Take another deep inhale through the nose.
Holding it at the top and on the exhale,
Allow your body to come back into the physical state we're in.
Another big inhale,
Send the breath all the way down to your toes and your fingers and on the exhale,
Just come a little bit more back into this space.
Contract and expand your muscles throughout your body and then exhale.
You can gently roll your shoulders back and forth,
Your head side to side and when you're ready,
Gently open your eyes.
Hopefully you notice that there's still a smile across your face.
And at any point during the season or during this day that you need to access joy,
You can go back to this meditation or even go back to that joyful holiday memory,
The one that brought that smile to your face.
Even if some asshole is getting on your nerves.
Happy Holidays.
