Hello and welcome.
This is Jen,
And I'm glad you're here.
This meditation is about setting an intention for the new season.
As we head into fall,
It can be a good time to think about any thoughts or behaviors or habits that don't serve us and any new intention we may want to set for our daily life.
Many of us think about new habits,
New resolutions on January 1st at the start of the calendar year,
But fall is also an important time for change and can be a great reason to just sort of refresh our outlook and be a bit more intentional about how we show up for ourselves in our daily life.
Many of us can remember being kids,
Starting the school year.
Maybe being in college as a young adult.
Fall felt like.
A new chapter,
New teachers,
New classes,
New classmates,
New activities.
There was so much excitement there.
And for those of us who are parents,
You know,
We watch our kids go through this now,
Starting the new year,
All of this change that occurs,
New habits,
New daily schedules.
But sometimes we forget that we can bring this sense of newness to our own daily lives in the fall or really any time,
No matter what age we are and what our lives look like.
So let's settle in.
Maybe taking a comfortable seat.
Back upright,
But not too rigid.
Or standing if that feels better to you today.
Gently closing the eyes or softening the gaze.
And just settling into the body.
As a way to ground ourselves in the present moment.
Maybe taking one deep breath to start.
In through the nose.
And an audible exhale out through the mouth.
And then letting the breath return to normal.
Just noticing how it is.
Deep or shallow.
Fast or slow.
Just noticing how it is without trying to change it.
Centering ourselves in this moment.
When we think of Ball,
Many of us think of.
.
.
The trees with leaves that turn colors and then fall.
And we can take inspiration from this.
Visualizing what we would like to let go of just as the trees let go of their leaves.
Are there certain things we want less of in our daily lives?
Maybe it's an unhelpful thought pattern.
Maybe it's a certain way that we go through our day on autopilot.
Maybe it's a certain habit that is not the healthiest.
Just asking ourselves,
What would we like to let go of?
Not forcing an answer,
But just seeing what arises.
Coming back to the breath if that's helpful.
If the mind wanders off or we get distracted.
But just sitting with that question.
What do I want to let go of?
And then also thinking as we move into the changing season.
What would we like to create space for?
What would we like to be more intentional about?
Maybe picturing what it would look like.
If we created more space.
Or focus more attention on whatever it is we'd like to have more of in our daily lives.
Maybe it's more time in quiet or to meditate.
Maybe it's more connection with other people around us.
Maybe it's more time to work on an important project.
Or activity.
Just asking ourselves the question.
What do I need more of?
Or what do I want more of in this season?
Again,
Not forcing an answer.
But just seeing what arises when we ask the question.
And if nothing clear emerges,
That's okay too.
But if something has emerged.
In terms of what you'd like to see more of in your daily life in this new season.
My encouragement would be to.
.
.
Get concrete and specific around how you want to make that happen.
There's this somewhat cliche but true saying in management.
What gets measured gets managed.
We all know this is true,
Right?
Daily life whether that's work or otherwise the things that we are accountable for and the things that we set measurable.
Specific goals for tend to be the things that we follow through on rather than the things that stay as vague ideas or are only in our heads.
So think about getting specific with it,
Right?
Maybe it's.
.
.
I want to meditate for five minutes every day.
Or I want to go for a walk three times a week.
Whatever it is.
And write it down.
Or share your goal with a friend.
Just something to make it a bit more concrete.
And just remembering as we set this intention and the goal around it.
Not to be hard on ourselves if we don't make quick progress.
Or if we have some setbacks or if we need to adjust.
Just remembering that.
If this exercise and this practice gets us even a little bit closer to where we want to be,
It's worthwhile.
This is a practice that we can come back to anytime we feel like we need a refresh.
Whether it's heading into fall,
A new season.
Or just any old day.
One of the beautiful things about mindfulness is that every moment is a new moment every day.
Is a new day.
A chance to approach our lives with a beginner's mind and a beginner's attitude.
And a chance to start fresh.
In a moment,
I will ring the bell three times.
Which will signify the end of our practice together today.
But just remembering by sitting down and engaging in this practice,
You're already on your way there.
To arriving.
How you want to show up.
In this next season.
Thank you for your practice.
You
