Take a comfortable seat and sit with your back straight but relaxed,
Your head resting at the top of your spinal column.
You can close your eyes if you'd like or just let your gaze soften and look down toward the ground.
Start by taking a few full deep breaths down into your low belly,
Breathing all the way in and all the way out.
And as you breathe,
Just take a moment to check in with your body.
Notice if there are any places where you're feeling tight or tense that you can soften and relax even just a little bit.
Let the muscles in your face relax with each exhale.
Let your shoulders drop away from your ears.
Open your belly.
You can let your breath return to its own natural rhythm or continue to breathe deeply if it feels nourishing to do so.
Notice where in your body it's easiest to feel your breath or most pleasant.
Maybe it's in the rise and fall of your chest or belly,
The inside of your nose as the breath moves in and out.
Wherever you feel it,
Let your attention rest there.
And as much as possible,
Let your attention be soft,
Curious,
Maybe even kind.
You're not staring your breath down,
But rather just being with it,
Watching it move in and out like you might watch the waves of the ocean move in and out.
If it helps you to focus,
You can say quietly in your head,
In as you breathe in,
Out as you breathe out.
It is inevitable that your attention will wander.
The point of meditating is not to maintain perfect,
Still-pointed focus,
And it's not a sign of doing it wrong when,
Not if,
Your mind drifts.
This moment of noticing is the practice.
Approach this moment with kindness,
Without judgment,
And simply return your attention to the sensation of breath.
When thoughts,
Emotions,
Or sensations arise in your mind or body,
There's no need to struggle with them or try to push them away.
Simply bring your breath back into focus and let these other parts of your experience fall to the background of your awareness.
Where is your attention now?
You can silently note to yourself where your mind has gone,
Thinking,
Planning,
Imagining,
Remembering.
Wherever your mind drifts to,
Just make a mental note softly.
You can rest for a moment in the acknowledgement of your experience and then gently redirect your focus back to your breath again and again and again.
Each breath is an opportunity to be present.
Come back to this breath,
This moment,
Again and again and again.
Return your attention to your breath one last time.
Finding,
Again,
That place in your body where you feel it most distinctly.
Take a couple of full deep breaths.
Feel the fullness of your breath as it expands in your body.
Know that you are breathing.
And if your eyes are closed,
You can let them slowly open and take in the space around you.
Let them slowly open and take in the space around you.
