So we're going to start with a few deep breaths,
Inhaling through the nose and exhaling out of the mouth,
Using each breath to settle into our bodies,
Letting any of the tension from the day melt away,
Noticing how you're holding it in your body.
The first few breaths have us here,
Grounded,
And you allow a natural rhythm to flow,
Becoming curious to how the breath enters and exits your body.
It's also a good moment to shift your weight from one leg to the other and find your balance,
See where you feel centered,
And by physically even repositioning as you need,
If you need to roll your shoulders,
To have them fall back gently,
Go ahead and do that.
Just spend a moment getting present to being here with us in this community of practice.
Now draw the breath into your nose and into your face,
Noticing the area under your eyes and your cheeks,
Breathing into your jaw,
Relaxing the muscles of your jaw and your neck if you're holding tension in your face.
Consider parting your lips slightly and with your next breath,
Allow the corners of your lips to turn up in a smile,
Even if the smile isn't the emotion that you're feeling right now.
Let's see if we can place a light smile on our face.
As you breathe into this,
Notice how it impacts your eyes,
Maybe soften the lids of your eyes,
And whether natural or placed with intention,
Let's try to keep this smile while we feel the sensations of our body.
We'll start with our forehead and our eyebrows,
Relaxing the muscles there,
And also noticing what it takes to have a smile,
To still maintain that active state.
Notice the breath as you draw it into your nostrils,
Bring it into your cheeks,
Now draw that energy down into your neck and relax your shoulders,
Allowing them to gently roll back.
Breathing into your arms that are resting gently by your sides,
And your hands that are in your lap or by your sides,
Any tingling you might feel in your fingers,
And again all along,
Maintaining that smile,
The physical act of smiling releases endorphins,
Dopamine,
Chemicals in our bodies that relax us,
Get us out of the fight or flight mode.
Now draw this energy down into your chest by drawing the breath all the way down into your chest,
Deep into your torso,
Now become present to your heart,
Listening to the beating of your heart,
Feeling any thoughts or sensations or feelings that you're holding in your heart,
Allowing whatever thoughts that arise to gently arise,
And then returning to the sensations of the beating of your heart and the smile.
Let's spend a few moments in silence now,
Allowing everything that you feel,
Hear,
Sense to arise,
And to notice with awareness,
And then to let pass.
Notice if the smile has left your face,
Or if it remains.
Notice as thoughts arise and return to the breath,
The practice of meditation is not to remove the thoughts,
But to notice them as they arise and then return,
And today's practice back to the sensations of the smile and the sensations of the breath.
If there's some area of your body or your mind that needs attention,
A little bit of care or love,
You can go ahead and breathe into that area,
Softening,
Softening to whatever arises.
Now,
In the final minutes of our meditation,
I'd like to shift our attention to a sense of gratitude.
What is it that you're grateful for today in your life?
How does gratitude appear for you?
Think of all the ways that you're supported and all those whom you support as well.
You may visualize this as smiles that you've received or smiles that you've given,
And then offer some gratitude for yourself for showing up for practice.
Whatever the experience was,
The very act of being here,
Of making a commitment to take this time for yourself,
And however it was experienced,
Is something that you've given to yourself.
Now,
When you hear the bell,
I invite you to sit for a moment before we return to our space together.
