Welcome to this practice.
I'm Kate and I'm so happy that you found me here.
I recorded this practice today.
Because it really resonated with how I've been feeling.
That sense of the mind being so busy that it's impossible to get anything done.
And so many of us have busy lives or we have work to do or people to care for.
Or chores to get done.
And if our minds are too busy and too fixated,
Perhaps on negative thoughts or worries,
Or just an obsessive thought that keeps going round and round in our heads,
It can be so distracting and so overwhelming.
And more than anything,
It really takes us away from the here and the now.
And so I'd invite you right now to just allow yourself a short time as we practice together to park the worry,
To park the thoughts.
And see if you can just allow yourself a little space just to be here in this moment.
Your to-do list,
Your chores,
The people who need you.
Will be there at the end of this practice.
And more importantly,
By giving yourself this time today,
You'll allow your mind to settle,
To rest,
And go into the day,
The evening,
With a lot more ease.
So let's get started.
When you're ready,
Just gently closing down the eyes.
Or if it feels more comfortable for you,
Just lowering the gaze to the floor in front of you.
And once you've decided whether to have your eyes closed or just lowered,
Taking a moment to think about your posture.
Whether you're on a mat,
Maybe in bed still,
On a chair,
Wherever you're resting.
Seeing if you can adjust your body,
Maybe just a little.
To bring as much comfort as possible.
Into this moment.
And when you've found that comfortable position,
That place of ease,
It's time to practice.
So just coming into the body for a moment and noticing it resting.
Noticing its connection with the surface beneath you I'm taking a moment.
To really allow the body to settle and to sink into the surface it's resting on.
We spend so much of our time,
Especially when we're overthinking.
Being tense without even realizing it.
So just allowing the body to release and soften into the surface beneath you whatever that looks like for you.
You might feel a sense of heaviness as the body sinks into the chair or bed and you may notice the shoulders dropping just a little.
It's often not until we stop that we start to notice where we're holding all our tension.
So just seeing if you can allow a melting.
And easing in the body.
As you give yourself these moments to settle.
To ease any tension.
And to allow your mind and body.
To rest a little.
And if your mind's very busy.
.
.
Which it may well be,
Especially if you've chosen this meditation today.
I'd ask you not to resist it.
But instead to watch it with a curious and kind gaze.
Seeing if you can create a little distance.
From your thoughts.
As if you're just watching them.
Like water in a fast-flowing stream.
Not judging what's moving past you.
But just allowing it to be.
And to flow through the mind not getting caught up.
In that fast-flowing stream.
Not even touching.
The water.
But simply.
.
.
Watching it holding it in your mind.
Allowing.
Your attention to simply hold what you see.
In the safe container.
Of your practice.
And if you find yourself getting caught up in one particular thought,
Or one particular worry.
Just noticing that,
It's what humans do.
There's nothing wrong.
And our practice is just to again create that distance,
That watchful space.
Allowing those fast moving thoughts.
That busy mind to be held from a distance.
Treating your mind with real care and compassion Not judging it.
Or wanting it to be different.
But just holding it in awareness.
And the practice is just to keep.
Coming back.
Every time.
You find yourself.
Chasing after a thaw to worry.
That's gripping your attention.
Just taking a pause,
Stepping back.
And creating that space.
To hold it in your awareness.
And as you take that step back again and again.
Watching the busyness of your mind from afar you'll perhaps notice a settling.
A quietening of the mind.
And allowing.
We're not trying to change our minds.
We are seeing them and accepting them just as they are.
And now coming back home again to the body.
Resting here.
Noticing the weight of the body resting on the surface beneath it.
And then bringing your attention to the feet.
The feet resting against the ground,
The floor beneath you.
And bringing all your awareness.
Into the body now into that connection between feet and ground.
And really allowing yourself to be held.
By the ground,
The earth,
Below.
And if the mind wonders,
Which it will.
Bringing all your focus,
Your attention back to the feet on the ground and the weight of the body resting here.
Allowing that easing,
That letting go.
To take hold within you.
And noticing the tension in your head.
And your shoulders.
Perhaps in your belly.
Just washing away.
As you come home into the body.
Finding Centre.
Finding a place of grounding.
And as we come towards the end of this.
Meditation.
I'd like you to take a moment to think about.
How you'd like to feel as you leave this practice.
We arrive together with such busy minds.
And perhaps they're still a little busy.
But how would we like to feel as we step back into the world?
Perhaps a little more centred.
A little more connected to the ground beneath us.
A little more focused on just.
This next task in front of us.
Perhaps a little more gentle on ourselves.
So just deciding what feels right and set that intention in your mind.
And seeing if your body responds as you set.
This intention for how you'd like to be,
How you'd like to feel.
As you move on from this practice.
And noticing anything that's shifted in your body,
In your mind.
And remembering that.
As humans,
We think and we think and we think.
And there's nothing wrong with you if your mind is particularly busy.
It happens to us all.
And just by knowing that you can return to this practice whenever your mind's distracting you from what needs to be done in your day.
Just by sitting for a few moments.
You really can change.
The trajectory.
Of your day.
So when you feel ready.
Just bringing some awareness.
Back into the body by wiggling the toes.
And wiggling the fingers.
And in your own time.
Opening the eyes if they were closed.
And looking around you.
And noticing how you feel.
When you feel ready moving into the rest of your day,
Your evening.
With this new,
Clear intention.
And a calm,
Steady mind.
Thank you so much for joining me today.
Do return to this practice whenever you need to quieten a busy mind.
I hope to see you again soon.
Take care.
