Deep Forest Connection

This guided imagery journey is designed to help you connect with the natural world, specifically our beautiful forests. Spending too much time indoors, disconnected from the beyond-human keeps us small and thinking we in this alone. Even if you can't make it into a forest today this meditation will bring you some of the goodness of remembering your place in the web of life.

Transcript

Settle yourself into your seat,

Find yourself here,

Now,

In this place,

In this body.

And take in a big,

Deep,

Long,

Slow breath.

All the way in through your nose,

Into your chest,

Into your belly.

Hold it just a moment.

And then let it go.

Take another big,

Long drink of breath in through your nose,

Into your chest,

Into your belly.

And slowly,

Slowly let it go.

One more big,

Deep breath in through your nose,

Into your chest,

Into your belly.

Hold it.

Slowly,

Slowly release it.

Become aware of the support here for your body,

Your chair,

Cushions,

The floor.

And this building,

This ground is holding you up.

And let yourself sink just a little deeper into that support.

Letting yourself become heavy.

And letting your consciousness follow that heaviness down,

Down,

Down.

To whatever parts of you touch the floor,

The cushion,

Your seat,

Your legs,

Your back.

Bringing your consciousness gradually all the way down your body,

Down your legs,

To the very soles of your feet.

That place where you touch the earth.

Bring so much of your awareness to the soles of your feet that maybe they feel like they tingle.

That threshold between you and the earth.

And as you breathe out again,

Imagine that from the soles of your feet you have roots.

And they reach down,

Down,

Down.

Through the floor,

Through the basement,

Into the soil.

They keep going down and down and deeper and down and down.

They're spiraling now.

Spiraling through the subsoil and the rock and the crevices in the rock.

They find their way down and down and deeper and deeper down.

And with each exhale,

Feel those roots coming out of your feet and winding their way down and down and down.

Making their way through the crevices and the bedrock.

Finding their way to the molten core of the earth.

And with each exhale,

Be aware of them digging a little deeper down.

Grounding you on this planet.

Next time you breathe in,

Breathe in through those roots.

Drawing up that earth energy.

And notice how that energy is as it arrives in your feet and comes up your legs and settles in your belly.

Does it have a color,

A texture,

A sensation,

A feeling that comes with it?

With each exhale,

Digging deeper down.

And with each inhale,

Receiving the nourishing breath from the earth.

Breathing out deeper into the earth.

Breathing in that earth energy.

Now allowing that cycle to continue.

And let your consciousness gently rise up your spine.

Up through your neck and all the way to the crown of your head.

That other threshold where you touch the sky.

Bring every ounce of your awareness right to the top of your head,

So much so that it tingles.

And on your next inhale,

Imagine that you have branches that come out the top of your head.

And they go up and out and up and out and up through the room and out past the ceiling.

And up through the roof and out past the clouds and up through the atmosphere.

Out into space and up and out and up and out until they connect with the sun.

And as you breathe out,

Be aware of a pure golden white light coming from the sun flowing down your branches.

And gently,

Gently entering the top of your head through your crown.

And feel its warmth as it begins to slowly,

Slowly seep across your scalp.

And down your face and down the back of your head.

Noticing that as it flows,

It unwinds any tension left in your muscles.

As it flows across your forehead,

Releasing tension.

And through your temples and unwinding those tiny muscles at the back of your eyes.

Just notice as it keeps flowing naturally down through the throat.

Unwinding your throat muscles and your neck and across your shoulders and down your arms.

Simultaneously making its way down the front of your chest and down your spine.

Unwinding any remaining tension,

The muscles between your ribs.

And your arms and elbows and wrists.

Flowing out the end of your fingers,

This pure brilliant white light.

And as this white light flows down from the crown of your head to your feet,

It brings with it protection,

Tranquility.

Allow it to flow,

Unwinding the muscles of your vertebrae one by one by one.

As it naturally flows down through your lungs,

Down through your belly.

Unwinding the fascia around the organs.

Down into your thighs and your knees,

Unwinding any remaining tension.

And down through your shins,

Around your ankles and your feet and all those little muscles that hold them together.

And it all flows out of the ends of your feet and out of the soles of your feet and down your roots and into there.

Become aware of yourself now here between the earth and the sky.

And bringing your awareness to your heart center.

Letting your breathing come from your heart.

Breathing into your heart.

Out from your heart.

Just let yourself float here.

Now imagine if you will,

That you're gently floating like a leaf on a breeze.

Gently floating down.

Below you,

You're aware of a forest canopy.

As you float,

The wind gently guides you closer and closer to the trees.

And you easily slip in between the branches and the trunks.

You land with your feet gently on the ground.

Look down at your bare feet.

Look at the terrain on which you have landed.

Maybe it's soil or leaf litter or pine needles or moss.

Notice what you see there.

Notice the sensation on your feet.

As you begin to wind your way along the path upon which you have landed.

Finding yourself in a beautiful open forest.

Mature trees around you reaching up to the sun.

Openness underneath where you see various plants,

Mosses,

Ferns.

Herbs somewhere you may know you don't know.

Bushes.

It's warm.

Sunlight is gently filtering through the leaves.

You can smell the earth.

Slowly walk along the path.

Being aware not to disturb much as you go.

Up ahead of you on the path you see a group of humans that you're with.

Multiple generations.

Some of them are gathering food.

Some of them have wandered off to sit by a tree.

Sounds like some have gone further along to the creek you know is just ahead.

As you gently walk along the path be aware of what's moving.

A flick of a white tail of a deer off in the distance.

She runs.

Flutter of bird wings as they move from branch to branch.

A gentle breeze shaking the leaves.

You feel it brush against your skin.

Now look around in this place.

Notice the space around you.

And find yourself an elder tree.

Approach that tree gently in reverence.

And see if it would be okay for you to sit down and lean your spine up against that trunk.

If it feels right then do that.

Gently,

Gently.

Finding your place in this new seat whatever is under you.

Your back up against this tree.

Become aware of the sounds.

A bird song.

Or some small creature ruffling in the leaves.

Maybe hear the wind.

Maybe hear the creek.

The children laughing as they play.

Can you hear your own heart?

Can you hear your heart beating?

Can you hear your breath?

Just notice what you hear in this place.

As you gaze upwards.

Notice that sunlight filtering through the trees.

How the leaves capture it.

Be aware of all the work going on in those leaves to turn that sunlight into sugar.

And as you sit here against this tree all those sugars are flowing down the trunk.

Down into the roots.

Become aware of where those roots get so tiny.

Hair like.

That they interface with the mycelium.

And that that mycelial network under the soil carries those sugars to places it's needed.

Feeding the forest.

The bushes.

The plants.

The mosses.

The ferns.

Other trees.

And that water that's moving in the soil below you is also being funneled.

By the mycelium.

Taken into plant roots and the roots of this very tree by which you sit.

Water brought so the tree may drink.

As this absorbs that water up through it's hair like roots and into it's big roots.

And up it's trunk and up to the leaves to hydrate those that are in the sun up there.

Some of that water perspiring out of the leaves.

Adding to the coolness you feel in your skin in this forest.

As water and nutrients cycle up and down and all around.

Contained in this spaciousness.

And you hear a noise in front of you and open your eyes.

And standing there is one of the children from your group.

Smiling.

With their hands stretched out and a berry offered.

Take that berry from them and look at it.

Look at it's color.

Look at it's plumpness.

Look at it's juiciness.

And with a thank you to the little one.

Pop that berry in your mouth.

And notice.

Notice the flavor.

And sweetness.

Exploding across your tongue.

It's juice.

Making it's way down your throat.

With thanks to the tree and this little one offering fruit.

Find your way to your feet.

And follow this child back along the path.

Winding your way through this open spacious forest.

Towards where you see the sunlight is stronger because that's where the creek flows.

Yes.

And there gathered are your people.

And they have baskets of berries and nuts and wild greens.

And feel the sunlight on your skin.

As you slowly dip your feet into the cold water.

And if you would like to.

Now is the time to lower your body into the creek.

Let that cold water wash you from head to toe.

Revitalizing you.

Nourishing you.

Flowing around you.

And as you're ready.

Climb out of the creek.

And find your way to a large sunlit rock.

Seems to be just the right shape for your body.

And while you lay yourself down on that rock let the sun warm you.

The very same sun that's feeding the trees.

It's feeding the mycelium.

It's feeding the berries and the greens and the nuts.

And the squirrels and the deer.

And the birds.

And all the creatures that live under the soil and in the canopy and on the ground.

Including you.

Your fellow humans.

All of us fed.

All of us nurtured.

And from your heart space find your gratitude for that.

For the abundance of what we have.

And breathe that out into this forest.

And into this rock.

And into the water that flows.

And with each inhale feeling that gratitude grow inside of you.

And with each exhale sending it out into the world of which you are a part.

To which you belong.

From which you have been birthed.

Allow that cycle of gratitude to continue.

Look around at all that surrounds you right now in this moment.

And anchor this feeling into your body.

Knowing you may return here any time.

For now say goodbye.

And feel that breeze as it comes in and gently scoops you up.

Take it out through the tops of the trees gently and floating as a leaf on the breeze.

Noticing how your body feels.

Noticing how your heart feels.

Bring your awareness back to this body.

On this chair,

Cushion,

Ground.

Noticing the support of whatever is holding your body up.

And connecting with those branches gently pull them back down.

Until they are much much closer to your head.

And connecting with those roots again gently pull them up.

Until they are much much closer to your feet.

Bringing yourself back into this body.

Into this place,

This room.

This time here now.

And take a moment.

Into no hurry.

And bring what you feel in your body.

And what you are aware of.

Into this place.

To this time.

To this now.

And as you are ready.

Start to maybe wiggle your fingers.

Move your toes.

Roll your neck.

And then ever so slowly.

Let your eyes open.

And bring yourself fully present.

To this place.