Welcome.
I'm Kelly,
And I don't think it's an accident that out of all of the voices and all of the meditations,
You found this one today about feeling simply alive.
I still remember the first voice I heard on Insight Timer,
And it was Sarah Blondin,
And she came to me at the exact moment that I really needed help to let go and feel the magical combination of her words,
Energy,
And voice somehow soften the armor around my heart that I didn't even know I was holding.
And without even trying,
I started to feel some aliveness again at a very difficult time.
That was many years ago,
And since then,
Aliveness has become one of my deepest values and my compass.
I've learned that feeling alive doesn't always mean feeling good.
It means feeling,
Feeling awake,
Feeling yourself present,
Willing to be with whatever is here,
Willing to feel.
Often,
It can be the simplest things that bring us back to our aliveness and help us feel.
The rest we've been putting off,
A song,
The presence of a trusted friend,
A slow walk in nature,
A deep breath,
A sad movie,
The sound of a child's voice.
Your aliveness is always there,
Sitting beneath the superficial layer of resistance and tension on the other side of distraction or numbness.
It's there,
And it is beautiful.
It is you.
And this meditation is here to help you remember that radiant life that is you.
So if you haven't already,
Find a comfortable position,
Either seated or lying down,
And letting go of any obvious tension in the body.
Let the body soften and soften,
Allowing the eyes to shut down.
Slow down,
Slow down a little bit more.
You can even place your hands gently on the body and say,
Here I am.
Here I am.
Begin to notice you're already breathing.
Life is already moving through you.
You don't have to try.
You just have to remember and feel yourself here.
Allow yourself to feel whatever is here.
No striving,
No effort,
Just the steady pulse of being.
Take a breath into the belly,
And as you exhale,
The shoulders soften,
The chest relaxes,
The jaw is unclenched.
Taking another breath into the belly,
And as you exhale,
The belly softens,
The hips relax,
And the hands relax and open.
Taking another breath into the belly,
And as you exhale,
Relax behind the eyes,
Between the eyes,
And relax every cell of the body.
Yes,
Just like that.
Doesn't that feel better?
Feel yourself soften and open to your own presence.
Letting any distractions fall away.
Layer by layer,
Breath by breath,
At the door of this sacred space,
You,
Your aliveness,
Your essence.
Tune your awareness towards the senses.
Slow it all down.
Feel the air subtly touch the skin.
Savor the quiet of the moment.
This is aliveness.
Notice the breath at the tip of your nose.
Cool on the inhale,
Warm on the exhale,
And listen.
What sounds are reaching your ears right now?
Don't label them in stillness,
Just receive them.
This is aliveness.
Bring your awareness to the energy humming beneath the skin,
Your prana,
Your life force,
The heartbeat in your chest.
Can you feel it?
Stay right here.
Don't get ahead of yourself.
Just try to be with the tenderness of the present moment.
This is your aliveness.
It's not something you earn or something you need to work for.
It's what you are.
It's the spark that says yes to being here.
The current of energy that connects you to all things.
Aliveness is power.
It is presence.
It is the root of flow,
Creativity,
Devotion,
And love.
Allow yourself to feel.
Don't rush.
Allow yourself to feel whatever needs to be felt and open to it,
Just for this moment.
Right here with this in-breath and this out-breath.
You are not waiting for life to begin.
You are in it.
You are in it.
This is it.
Be open to feel it all.
Sarah Blondin's words still echo in my mind when she says,
I am here in my body.
I am home.
I am here in my life.
I am alive.
I am awake.
I am alive.
I am awake.
Feel your breath.
Feel the fullness of your presence.
This is aliveness and it matters.
Your aliveness matters and you matter.
As we start to close and return to the rhythm of the day,
Really feeling the life in your feet,
Your legs,
And your hips.
Feel the soft hum of energy in your fingertips,
Your hands,
Your arms.
Feel the life behind your eyes and in your smile and pass that spark of aliveness on to others.
I'll leave you with a quote from Howard Thurman who says,
Don't ask what the world needs.
Ask what makes you come alive and go do it because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
Thank you for being here alive with me today.
I feel you.
Now,
Go pass the spark.
