Welcome to this brief guided meditation for those who may be feeling lonely or isolated at this time.
The invitation is to take the next 10 minutes to practice self-care and self-compassion.
So find a comfortable position seated or lying down.
And as you're settling in,
Know that you are worthy of love and belonging.
No matter who you are,
No matter what you've done,
You are absolutely,
Positively worthy of love and belonging.
Now settling in with 3 or 4 deep breaths in your own way and at your own pace.
Feeling the surface beneath you,
Supporting you.
With a quick scan of your body,
See if there is any little adjustment or fidget you can make to feel just a little more comfortable.
Make those adjustments now if you like.
During this meditation,
Tears may well up in your eyes or you may feel some sort of other strong release.
If this happens,
Just go with it.
Be with who you are right now.
This is a safe place to be exactly where you are,
Even to be vulnerable.
So settling into this time and space,
Perhaps feeling the body soften a bit.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Breathing deeply into this moment in time.
You are not alone.
You are never really alone.
Take a few moments to think back on those who have been kind to you in your life.
Perhaps someone who knows a sweet part of you that others may not know.
Maybe a childhood friend.
Maybe a family member.
Or perhaps someone who is not a blood relation but feels very much like family to you.
Perhaps a neighbor or someone who used to be your neighbor comes to mind.
Maybe a teacher,
A coach,
Or a guide of some sort.
Perhaps an old flame or a roommate.
Maybe someone you've lost touch with.
That's okay.
Or maybe even a person or persons who've passed away.
This is okay too.
Thinking back on those who have been kind to you in your life.
Does memory of any of these people make you smile?
The loving presence of this person lives within you.
Gently,
Sweetly,
Feel the echo of this loving presence as it is left within your body,
Within your being.
And like a reflection in a beautiful lake,
Your loving presence lives within these others.
Gently,
Sweetly,
Feel the echo that is shared in this web of loving presence.
You are worthy of love and belonging.
You are part of this web of loving presence,
Adding your own unique beauty to the myriad connections of peace and well-being shared between people.
In all of its imperfection,
The power and beauty of this loving connection can be felt and experienced in this very moment.
Putting aside thoughts and analysis as best you can,
Simply feel the echo of this web of loving presence in your life,
Feeding and nourishing the loving presence within you.
And while we are at it,
Taking a few moments of gratitude for the people who actually do feed us,
Those who grow,
Pack,
Transport,
Shelf,
And sell us the food that nourishes us so we can thrive.
Even as mere purchasers,
We support all of these people with the food we buy to feed ourselves and to feed others.
Just another of the webs of human connection,
People caring for one another in fundamental and important ways.
The philosopher Spinoza famously said,
We are all cells in God's body.
This is an expression of common humanity,
Where we are all worthy of love and connection at the deepest levels of existence,
Each of us filling our own unique niche in this web of connection.
You are worthy.
You are enough.
You are connected to all others in the web of life,
Never really alone.
Others think of you,
Depend on you,
And care about you.
We will end this meditation with a quote from Albert Einstein.
A human being is part of the whole,
Called by us,
Universe,
A part limited in time and space.
He experiences himself,
His thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest,
A kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.
This delusion is a kind of prison for a few persons nearest to us.
Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion,
To embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.
Go in peace.
