Hi and welcome.
I'm Laya and today's meditation is designed especially for the morning so that you can set an intention to help you move through your day.
Sometimes,
Depending on what's going on in your life,
It can almost feel overwhelming to start the day.
With this short meditation,
I encourage you to take a moment to really notice how you feel and set an intention that feels good for you.
So bring yourself to a comfortable seated position,
Perhaps on a meditation cushion or on the ground,
On a chair,
Or you could even lie down if you wanted.
And bring your hands to rest on your lap or your knees.
Allow your shoulders to relax away from your ears.
Lengthen your neck.
And before you close your eyes,
I invite you to take a moment to look around the space that you're in.
Whether you're indoors or outdoors,
Look right and left,
Up and down,
As you notice the textures,
The shapes,
And the colors of the space that you're in.
And eventually bring your gaze down toward the earth,
Or if you'd rather,
You can close your eyes.
Listen to the sounds of the day awakening around you.
What are the farthest noises that you can hear?
Become aware of sounds of people,
Sounds of nature,
The day beginning.
Let your attention move from one sound to another,
Without having to really know where they're coming from and what they are really.
Starting to bring your attention to the sounds that are closer and closer to you,
Until eventually you perhaps land on the sound of your own breath.
Perhaps it's very subtle.
Perhaps it's more audible.
Just let yourself notice the inhalation coming in through the nostrils,
And the exhalation coming out the nose or the mouth.
Giving yourself the space to arrive into this moment,
Into this practice,
And into this brand new day.
Become aware of the way in which you're seated,
The support beneath you and around you.
And on the inhalation,
Let yourself grow a little bit taller,
A little more expansive,
Taking up more space,
More than you think you deserve.
And on your exhalation,
Let your body soften as you ground down toward the support,
Toward the earth,
And into the here and now.
Inhale,
Observing the expansion as the sun rises over the horizon.
Warm,
Bright,
Full of possibility.
Exhale to soften and release maybe some of the tension that you can observe and that you don't need right now.
And as you watch yourself present and anchored to your breath,
For a few moments notice where your mind is.
Perhaps it is sluggish from the night.
We're already going a thousand miles an hour with worries and concerns and to-do lists.
But just observe.
To gather information so that you can understand yourself better.
How is it that I'm showing up today?
Deep breath in through your nose.
And out through your nose or your mouth.
Letting yourself melt and relax into the day.
Take a moment to notice how you feel energetically.
Do you feel uplifted,
Energized,
Energetic?
Do you feel tired or overwhelmed or chaotic?
See if you can observe how the energy is moving through you.
Like a current of warmth or vibration or something else entirely.
Take a deep inhalation through your nose.
Open your mouth inside out.
If it aligns with you,
Bring one hand to rest on your belly and the other to rest on your chest.
Allowing a moment of connection to yourself.
And as you've been observing how you feel physically,
Mentally,
Energetically.
I invite you to ask yourself,
What can I use more of today?
How am I going to create and move in the world?
If what you need today is a little bit more of softening and letting go.
Maybe what you ask yourself is,
What can I do a little bit less of today?
What can I release?
What can I not engage in?
Take a deep breath in through your nose.
Let it expand front to back,
Side to side,
Top to bottom.
And let go.
Let the question evolve into an intention.
A small seed that you can carry with yourself.
A reminder of how you want to move through whatever arises today.
The kind of choices that you want to make so that you can live your life authentically.
Deep breath in.
Sigh it out.
Release your hands back down.
And rub your palms together.
Creating warmth and vibration and energy.
And then bring your palms over your eyes.
Noticing the darkness,
The warmth,
The contact of your hands with the skin of your face.
And eventually let your eyes open inside of the hands.
As your fingers separate and the light filters through.
Releasing your hands down when you're ready.
And letting the world come back to focus.
The colors,
The shapes,
The textures.
Giving yourself a moment to do nothing at all.
Just welcoming the day and welcoming yourself as you are.
Breathe in.
And breathe out.
I hope you've enjoyed this practice and that you have an intentional and grounded day.
I look forward to practicing with you again soon.
Until then,
Take care and be well.
