Letting Go

This meditation takes you on a short walk down a path of your choosing, where you have the opportunity to set aside thoughts, feelings, and worries that you don't currently need. These unwanted/unneeded burdens are referred to as "rocks" in this guided meditation, but you can visualize them as anything that most fits your circumstances.

Transcript

Hi there. Thanks for joining me today. Let's go ahead and get started by settling back into your space and allowing the eyes to close. And just doing a brief relaxation exercise, Starting at the top of the head and as we go down, Allowing the muscles to soften and relax. So up at the top of the head and moving down to the forehead, The brow, The eyes, The nose, The mouth and jaw, The neck. Maybe linger a little bit here and into the shoulders, Into the arms, The upper arms, The elbows, The forearms and into the hands. And back up to the chest area, The upper back, Down into the belly, The lower back, Into the pelvic region, The hips, The thighs, The knees and the lower leg. Front and back to the ankles, The feet, Even the toes. And now that we're a little more relaxed than we were before, Bring to your mind the image of a door. And this door can be one you've seen before. It can be one that's brand new to you, That exists only in your imagination. But this door is leading outside to somewhere spectacular, Somewhere remarkable. And you're excited to go there. And notice that you are wearing a backpack at this time. And this backpack is full of items. And then the shape of rocks. So they're a bit heavy, Each of them. And these represent worries, Concerns, Responsibilities, Perhaps memories, Emotions, Whatever you feel that's laying you down in your life right now. Each one of those things is represented by a rock neatly nestled in your backpack, Just resting on your back. And maybe right now, Since they're just beginning this journey, You don't feel it so much. It's just kind of there. You're aware of it. And that's really all there is right now. And now let's take a moment to open this door. You look out and in front of you is a pathway leading to some amazing place, Somewhere you're excited to see, Perhaps to the beach, To a waterfall, To a town, Maybe a farm. It could even be a city. That's my personal favorite, But it can be anything for you. And you take a deep breath and begin walking down this path. This path is surrounded by trees, By plants. The environment's quite beautiful. The temperature is just right. It can really be any time of day. It can even be the nighttime if that's something special to you. And you're just walking down this path, This safe, Beautiful path. Noticing as you go along the scenery around you, The sensation of walking, Of breathing in this clean, Fresh air. On your way to this special place. And as you're walking, You begin to notice more and more how much this backpack is really weighing on you. You're starting to feel that that burden, That weight on your shoulders, Causing you to slow down, Really inhibiting your progress, Making it difficult to go on. And some of these objects in your backpack are necessary. But some of them aren't. So take a moment to remove the backpack and pull out one of those objects, One of those rocks. And just place it on the path. Perhaps it was necessary once, But you really don't need it right now. And it's okay to let it sit there. Let it blend into the nature around it. And find a new purpose in this space you've created, This world. It's okay to say goodbye. Even thank you, If you'd like. And maybe you're not ready to leave this burden behind just yet. And if that's the case, That's all right too. You can place it back in the backpack. Either way, When you feel ready, You zip up the backpack once more, Place it on your back, And continue down this path. Walking along, Noticing the creatures along the path. Maybe you see other people, You say hello. Maybe there's no one there. Either way is fine. This is your path. And as you go along this path, You take moments, Little opportunities now and then to stop, Remove the backpack, Unzip it, And remove a rock or two. And you place it next to the path. Let it be there. Let it go. And then you put the backpack back onto your shoulders, And you continue on. Just moving at a pace that feels most comfortable for you. Still breathing, Still taking things out of the backpack whenever you feel ready to do so. Placing them along the side of the path and continue on. And as you're going on, Removing rocks every now and then, You notice that you feel lighter. You feel happier. You can move a little faster. You have a little more of a skip in your step, Because now you have the strength to do so. And the path is easier to walk now. It's easier to take. This is because you're leaving things behind that you no longer need anymore. Feelings, Memories, Whatever it may be, Sometimes it's time to leave these behind. Say goodbye to them. Set them on the side of the path and just continue on. And as you continue moving, You start to notice right along the horizon that place, That special, Special place where this path is leading just for you. You're getting closer and closer. Stopping whenever you feel the need to do so. And placing a rock along the side of the path. Drawing near and nearer and nearer. Until before you know it, Here you are. You can see this magnificent, Beautiful place just for you. Maybe it's one you've seen before. Perhaps it's a safe, Special, Secret place within your imagination. And you stand here, Basking in the glory of this place. Looking around and recognizing that you've come here. That this is your special place. And by letting go of things here and there that you no longer need, You've been able to come here. Maybe there are still some rocks in your backpack. That's all right. Maybe there aren't any anymore at all. Either way, This is something to celebrate. You've made progress. You've made change. And you've come to where you want to be. And you are more than welcome to come back at any time. And leave behind as much as you'd like. As much as you feel comfortable setting aside for now. And it's possible these things will come back in time. Our lives change and every once in a while those things we thought were gone creep back in. And that's OK. No need to be angry with them. We just work with them. And if it's not time for them to go yet. We're patient with this. Recognizing that this is not permanent, That this will change. And it doesn't matter how much time it takes. We do what works best for us at this time. So you take one last look around this special place. And then you turn back onto the path. And begin your walk back to that door. Noticing again the scenery. Perhaps you see those rocks that you left behind before. Slowly becoming more and more part of the background, Part of the scenery. Not so much a part of your life right within your grasp, But just something that was there and no longer is there anymore. And you continue along this path. Until you see the door. And you walk through. And you close it once again. And you begin to feel the environment around you, Perhaps the ground beneath your feet. Taking notice of the sounds in the immediate environment around you. Maybe even wiggling the fingers and toes, Just welcoming yourself back into this space. And gently opening the eyes. We've been here for a few minutes now, So the light might be a little harsh, Just be careful opening your eyes and coming back. Recognizing that you can come back to your special place whenever you need to. And you can work through these burdens that you no longer need. Again, Whenever, Whenever you need to. So thank you for being here today, For taking care of yourself this way. And thank you for joining me. Enjoy the rest of your day.