Hello.
Let's take just a few minutes here to step back for a moment so that we can begin to feel steady again.
This situation,
This moment,
It's difficult right now and that's okay.
It's okay to acknowledge that.
It's okay to take a few minutes to care for yourself and help yourself feel a bit more stable.
So we're going to do that and we're going to use each of our five senses to do this,
Beginning with sight,
Moving to sound,
And then taste,
Smell,
And touch.
We're going to start by just taking a deep breath,
Just in,
Feeling the chest,
And then exhaling at a pace that's most comfortable for you.
Place a hand in a spot that is soothing against your body,
Whether that be on the chest,
On the belly,
Perhaps holding the other hand against the legs,
Just somewhere soothing.
And as you rest your hands,
Allow your eyes to close or if it's more comfortable to keep them open,
Just allow them to rest and drop your chin.
Allow the head to hang down towards the chest.
Try not to strain.
Just allow it to rest there.
And if your eyes are closed,
Allow them to open and rest upon your feet,
The surface beneath you.
What color are your feet?
What colors do you see there?
How would you describe the shape of the feet?
You can count the toes.
Maybe just go one by one,
Count each of your toes.
Perhaps even noticing the color of the surface around the feet.
What do you see?
We're just going to allow other thoughts to fade into the background and we're just focusing on what we see here at the feet.
Everything else can wait.
We're just looking at the feet right now,
Being curious about what we see.
Now let's allow the eyes to close or just allowing the eyes to rest on the feet still if that's even more comfortable for you.
And let's refocus our attention on sounds.
Rather than seeking them out,
Let's just let them come to you.
Another meditation teacher describes it as the song of the moment.
What does the song sound like?
What's here?
And now gently moving the focus from the sounds around and the sights to the taste in the mouth.
See if you can taste anything,
Maybe something you had earlier.
Maybe you're not sure,
Maybe you don't taste anything at all.
And that's,
There's nothing wrong with that.
We're just noticing what's here and allowing it to be just how it is.
There's no right or wrong sensations to have right now.
We're just allowing them to be and just noticing with a kind curiosity.
What's here?
Continue to breathe as we move to noticing smells.
I think it's difficult to notice smells without breathing.
What's here?
Maybe something pleasant.
The smell of your clothing,
Food nearby,
Paper,
Perhaps you're in an office setting.
Really just anything.
Maybe it doesn't even have a name.
Maybe it's pleasant or not so much.
Maybe something neutral.
Rather than critiquing it,
We're just going to notice it.
What smells are there here?
Still breathing,
Inhaling and exhaling.
And allowing our focus to shift ever so slightly from smells not to touch.
Where's your hand right now?
What does it feel?
You may notice the warmth of the chest beneath your fingers or the belly,
Perhaps the texture of the shirt you're wearing or your skin against your skin.
You might feel the pulse in your other hand.
Let's expand that sensation of touch,
Noticing not just the sensation of hand against body,
But the feet against the ground,
The surface beneath holding you and supporting you.
And here you are,
This entire person,
This human being,
This precious,
Magnificent human being,
Living a very human experience.
The situation you're in may not be ideal right now,
But recognize that this is temporary.
In the meantime,
Here you are.
You're present.
You're safe and supported.
And you're worthy of care.
This is a noble use of your time.
Take time to internalize that,
It's true.
If your eyes are closed,
Begin opening them again,
Lifting your head and welcoming yourself back into this moment.
And if you feel the need to repeat this practice for a longer period of time or shorter,
That's perfectly fine.
As many times as you like,
This practice is for you.
And here you are.
