Welcome.
My name is Simon and I'm honored to be with you today in our time of reflection and meditation.
I'd like to start out by having you give yourself permission to take what you need from this time,
To let land what will land and the rest float away.
This is your time.
You've chosen to be here just as you are.
Letting yourself know that you're in charge of this moment.
Letting this meditation meet you exactly where you are.
Now gently begin to bring your awareness inward.
And let's take a moment to acknowledge and honor the state that we're in and what we're bringing into the space.
Do this by noticing what you're experiencing in your body,
Your thoughts,
Your emotions,
Or any sensations.
Just observing what is present with you right now.
Once you feel like you have a grasp of that state,
You may put your hand on your heart and just say,
I see.
So let it be.
Giving space for whatever there is.
Now softly in the same vein,
Setting an attention for this moment.
Noticing what brought you here.
What desire or wish do you have for this time?
Letting your system inform you.
What is your seeking right now?
Maybe it's presence.
Maybe it's calm.
Maybe a moment of connection or relief.
Now let's take a moment to get more into the space that we're in.
Notice what is holding or supporting you right now.
See if you can feel the boundary of your being to the space around you.
What signals are coming from that space?
What is the temperature?
Any sounds?
Once again,
Putting your hand on your heart,
Just saying,
I'm here.
So it is.
So let it be.
And then in whatever position feels comfortable for you,
Bring awareness to your breath.
Just being curious about the rhythm,
The depth,
Or the quality.
Knowing that there's nothing to change.
Everything is welcome here.
Observing that you're breathing and that that is enough for this moment.
That's all that's being asked of you.
Notice how breath moves with or without our awareness.
Driven by something deeper inside of us,
Beyond our consciousness at times.
Driven by what may be referred to as a life force.
Each inhale and each exhale moving us forward in time and space.
Noticing that most of the time breath just happens.
You don't control it and yet you can choose to meet it with awareness and you can choose to adapt it.
But ultimately it just functions driven by this force,
Cycle to cycle,
Breath to breath.
Take a deep breath in and hold it.
As you're holding,
Just notice some tension maybe begin to rise,
Pressure,
Maybe even a little bit of aggression to get to that next phase of the cycle.
Letting it go,
Exhaling.
Feeling the release,
The openness,
The expansion,
The softening.
On your next breath in,
Hold again and welcome that life force that may feel like discomfort.
As the tension builds,
Let it go and breathe normally.
Noticing that these cycles of expansion and contraction live not only in our breath but also in our healing journeys.
We have moments where we feel open,
Expanded,
Connected.
Like we've grown or changed.
Inevitably followed by moments of contraction.
We pull back,
Return to old patterns.
We doubt if anything's changed at all.
Feeling that discomfort,
That wrestle.
This is not a failure.
This is the healing process.
Notice how also this process is driven by something deeper inside of us,
Similar to that life force,
Driving a desire to heal and grow and connect and to be more authentically ourselves.
Moving us from moment to moment,
Forward in time.
Feel the rhythm of your breath again now and feel the inhale,
Expansion,
The exhale,
Release.
Once again,
Inhale deeply and hold,
Feeling that resistance,
That tension,
Letting go.
Breathing normally,
Reflecting on the fact that contraction is not the end.
Contraction is preparation for the next opening,
Next expansion.
Each breath,
Each wave,
Each cycle,
Step forward on your path.
Let it unfold with more kindness,
With less efforting.
Put your hand back on your heart and see if you can offer a small piece of gratitude to your system,
To these cycles,
To the moments of breakthrough,
And to the steps back,
To the lessons learned in contraction and the healing found in expansion.
Gratitude for the resilience that keeps you going,
Even when it's hard,
Even when contraction looks like regression or relapse.
It's all part of the healing journey.
Letting your breath carry you once more,
Inhaling and exhaling,
Becoming aware of the support holding you,
And saying to yourself,
I am here.
I am healing.
So it is.
So let it be.
Letting yourself rest here for as long as you need.
And when you're ready,
Coming back to the space around you,
Feeling a bit kinder to your cycles of contraction and expanding,
Maybe a little bit more gratitude toward that force driving you forward.
So let it be.
