For this meditation,
Feel free to lay down either in your bed or on the floor,
Unless you think you might fall asleep,
In which case it's probably best to sit upright.
Just get comfortable and start to settle into whatever posture you've selected.
And just take a couple of deep,
Relaxing inhales and exhales.
And then gently place a hand or both hands on your heart.
It's just a gentle reminder to be kind to yourself.
And feel the warmth of your hand over your heart.
And just take another three deep,
Relaxing breaths.
Inhaling through the nose and then exhaling through the mouth.
And then gently rest your arms again.
And begin to notice your feet.
What do your feet feel like right now?
Are they throbbing?
Are they warm?
Cold?
Notice if there's any discomfort in your feet.
And if you feel any discomfort,
Just soften that area.
Maybe even envision just placing a warm towel on any part of your foot that might be aching.
Soothing it,
Giving it some comfort.
And just noticing the sensations in your feet that are present right now.
And if there's anything unpleasant that you notice again,
You can just bring some compassion to that area with some words like,
Huh,
There's a little pain there.
That's okay.
Or I'm noticing some pain there.
That's okay.
Just feel the sensations.
There might be no feeling at all or pleasure or pain.
Just let the sensations be just as they are.
And now we'll bring gratitude to our feet.
They have such a small surface area,
Yet they hold up your entire body all day long.
They work hard for us,
And we rarely pay attention to them.
And if your feet feel great today,
You can also extend gratitude for any discomfort that you don't have,
Cherishing that well-being and okayness that you find in your feet.
And just carefully move your attention to your big toes.
And just across all of your toes,
Moving from one toe to the next,
Just seeing if you can bring tender,
Loving awareness,
Gratitude,
And respect as you move toe through toe.
Just noticing the sensations present in your feet without trying to change them.
Just notice what's there.
Pleasure in one place or discomfort in the next.
Heat,
Cool,
A tingle,
Pressure.
Just notice what is there.
And when you notice if your mind wandered,
Which it's natural and normal to do,
Just return to the sensations in your feet.
And just moving to your calves,
Bringing attention to your calves,
Bringing attention to your knees,
Thanking your knees for allowing you to move about.
And attention on your thighs and your hips,
And then your legs as a whole,
Just appreciating your legs for supporting you and helping you experience the world.
Bringing your attention to your belly,
Appreciating your stomach and your intestines and your entire inner body for providing nutrients and digesting food so that it can nourish the rest of your body.
Bringing your attention to your heart and your chest.
The magic of breath without having to do anything,
Your body breathing itself.
Your heart beating just as it's been beating since the day you were born.
Bringing your attention to your shoulders and your back and your arms,
Each finger,
Noticing all the sensations in the hands.
Bringing gratitude for your hands allowing you to touch,
To feel the world,
Your arms allowing you to hug those you love.
Bringing your attention to your eyes and the quality of seeing the beauty that your eyes filter in,
And your lips and your tongue and your teeth,
Thanking each body part for a job well done.
And now your body as a whole,
Noticing any sensations throughout your body without wishing to change them or just being present with whatever you notice.
It might be pleasure or pain,
Ease or discomfort,
Just noticing as you scan your body as a whole.
And then placing your hand on your heart once more and just giving yourself one last swoop throughout your body,
Head to toe,
And toes back to your head,
Flooding your body with gratitude and appreciation.
Thank you.
