Welcome.
Let's begin with this poem.
Start with love.
Let anything you desire,
A small change,
A big change,
For yourself,
For your dear ones,
For the world,
Let it start with love.
Love for yourself,
Your body,
Your dreams,
Your soul aches,
Your soul longings.
Love for your dear ones,
Their quirky ways,
Their faults and challenges,
Their not-yets,
Their inner light and beauty.
Love for the world,
Its rivers and mountains,
Its snowy peaks and sandy beaches,
Its hummingbirds and elephants,
Its humans,
And our potential to create a new way of being that references the earth and reminds us of our shared humanity.
Let it start with love.
There's times in our lives when we need a change,
But we don't know where to start.
Our bodies need some more tending to,
Or attention.
Our minds are full and always on,
Or a relationship might need some tending to.
Our work life may have become consuming,
And we can feel exhausted and anxious and tired.
We need a change,
But it all feels like too much,
And we don't know where to start.
Start here,
By connecting to your body and breath and heart.
Start with slowing down.
I know this might sound like the antithesis of what you want to do.
The mind wants to speed up,
Figure it out,
Take action.
But Lao Tzu said,
Can you wait until the mud settles and the water becomes clear,
Before taking the right action?
So ironically,
By slowing down and dropping out of the mind and head and into the heart,
Our nervous systems move out of stress mode and out of stress mode solutions and into deeper regulation.
It's from this place of regulation then that we make creative and wise decisions.
The heart,
The heart teaches us to make decisions and take actions that are rooted in love.
Love is who we are.
It's our essence.
So whether we start a new and more nourishing exercise routine,
Whether we take a soul risk to deepen our sense of intimacy with someone we have been wanting to connect more with,
Whether we make a big shift in our work life,
Let that journey start with love.
So take a moment with me and soften or close your eyes.
Place your hands on your heart center and let your hands rest there,
Varying the touch and the pressure so it feels supportive.
Feel the breath flowing into your heart space and feel the heart expanding on inhale and releasing on exhale,
Expanding and releasing.
Feel the beating of your heart,
This ancient hum of aliveness,
This familiar sound that has been with you since you were in your mother's womb.
The heart beats without you willing it.
It is the seat of compassion,
Vitality and aliveness.
This is how to start anything.
This is how to heal,
To refuel,
To renew our vitality,
To embrace our lives right here,
Connecting to the heart,
The body,
The breath,
Starting with connecting to love.
With the hands here on the heart,
Listen to your heart and ask it,
Show me how to love today.
Show me how to love today and let your heart guide you.
Maybe through sensations,
You feel a softening of the muscles and bones in your body.
Maybe the heart guides you through energy,
Pulsing through you as golden light.
Maybe the heart guides you through an image of yourself going through the day.
Maybe it's through an emotion that can guide you today.
For most people,
It starts with loving ourselves,
Taking care to nurture and tend to ourselves,
Even in small,
Tender ways.
The eyes resting between text messages and emails,
The body stretching between meetings,
The hands gently massaging your head and neck and body,
Pausing to actually slow down and eat a meal.
Notice how your heart is guiding you to love yourself today.
And then as you receive love,
You might then notice that someone or some situation comes to your mind,
To your heart that you're working with,
That you are just on your heart and your mind.
That means tending to hold an image of that person or the situation in your heart for a moment.
Breathe with it.
Even if there is a squeeze of hurt or a wave of soreness or anxiety,
Bring that into the vast ocean of your heart and breathe here.
Let your heart show you how to start with love.
So take a moment and receive guidance on the next right step.
This is how to start anything.
This is the place we start to heal,
To refuel,
To find guidance,
To make sure our actions are rooted in love,
That they come from and are grounded in love.
The strongest force in the universe that pulses through us and is always available,
An abundant supply for healing,
Hope and guidance.
Start with love.
I imagine a world where we all stop before we take action and connect to our hearts to start any conversation,
Meeting,
Class or difficult decision by connecting to the heart and asking it for guidance.
To start with love.
What a world we can create as we do this.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
