Welcome,
Please find your comfortable meditation posture,
Inviting your feet to lay flat on the earth on the ground,
Your back to be upright and gently closing your eyes or letting your gaze soften as we start to bring attention inward,
Attention into the present moment for the next few moments here.
Starting with a few rounds of deep breathing,
Breathing in letting oxygen fill your lungs,
Life force energy flow through your body and on the exhale maybe sighing out with your mouth open,
Releasing any tension.
Deep inhale in and exhaling letting your body surrender to the pull of gravity,
Rooting down onto the earth.
Letting your exhale be a little bit deeper and a little bit longer and really starting to let your body land in this place,
Land in this moment,
Grounding you onto the earth,
Becoming heavier,
Becoming more relaxed.
And whenever you're ready,
Letting your breath return to its natural rhythm,
Its natural pace.
And just taking a note of how you're feeling as we begin this practice.
What's alive for you physically?
What are you noticing in your body?
Just gently without judgment,
Labeling that whatever sensation you're noticing,
Acknowledging any mental chatter,
Any activity in the mind,
Or maybe a little bit of charge in the heart and the emotional landscape.
And again,
Welcoming yourself as you are here in this moment today for this practice.
And continue to take a deep breath in and out.
And now we'll activate the mind's eye,
We'll go to a place outdoors in nature,
In our imagination.
So I invite you to think of a place that you've been to that you're fond of,
That you have happy memories in outside in nature.
And if you can't think of one,
Just make one up,
That's fine too.
Maybe someplace from your childhood or someplace more recent.
And just making sure we choose a location and a place that doesn't carry too much emotional charge,
Somewhere that you remember being happy and peaceful in.
So bring that into your mind's eye now.
Look around as if you were there in this moment.
What do you see?
Where are you?
What are the landmarks that you can see the natural elements?
Is it forests or mountains?
Is it water?
Is it the desert or the jungle?
Or anything in between?
What do you see?
What do you hear in this place?
Maybe you're admiring its beauty.
Maybe you're hearing other animals present or other beings,
Maybe other humans.
And just start to notice what your body does in this moment as you return to this place in your mind.
What are you doing as you're there?
Are you wandering around?
Are you sitting down?
Are you walking?
What are you wearing in this moment?
What's the temperature like outside?
And can your body start to really embody that place?
How are you merging with the land around you or the water?
How is it nourishing you?
How is it supporting you?
And just kind of continue to visualize yourself there.
The textures that you're noticing,
Maybe there's sun or wind or rain on your skin.
And really let those physical sensation trickle through your body in this moment as if you were opening up your pores and your cells to this vitality,
To this place that you care for.
Go ahead and take your seat a little bit more deeply.
Let your body fully relax and surrender to this place.
And now,
Maybe you want to express gratitude for this beautiful location,
This place in time and space.
So if you were to turn to the land or the water,
What would you like to say back?
As you travel back there in your mind's eye right now?
What do you want this place in nature to know?
Maybe it's how much it means to you.
Maybe it's years of gratitude that have not been expressed fully.
Maybe it's care and compassion for the beings that call it home.
So imagining yourself extending that prayer of gratitude out into nature,
Into the land.
And letting your body really receive that as well,
That exchange of care,
Of gratitude.
Beautiful.
And trusting that you can return there in your mind's eye at any time.
So let's take another deep breath.
As you exhale,
Notice if anything has shifted in your body and your mind and your heart since the beginning of this practice.
Maybe there's a quality of presence in your whole being now that wasn't there before.
Maybe you feel a little emotional activation as you think back and travel back to this special place in your heart and your mind.
Maybe there's release happening.
Maybe just some peace or some calm or anything in between.
No judgment here,
Just welcoming yourself again as you are in connection to this place.
And now we'll get ready to complete this practice.
So inviting a little bit of movement into your body.
Wiggling your toes and your fingers,
Maybe stretching your arms as if you're waking up from a beautiful dream.
And when you're ready,
Letting your eyes open up,
Looking around you and moving forward into your day.
