It's bedtime now.
Time to snuggle into bed and let your eyes softly close.
Let's take three deep breaths together.
Ready?
Good.
Notice how warm and safe and comfortable you feel.
Keeping your eyes closed,
Allow your mind to travel with the sound of my voice.
Beneath you,
Your bed has transformed and you find yourself lying on the soft earth,
Your long white tip tail wrapped protectively around your back and front legs and head,
Keeping the chill winter air off of you that is making its way in through the entrance to your den.
The air has kicked up a scent.
Lifting and turning your head this way and that,
You sniff at the air.
You feel the cold air on your little black nose then notice it warming as it enters your long slim body.
Oh no,
You think,
I know that smell.
It's the smell of the gray badger with its black and white face that must have lived here before you moved in.
But wait,
There's another smell,
The scent of a squirrel.
It's coming from outside.
You creep on your four black paws up to the entrance of your den,
Poking out your perky long black furry ears with their white tips.
You hear something rustling leaves in the tree above your den.
You move your ears forward and back to hone in on the direction of the sound.
Looking up,
You see a bird flit off a branch.
Nope,
Not it.
You slowly bring your long rusty colored body out of the den while staying low to the ground.
Your movement startles the squirrel who begins jumping from branch to branch in the canopy above.
Ah,
There it is.
You can see things better when they move.
You follow beneath as the squirrel bounds from tree to tree.
It scampers up and down to find suitable limbs.
You can feel your heart racing in your chest as you run.
Though you are looking up,
Your paws have no trouble navigating the leaves,
Roots,
And vegetation of the forest floor.
You leap over fallen trees and rocks,
And just as you seem to be catching up,
The squirrel runs out to the edge of a sturdy branch which hangs over a flowing stream.
Soon you tire of waiting for the squirrel to play chase again,
And you walk out from under the tree canopy into the warmth of the sunlight.
You start to feel a deep sense of relaxation come over you,
From the tip of your black nose,
Through the russet fur covering your muzzle,
To your amber eyes,
Relaxing your long black pointy ears,
Down the reddish fur on the back of your head and neck,
Down the length of your back and the white fur of your chest and belly,
Down your arms and legs and through your little black paws,
All the way down the length of your long bushy tail.
You let your eyelids become heavy and gently let them close.
Your breathing becomes soft and deep and effortless.
You are completely comfortable,
Curled on the cool ground beside the stream,
The sun warming your body.
You listen to the calming sound of the water flowing beside you.
You breathe in the cool air.
The muscles in your body release and you feel fully supported by the earth beneath you.
You are completely relaxed and you let yourself drift off to sleep.
Good night,
Little red fox.
