Hello and welcome.
My name is Melanie Pescott.
This is a short meditation to connect you in with your breath.
So settle in and find a comfortable seat,
Making any adjustments as you need to settle the body.
As you settle in,
Notice your weight is evenly distributed as best you can through both sit bones through the pelvis,
Lengthening your spine from your tailbone all the way up to the crown of your head,
A slight tuck of the chin and give your shoulders a nice big roll up,
Back and down.
Notice the lift of your heart and soften your belly,
Soften your eyes and softening your jaw.
As you settle in,
Your eyes close down or maintaining a soft gaze,
Becoming aware of any places within your body of tightness or tension and see if you can soften here a little,
Creating a little more space for energy to flow through the body,
Softening,
Finding ease as you begin to settle.
Now begin to notice your breath,
Noticing as it comes and goes in waves,
Noticing where your breath is landing most obviously in your body.
You might notice it in the throat,
Your chest,
Perhaps the lower belly.
I'm just becoming aware.
Where is your breath landing?
Noticing the smoothness of the breath.
Is your breath smooth or is it a little jagged?
Just noticing,
Becoming aware as you sharpen your focus to the breath.
The goal here isn't to change anything but simply become aware,
Bringing a kind attention to your breath,
A non-judgmental attention,
An awareness that sees with love what is here,
Meeting it with open arms,
Allowing whatever is to be in this moment and the next.
Spend a little more time just watching the breath,
Allowing it to be just as it is.
Now bringing one hand to your heart and one hand to your belly and settling in,
You might even lengthen your spine a little,
Reset your posture,
Placing your hands softly to the body.
Noticing the temperature of your hands to your body,
Warmth or coolness,
Noticing the sensation of hands to your chest and belly,
Perhaps as a gentle hum or vibration of energy through the hands,
Perhaps as a sense of quiet,
Stillness.
Notice how it feels to place your hands and your heart and belly.
Now beginning to breathe to your hands,
Notice your chest expand into the upper hand,
Followed by the belly expanding into the lower hand.
Belly softens,
Chest softens as you exhale and simply breathing to your hands.
Notice the rhythmic expansion and contraction,
The chest,
The belly with each breath to your waiting hands to receive.
If your mind has wandered,
Gently guide it back to your hands,
Your chest and belly,
Breathing to your hands,
Ready to receive the breath again and again.
Allowing tension to melt away from places of tightness in the body,
Perhaps the neck and shoulders,
The muscles around your eyes.
Do your best to allow the whole body to soften as you breathe to your hands.
Nothing to do,
Nowhere to go,
But to settle here in quiet reverence of the breath.
Breathing to your hands,
Noticing as life moves through you with each breath.
And slowly as you're ready,
Allow the hands to fall away,
Resting comfortably in your lap on your knees,
Resting here with your breath and the stillness of these moments.
Taking three more breaths,
Watching the breath as it comes and goes.
Enjoying your hands to your heart center,
Pausing here with your chin slightly bowed,
Eyes closed down.
Taking a moment to rest in stillness and quiet awareness of whatever is.
Drawing your hands up to the space of wisdom between the brows,
Pausing here.
And then drawing your hands back down to your heart,
Pausing here.
Releasing your hands down to your lap,
Giving your shoulders a roll up,
Back and down.
Softening your belly as you gently open up your eyes,
Let your shoulders soften.
And taking whatever time you need here in silence,
In contemplation,
Taking whatever time you need.
I thank you for your practice.
