So this week on the episode,
We talked about your inner weather and starting to identify that you are not those emotions.
You are not the storm that passes through,
But rather that you are the sky.
And so today I want to take you through an extended version of the meditation that we did during the episode.
So just a reminder that these meditations are meant to be done in the stillness and silence of the space where you can simply relax.
So if you are operating in a heavy machinery or driving a car or anywhere that you need to be mindful and aware,
Maybe press pause and come back to this later.
But if not,
Let's get started.
Let's begin by just taking a deep breath in and breathing out and letting it all settle.
And then go ahead and close down your eyes or just stay here with me.
Now to begin,
I want you to begin to connect to the body.
Just noticing each part of you.
Noticing where the tension might lie.
Noticing what feels open and what feels tight today.
And without judgment,
Just drawing that awareness first to the crown of the head.
And then start to notice the space between the eyes,
On your forehead,
And then your eyes,
Your ears,
Your nose,
And your mouth.
Drawing awareness into the jaw and sensing if there's any tightness or tension there and if there is,
Just letting it drop.
Drawing that awareness into the mouth,
Even noticing the teeth,
Letting them separate.
Noticing the tongue,
Letting it drop and then rise.
Placing the tongue directly beneath the top of the teeth.
Noticing the back of the throat,
All the way down into the neck.
Start to notice the muscles within the neck.
And then dropping that awareness into the shoulders.
And then draw that awareness down through the upper arms,
Into the elbows,
The forearms,
The wrists,
And then into the fingers,
Just letting everything feel loose.
And then start to draw the attention and awareness to the space between the shoulders.
And then drop awareness all the way down through the back,
Into the lower back.
And then around into the stomach.
Just letting the belly feel loose,
Not needing to hold on.
And then start to draw that awareness into the hips,
The seat,
Through the upper legs.
Feeling through the quadriceps and along the back of the legs,
Feeling into the hamstrings.
And then starting to notice the knees,
The shins,
Noticing your calves,
And your ankles,
And then into your feet,
Through the tops of your feet,
The balls of your feet,
Your heels,
And into your toes.
Just fully noticing from the top of your head down to your toes,
Each part of you.
Again,
Noticing that tension,
That tightness,
Anything that's holding on.
And then also start to notice if there's anywhere that just feels particularly open today.
Anywhere that feels open and alive,
Aware,
Recognizing the neutrality of all of this.
There's no good way to feel,
Or bad way to feel.
It just is.
And then start to draw that awareness into the chest.
Feeling into the muscles of the chest,
Letting the chest almost open up.
And as you connect to the muscles within the chest,
Start to also connect beneath to the heart.
If it's helpful,
You can take your hand and just place it there.
And just allow for yourself in this moment to become aware of all those feelings that are present.
Just let them be here right now.
You don't have to push them away.
You don't have to make them anything but what they are.
Just for a moment,
Let them be.
And as you start to identify those emotions,
Start to simply label them.
Just noting what is here right now.
And maybe it's an emotion,
Maybe it's a feeling,
Maybe it's a simple way of being.
But with the simplicity of the noting,
Start to draw your attention to each of those.
Sadness.
Unrest.
Thinking.
Planning.
Joy.
Without judgment,
Just label.
Just note it.
And let it be.
And as each of those labels becomes clear,
Begin to visualize above you the sky.
Looking out into the vastness of the sky all around you.
And then return to those labels that you were noting and begin to place them into the sky.
Almost as if placing each one as a cloud.
Just above you.
And just watch as they become part of the sky.
Noting what color they are.
Noting the shapes.
Noting if one feels ominous or scary.
Noting which ones just seem to fly by and which ones want to hang around.
But just as you would not judge a cloud for being in the sky,
Allow for yourself to just let those be.
Just let them be right there.
And just take a few moments to sit there gazing up.
Looking at them pass.
Removing any judgment.
And just letting yourself watch it all pass by.
And as you watch them all begin to pass,
Begin to imagine that the sky was too clear.
And that all of a sudden when you look up,
There was nothing but this deep blue of the sky.
And start to recognize internally that that sky is you.
That those feelings,
Those emotions,
Those experiences of life were never you.
That you existed just as the sky holding it all.
And yes,
They will come.
And yes,
They will go.
And within that is this impermanence of life.
That you,
Just this bright sky,
Gets to be the container for all of that to exist.
But none of it is permanent.
What does it feel like to exist with that impermanence in mind?
To be able to step outside of all of those feelings and just watch it.
Now let's also begin to do the same with the body.
Return back there and start to notice first the spaces of tension.
Where tonight are you carrying that tension?
Is it in the jaw?
Is it in the chest?
Are you feeling a tension,
A tightness within the belly?
Or maybe within your shoulders and your back?
Wherever it is,
Just note it.
And just as you are separate from those feelings,
You can also be separate from the physical sensations.
They can just exist as spaces of tension.
Perhaps notifying you of something to pay attention to.
Now without trying to fix it or change it,
Just draw the attention there.
Drawing that attention to the place that needs the most of you.
And almost as if it was a child in your care,
Just begin to extend a sense of nurture,
Of care,
Of loving-kindness to that part of you.
Seeing that tension as simply an indicator of a need for care.
And recognize that you are the one who can give that care.
And tonight we'll allow for that care to come in the form of a simple breath.
Breathing into that space of tension and then feeling the release.
So whatever that part of you that's calling out for your attention,
Draw your awareness there and simply breathe.
Breathing in and letting go.
Breathing in and letting go.
Breathing in,
Feeling that almost as if that tension could get even tighter.
And on the exhale,
Just let go.
All we're looking for is 5% more openness.
5% more ease.
As you breathe in.
And as you feel that openness and ease begin to take place in that space,
Draw now your attention to the part of you that feels open today.
The part of you opposite from that tense,
Tight space.
Maybe there's an openness in the heart today.
Maybe your arms feel open and loose,
Your shoulders can feel relaxed.
Even if it is the smallest spot,
Draw your attention and awareness there.
And with that same care and attention,
Begin to nurture and allow for that to expand even more.
Breathing in and opening more.
Breathing in and embracing even more openness.
Finally,
Breathing in as deep as you can to that space of openness and letting it expand fully outward.
And between that tension and that openness,
Find the space between.
And just for a moment,
Allow for yourself to just be in ease.
Not needing to be anywhere but right here,
Right now.
Not needing to fix a thing.
Not needing to change anything.
But just be right here.
And as you feel into that ease,
Begin to become aware of the space around you.
Aware of the space above you and below you.
Aware of the space on either side of you.
In front of you and behind.
And in the openness of that space,
Begin to notice you.
Begin to notice the sounds within the room.
The sound of my voice.
Those ambient noises within the room and outside of the room.
And feeling into the sense of ease,
Begin to experience sound.
And then returning back to the breath,
Breathing in through the nose.
Start to notice any aromas within the room.
Any of those smells that enter in as you inhale.
And connecting again to the sense of ease,
What does it feel like to experience smell?
And then with a gentle swallow or running your tongue over your lips,
In connection with that ease,
Begin to experience taste.
And then draw your hands together in front of you.
Slowly moving them back and forth.
Beginning to feel your hands rubbing together.
Or maybe even exploring the fabric of your clothing.
Or the textures around you.
But again,
Returning to this ease which you created,
Start to experience touch.
And then finally,
When it feels right and safe to do so,
If your eyes have been closed,
Go ahead and gently flutter them open.
And just take in the space around you.
In this new space of ease,
Removing connection to the tension,
The tightness,
To the feelings that were present.
Just in full observation of everything you're experiencing,
Start to take in the colors,
The shapes,
The figures.
And just allow for yourself to be fully aware of all of those emotions.
All of your senses,
Your feelings.
And just observe it all.
Remembering that you are the one observing.
You are the one who gets to see it all.
To take it all in.
No need for judgment.
We'll end today as we begin.
Taking a deep breath in.
And breathing out.
Letting it all settle.
Now,
Go take care of yourself.
And I will see you next week.
