Hey there,
It's Michael.
Time to rise and shine.
With a pause,
Breathe,
Reflect,
Morning gratitude practice.
I'm glad you're here.
When ready,
You can find a comfortable position.
You may be still in bed.
You may be seated.
And as you settle in,
I'm going to close my eyes.
But as you know,
You're always at choice here,
So you do you,
Boo.
You can also close them,
Keep them open,
Or have a soft gaze if that makes you feel a little bit more comfortable.
Finding that position that will help you fall awake to this new day.
And we'll drop in.
Gracefully coming into the moment and finding the breath.
And taking a few healthy inhales and nice slow releasing exhales.
Giving yourself permission to fully come into this moment.
And as you come into the natural rhythm of the breath,
I invite you to check in with your mind,
Your body,
And with your heart.
Checking in with them and noticing how you feel.
How are you doing today?
As we greet a new possibility.
For reals,
How are you doing?
And allowing whatever response to come up naturally.
There's no perfect answer.
Simply greet this moment in the way the moment wishes to be greeted.
And you may wish to offer your attention to the body.
Scanning your body,
Noticing how it feels,
Picking up on any different sensations that may be present.
And without judging the sensation as good or bad,
Pleasurable or unwanted.
Simply create the space and offer gratitude to your body.
For all that your body provides.
And you can even be grateful when the body isn't responding in the way that you wish.
Because sometimes those feelings help you notice when you're taking your body for granted.
And now offering your attention to your heart.
Going within and diving deep into the area around your heart.
Noticing all the love and kindness that flows through you.
And expressing your gratitude to your heart.
For your ability to love.
And to ripple kindness and empathy to those around you.
And if your heart is aching or hurting,
Congratulations,
You're human.
You can even offer gratitude to your aching heart.
Acknowledging your humanity.
Accepting the tenderness of life.
And now offering your attention to your mind.
Notice what's bubbling up.
You might pick up on different emotions or thoughts.
Narratives,
If you will.
Noticing the quality of your mind as you greet this day.
It might be crowded and busy.
It could be some openness and possibility.
Taking time here to express your gratitude to your mind.
For your ability to reason and use judgment.
To think and solve problems.
And even when your mind feels like a cloudy gray day,
You still may be able to offer it gratitude.
Knowing that this is also part of your human experience.
And we all have days like this.
And now I invite you to open your aperture.
Open your awareness.
And invite in gratitude.
You might be grateful for the people in your life.
Family members and friends.
Maybe a fur baby or two.
You may be grateful for the arts and music and literature.
Things that speak and move you with their creativity.
In this space,
Allow gratitude to come in.
Rippling throughout every cell of your body.
And now you can relax your attention.
And as we begin to round out this pause,
Breathe,
Reflect moment.
I invite you to reflect on how you can bring gratitude with you as you travel today.
Taking gratitude away from your bed,
Cushion,
Or chair.
And weaving it in to all the moments between your moments that make up your one wild and precious life.
To paraphrase the great poet Mary Oliver.
And when ready,
You can open your eyes if you've had them closed.
And wiggle those beautiful fingers and toes.
And give the body a little stretch.
It's time to rise and shine.
I hope you enjoyed this moment to pause,
Breathe,
Reflect.
And invite gratitude into your life.
And between now and the next time we practice together,
When you have a challenging moment,
Slow down,
Come back to your breath.
And your gratitude practice.
And know that you've got this.
And we've got you.
And don't forget to ripple.
Something worth rippling.
