So we're going to begin with a little meditation today,
It'll be about 15 minutes,
So I encourage you just to take a moment to make yourself comfortable in your seat,
Or if you want to lie down or take another position you're really welcome to,
But just somewhere where you can feel alert in your body but also comfortable.
And if you're sitting in a chair you might just want to make sure that both feet are firmly on the ground,
That you have that sense of stability,
Of groundedness,
And you might like to just let your eyes gently close,
Or maybe just taking a soft downward gaze,
And we'll just take a few slow easy breaths,
Maybe breathing deep down into the belly,
Letting a long slow breath out,
And if that felt good maybe one more like that,
In,
Just letting it go,
Allowing any unnecessary tension or holding to just drain out of the body,
To gently release,
Maybe letting the face gently soften,
Might feel nice to let the shoulders roll back and down,
Maybe inviting the belly to be soft,
Letting that natural easy breath just return,
We don't need to change or manipulate the breath in any way,
And just beginning to let the full weight of our body settle into the ground,
Into the chair beneath us,
Really letting ourself arrive,
Letting go of whatever's happened in the day so far,
Allowing yourself to come home to your own body,
And if you like,
If it feels supportive,
If you might bring some soothing or supportive touch,
Maybe a hand on the heart,
Or another gesture that might feel good in this moment,
A reminder that we're not just bringing awareness,
But this gentle supportive awareness,
This affectionate presence,
Bringing a sense of gentleness to our experience and to ourself,
You can let this gesture remain as long as feels comfortable,
Or bring it down when you feel ready,
In this meditation we're going to bring awareness to the experience of the breath in our body,
But if it feels uncomfortable or held,
That doesn't feel like a supportive place to bring our awareness,
Just come back to the sensations of this gentle supportive touch,
And if it feels right,
And only if it feels right,
Beginning to bring your awareness to the sensations of the breath in the body,
Noticing where the body experiences breathing,
Maybe feeling the expansion with the in-breath,
And the soft natural letting go,
The release of each out-breath,
Just allowing the body to breathe,
We don't need to do anything,
Resting back into this natural flow,
Noticing the rhythm of your breathing,
Flowing in and flowing out,
Giving yourself space to feel in,
To this natural rhythm of your own breath,
Rising and falling,
Bringing the same gentle attention to your breath that you might bring to a beloved child,
Or a dear pet,
Feeling the whole body moving with the breath,
Like waves in the ocean,
Flowing through the body,
And the mind of course naturally wanders off,
Like a curious child or a little puppy,
Easily distracted,
This is really normal,
Whenever we notice this wandering mind,
This very human mind,
Just gently coming back to that soft flow of the breath in your body,
Rather than watching the breath,
Can you allow yourself to be the breath,
To feel the breath,
Letting the whole body be gently rocked,
Caressed,
Breath moving through body like a gentle massage,
Allowing yourself to rest back into this soft flow of breathing,
Like waves lapping on the shore,
Just breath,
Being,
Breathing,
Nothing else to do,
Just breathing,
And when you feel ready,
You can gently release that attention on the breath,
Just taking a few moments to rest quietly in your own experience,
Whatever that might be right now,
Maybe reminding yourself there's no right or wrong way to be,
No right or wrong way to feel,
Allowing yourself to be just as you are,
And to finish this meditation we might again just take a slightly deeper fuller breath down into the belly,
Maybe letting something go with the out breath,
Whenever you feel ready you can gently open the eyes,
Maybe taking a moment to move the body,
To stretch,
Maybe to give yourself a little massage,
We might be feeling a bit more in touch with ourself and what we need,
So just giving some space for that.
