This is a sleep meditation with a brief body scan and the sounds of a summer night near a river.
There will be no bell at the end.
Begin by lying down in your bed or wherever you sleep and take a moment to get comfortable.
It doesn't need to be perfect.
Just the first level of comfort.
Take a deep breath in and blow it out with your mouth,
Exhaling all the way.
And then another deep breath in,
Letting your body know that you are entering into a different space.
Exhale all the way,
You're letting go of your day.
If you need to,
Gently move about until you feel comfortable.
There's no need to be completely still.
If you need to move,
Go ahead and move.
You can also recognize the need and instead of moving right away,
Let your mind investigate that area of your body that wants to move.
See if you can breathe into it and allow any tension to be released.
As you start to relax,
Take a moment to picture yourself and love what you see.
Like every other human,
You are traveling through life doing the best you can.
It's okay to go to sleep.
Now allow your mind to focus inward and become aware of your body.
Perhaps you see a little light behind your eyelids,
Just a few stray photons moving through the universe,
Just like you.
Allow and accept these visitors.
Perhaps you feel the weight of a sheet or a blanket on top of you.
Perhaps you feel your body pressing down on the bed and the bed returning that force,
Pushing back up onto your body.
Some parts might be pushing down more than others and the bed is supporting those parts with a little more resistance.
Allow yourself to notice where your body is heavy on the bed and where it's not.
Now send your mind to visit different parts of your body.
Feel your lips relax.
Feel the tingling in your face as the tiny muscles that help you smile or frown look surprised or thoughtful.
Those muscles start to release their tension.
They're letting go of their day.
You can thank these little muscles as you allow them to release,
To rest.
You can allow your tongue to relax as well.
There's no talking that needs to be done now.
There's no work.
You might feel your skin tingle around your eyes as your eyes begin to relax.
Isn't it amazing how we can send our mind to different parts of the body and notice how much there is to experience there?
How we can allow different muscles to release,
To let go of tension?
Now let your mind go into your hands.
Notice the sensation of warmth in your palms.
Maybe send your mind through each finger,
Starting on one hand and moving to the other.
You can do this slowly or quickly.
You can send your mind to any place in your body.
Notice the feel of the air on your face.
Notice the breath now and see if it has slowed down a bit.
If you have a thought,
You can notice that thought and let it go away.
You can also notice the absence of thought,
Between thoughts.
And then returning to your body,
You can notice the warmth in your palms again,
Perhaps the tingling on your scalp.
Allow your mind to rest on one sensation for a few moments.
Now it's time to thank your body for all that it does and welcome it to fall asleep.
As you listen to the sounds of the night,
The frogs and the peepers calling,
The river flowing,
You can allow your mind to go out to a summer night.
How many peepers are there?
What do they look like?
You can feel that warm summer night.
The night is friendly,
Wrapping you in its warm embrace and promising you deep rest.
If you came upon this spot hundreds of years ago,
You might have lain down in the warm grass and fallen asleep surrounded by nature.
The bed feels good now,
Like you belong in it.
Become aware of your face and see if you can relax it a little more.
Now the corners of your eyes,
They feel smooth and calm.
If a thought comes,
You don't have to resist it.
You can welcome it,
Appreciate it,
Maybe even know what it is.
And notice that it's just a thought.
You are not the thought and you can invite it to visit again another day.
Now turn your mind back to your breath.
Try to stay with one whole breath.
Notice the feeling of the bed under you,
The warmth in the palms of your hands,
Your breath coming in and out effortlessly.
Great sleep to wrap itself around you and take you in.
Safe,
Warm sleep.
Restorative sleep.
You can drift off now,
Leaving for tomorrow anything that calls for attention.
Nothing is important right now.
Just being here,
Relaxing,
Allowing sleep to come.
Now you can listen to the sounds of nature as they continue.
Feel the bed,
Feel your body.
Allow sleep to come when it wants.
Allow yourself to be okay,
Whether sleep comes now or later.
