Greetings,
Beautiful beings.
Welcome to today's session,
Accepting What Is.
How many times in our day do we go through a wish list of if only this could change?
Or what if that line at the store was a little shorter?
I really hope that light stays green.
There are so many moments when we are looking for the world to fill our needs,
To fill us up from the external to the internal.
And today's question and invitation is to flip this idea.
How about looking at that same light and acknowledging,
Hmm,
It's green for the moment.
Maybe it'll be yellow by the time I get there.
Maybe it'll turn red.
Maybe I'll make it through on this particular light.
And truly just being with what is.
So much easier said than done.
Those thoughts whip in so quickly in a moment,
In a flash.
And yet with practice,
We have the opportunity to lessen the impact of these thoughts,
To let them float by or dissipate before they even come to fruition.
There are five questions that one of my meditation teachers asks before every practice.
These are the five sacred questions to awaken presence.
And they help us get back into that place of truly being right here with what is.
So if you're willing to play along with me,
Let's get comfortable.
Close your eyes if that feels good.
Be in a comfortable place and let these words and these ideas soak in.
Before answering,
Really settle in and feel into your body if there is congruency and authenticity in your answer.
Today's practice may simply be getting to that place where these questions feel aligned for you.
Question one,
Do I agree I cannot step into the past and change it?
Just envision for a moment that whatever's happened in the past is gone.
Right this moment is where you start from in being able to affect change.
And similarly,
Number two,
Do I agree I cannot step into the future to force it?
Just like the example of the stoplight,
It is what it is.
So in these first two questions,
Can you truly be letting go of the past and without worry of the future?
Just right now,
For a moment.
And then if possible,
Question three,
Do I have the patience to wait until my mud settles and the water is clear?
This is a beautiful line from Lao Tzu.
Sometimes we need to remain unmoving,
Even when the swirl is happening all around us,
For us to be that calm amidst the chaos.
Question four,
Do I give myself permission to show up right now as my best,
Most brilliant,
Most creative expression of myself?
And while of all these questions,
This may seem the most simple,
It is often the one that we waver between the most.
Those days of feeling incredibly balanced and imaginative and energized.
And other days where we just want to pull the covers up over our head,
Hit the snooze button all day long,
It is your birthright to be the most magnificent version of your incredible self.
And with that thought,
Question five,
Am I willing to breathe deeply into this moment and awaken my best version?
And so for some of us,
We may struggle with affirmative responses to all of these questions today.
And yet it is the practice to be able to come back to these questions.
Once a day when you start your practice or throughout the day when you realize you're getting caught up in the swirl of some story,
Being able to come back into yourself.
And so let's just take a few moments to breathe a little deeply,
To feel into what it's like to be here now,
In this moment with what is,
Not in the past or in the future.
Finding a glimpse of stillness amongst everything that's going on and allowing a glimmer to come through of our most authentic,
Brilliant self.
Take a nice long,
Slow,
Deep breath with me.
And exhaling.
And let's do that again.
Inhale.
And exhale.
And one last time.
Inhaling.
And exhaling.
So as you continue with your day today,
Notice where you're able to be with what is.
Feeling non-attachment,
Cultivating neutrality,
Experiencing balance.
And when a moment arises when you drift into the past or envision the future,
You know you have this tool to come back into the present moment.
Have a beautiful day.
Until next time.
