The Garden Hedge: Holding Your Boundaries Steady

A guided meditation for holding your boundaries steady under pressure, the second chapter in the 'Garden' series.
Return to the garden, where the boundary you created is no longer new; it’s lush, alive, entirely yours. This is a story about what it feels like when a boundary has been tended long enough to simply hold, alive and steady, even as the winds push hard against it. When storm clouds gather, you’ll experience how it feels to stay peaceful and settled despite the turbulence around you.
Return as often as you like, in your own time to tend and nurture. This track uses deep immersion. If you have an active or sensitive nervous system, you are always welcome to open your eyes, stretch, or alter the practice to stay comfortable.
Perfect as a peaceful evening sleep story. Find a warm space where you won't be disturbed.
Please do not listen while driving.
Written and voiced by Nicola Rosewarne, with original music by Jack Rosewarne-Hebb.

Transcript

So just take a moment now. To settle in. To a lazy. . . Easy relaxation. Where you have nowhere to go. And nothing to do except. To Relax. Taking a moment to make sure that you are warm. Comfortable. And undisturbed. Giving yourself this gift. Of space. This gift. This gift of relaxation. Time. And when you are ready, If it feels good for you today, I'd like to invite you now to close your eyes. And for a moment or two, To do nothing. Nothing at all. And you may notice that you have little thoughts that travel across the mirror of your mind. And you can let those thoughts go, Just let them go. As you settle deeper. And deeper. Into relaxation. And release. And I'd like to invite you now gently. . . And lazily. To place your focus on the breath. And specifically on your out-breath. Following the path of the out-breath all the way. All the way. All the way to the end of the breath. Where you will find that there is a space. A pause. Time to stop. And then you will notice that the in-breath starts to ask you to take notice. And so you yield to the in-breath. And follow the path of the in-breath all the way. All the way. All the way to the top of the breath, To the space at the top. Of the in-breath. Before the out-breath releases once more. And you follow the path of the out-breath. The lazy gentle out-breath. All the way to the end of the breath. To this space. A gentle space. Before once again yielding to the in-breath. Following the path of the in-breath all the way. To the space at the top of the breath. Before releasing once more onto the out-breath. And noticing with a lazy, Easy curiosity. That the out-breath can become longer than the in-breath. And that maybe this feels right. And this feels good. And as the out-breath lengthens away lazily. You may find that you feel more and more relaxed. More and more relaxed. And now, From this lazy, Easy, Relaxed place. I'd like you to really slowly. . . Place your focus at the top of your head. And begin to imagine the muscles of your scalp. Releasing. Relaxing. Letting go. And it's like a wave of relaxation that starts to flow. All the way down. Down your skull. Down your forehead. Softening and releasing. Melting. Like butter. Releasing in the eyes, Around the eye sockets. Down across your cheeks. Across the back of your head and down your neck. Letting go. Softening and melting. Feeling the wave of relaxation spread now. Down your neck, Letting go, Softening and melting. Feeling the wave of relaxation spread now down into your body, Down into your shoulders, Across your chest and down your arms, All the way to the ends of your fingers, Releasing, Softening and melting down your spine, Vertebra by vertebra. Down. Through your ribcage and into your belly. Down into your pelvis, Into your pelvic floor, Letting go, Softening and releasing. Into your hips and down, Down. Down your legs. Through your thigh muscles, Releasing, Melting, And letting go in your knees, Your shins, And your calves. Down, Down. Through your ankles, Into your heels. Through the arches of your feet. Through the balls of your feet. And all the way into the very tips of your toes. The whole of your body now. Lazy, Easy and relaxed. With this beautiful melting sensation. This beautiful melting sensation. And as your body settles now. Into deeper and even deeper levels of relaxation. You find. That's your mind. Is able to drift freely and easily. A beautiful, Calm and peaceful feeling. Following the path of the breath. All the way. All the way. As you continue to explore. Freely, Happily. Easily and confidently. Drifting. And as you drift. . . You become aware very gradually. Of a sense. Something green and soft. And faintly sweet. Folding around you before you've even decided to notice it. And slowly. Gently. You become aware of where you are. And you find yourself. Once again. In the garden. The way you so often are now. At ease and at peace. In this beautiful place you have created. And something. Some instinct. Makes you look up. And far off, Way in the distance. Beyond the furthest edge of the garden, The sky has changed. Clouds gathering low and heavy. The particular colour that only ever means one thing. And you know this colour. You've seen it before. And you know exactly what it means and exactly what to do. And you place your focus on your garden boundary. Your beautiful, Rich hedgerow. Coming into your awareness as you look at it. You take a moment to see what is already here. Encircling this space of soft grasses and wildflowers. The hedgerow is nothing like its outer face. It is so beautiful. Woven with vine and leaf. Centred with all that has sprung up since you were last here. All along its length flowers, Blooming, Bright against the deepening green. They're sent fully reaching you now in this soft evening air. Exactly the way it promised it would. Back when there was barely enough of it to carry any scent at all. Small birds sing to each other, Moving through the thickest part of the growth. Settling for the night. With no sense of what's gathering beyond the furthest edge. Something else, Smaller still, Moves along the ground. Unseen but certainly there. Perfectly at ease in cover that wasn't here before. A gorgeous climber you don't remember planting has found its own way up through the branches, Flowering high above you, Adding its own perfect note to everything else in the scented air. If you look up beyond the top of the hedge to the night sky. You can see amongst the inky blue, The stars are starting to appear and you breathe it all in. Peaceful and fully present inside all of this joyful abundance. Even amid the knowledge of the coming storm. And you move calmly along the hedgerow, Looking more closely, Tending. Here, A place that has thinned since you last checked it. There, A gap you'd let stay open for the entrance, Now closed with a single thought. Here, A stem drawn a little tighter, A little denser. Simply because you decide it should be. And by the time the first real gust arrives, You are already settled, Already certain. The hedge already exactly as lush and as whole as it needs to be in this moment of turbulence. And you hear it before you see it, A whistling and then a movement. The wind moves towards your garden, Picking up. Pressing against the hedge from the far side. At first it's barely noticeable, A rustle through the outer leaves, A slight lean in the furthest branches, Felt more than seen from where you are, Tucked into the centre of it all. But then the wind finds the places it once could have passed through easily. And it pushes harder there, Fierce. And you notice this without needing to do anything about it. You know this hedge was grown to hold. Through many moments just like this one. And for as long as it needs to. And you reach out and rest your hand against the hedge itself. Feeling the texture, The richness, Every leaf and every stem, So alive and responsive to your touch. And the wind shoves and pushes harder again and then again. And then again, And the birds do not scatter. The small creature at the base does not flee. They tuck deeper in and settle. And you are free to tuck in too. So just settle and be still, Quiet. Sheltered, Held by what you have created here. The beauty of it. And the strength. And then, Simply, Suddenly, The wind drops away. And everything settles once more into peaceful stillness. And there, In the midst of all the stillness and beauty, Is the calm peacefulness. That sits in the centre of you in this place. And it is entirely yours. This secret, Precious place. No one gets in here but you. Unless they are gentle enough to be invited. And you know that you can come back here. Anytime you like. And you can do this again. And again. For as long as it takes. In your own time. And as you prepare now to continue on your journey. You know that you can move forward. Refresh. And with a lightness of step. Travelling along your path. Calm. Peaceful. Peaceful in your mind. Centred in the knowledge that you are in control. You are in control of your emotions. In control of your feelings and in control of the thoughts to which you choose. To give your precious attention. Now. And into the future. So gently now. Bringing your focus lazily back to the breath. And specifically to the out-breath. Following the path of the out-breath all the way. To the end of the breath. To the space. The pause. Time to reflect. Before the easy in-breath comes in. Yielding to the in-breath now. Following the path of the in-breath. All the way to the top of the breath. To the space before the out-breath releases once more. This lazy gentle breath pattern. Which happens all by itself. And then placing your focus lazily at the top of your head. And finding that melting sensation once more, Sweeping down through the body, Softening, Melting, Releasing. Letting go of all that you want to let go of. Finding in its place calm, Peaceful, Settled space. And then finding your awareness in the very tips of your toes. Bringing physical sensation back to the body. So finding a wiggle and a stretch, A wiggle and a stretch that moves through your feet and up your shins and your calves. Through your knees and your thighs, Stretching and wiggling in your legs. And into the base of your spine now, On your pelvis, Up the spine, Through your belly, Through your ribcage, Up to your shoulders, Wiggling and stretching, Letting that movement travel down your arms all the way. All the way down your arms to the very tips of your fingers and the tips of your thumbs. And the wiggle and the stretch moving up your neck and around the back of the skull. And down to your face. So the whole of your body now physically present. And should you choose now to go to sleep? Then you sleep deep and peaceful, Feeling calm. Feeling subtle. And should you choose now to wait? Then. . . Gently. Lazily beginning to deepen the breath. Letting each in-breath bring you a little more presence. A little more aware. Feeling the breath fill you with a quiet, Settled awareness. A quiet, Settled aliveness. And with each out breath, Releasing the last of this deep relaxation, Softly, Easily, In your own time. Becoming aware now of the sounds around you. The feeling of where you are, Your body warm and present and completely your own. And when you are ready. . . In your own time. Gently open your eyes. Thank you for practicing with me today.