So welcome to today's practice,
Themed around living in deep time.
To begin,
I'm going to invite you to take a few moments to settle into stillness.
You can begin by finding a position that feels supported,
Either sitting upright or lying down with ease.
You can close your eyes if that feels okay,
And take a slow breath in through the nose,
And let it out gently through the mouth.
Let's do this two more times,
Inhaling through the nose,
Exhaling with a bit of a sigh or a sound through the mouth,
And again inhaling,
And exhaling.
And now allow your breath to fall into its own rhythm,
There is nowhere to get to,
Nothing to achieve,
Simply arriving here is enough.
Now bring to mind this truth,
Life is finite.
If you live to 80,
You'll have around 4,
000 weeks.
Each of those weeks is a gift,
Each week is a choice.
Notice how your body responds to this awareness,
And does it bring urgency,
Fear,
Gratitude?
Whisper inwardly,
My time is precious,
My time is limited,
And repeat with your breath,
My time is precious,
My time is limited.
And allow this reality of time be not a burden,
But a doorway into presence.
Now imagine life as a conveyor belt,
Always moving forward,
Carrying endless tasks,
Lists and demands.
Notice how it feels to always be moving,
Always reaching,
Never arriving.
Now step off the belt,
And see yourself standing still.
The belt moves on,
But you are no longer carried by it,
And feel your body grounded and free from urgency.
Whisper inwardly,
I step off the belt,
I choose presence.
And bring your awareness now back to your breath.
Each inhale is a beginning,
Each exhale is a letting go,
And allow yourself to rest in what contemplators call deep time,
A time beyond the clock,
Beyond productivity,
Beyond urgency.
In this deep time,
There is no need to measure,
No pressure to achieve,
There is only the simple miracle of being here,
Alive,
Now.
Whisper softly,
This moment is enough.
Repeat that with each breath,
This moment is enough.
Now bring to mind what truly matters to you.
Not the hundreds of small tasks,
Not the endless to-dos,
But the big things,
The rocks in your life.
Maybe it's love,
Maybe it's creativity,
Maybe it's your body,
Your spirit,
Your relationships.
See these things that truly matter to you in your mind,
And feel them in your heart.
Whisper inwardly,
I choose what matters,
I release what does not.
I choose what matters,
I release what does not.
Let yourself breathe into this clarity.
As we come toward a close,
Bring your hands gently to your heart space.
Feel the beat of your life,
Precious,
Finite and miraculous.
Whisper inwardly,
Thank you for this time.
And let's take three deep breaths together,
Inhaling presence,
Exhaling gratitude.
Presence,
Gratitude,
Presence,
Gratitude.
When you're ready,
Slowly begin to return movement to your body.
And when you're ready,
Gently open your eyes.
Carrying this truth into your day,
You cannot do it all and you do not need to.
What matters most is how you choose to spend the precious time you've been given.
Thank you for your attention.
