G'day,
My name is Rachel Grace.
In this practice,
After a period of standing,
We'll transition into mindful and slow walking.
So it's a good idea to be in a place where you can easily walk slowly,
For example in a hallway or boardroom or in a park,
Wherever you can tune into the experience of walking at a slower than usual pace.
To begin,
See if you can find a chair or bench or railing to stand in front of so that you can use that to steady and support your balance during this practice if necessary.
And we'll begin this practice with the sound of a gong.
Let your body come to a comfortable standing position,
Lie straight ahead,
Or letting your gaze be gently downcast to the floor in front of you if that feels right for you.
Now I invite you to feel how your feet feel on the floor.
Notice the sensations there,
The sensations of touch in the soles of your feet making contact with the floor.
To help your awareness make a strong connection with the sensations in your feet,
If you feel comfortable to do so,
You can gently rock forward and backward on your feet noticing how it feels.
Then rocking side to side and noticing how that feels.
Does it feel the same or different?
Now letting your feet come to rest and feel the physical sensations in the soles of your feet.
Whatever those sensations might be,
Pressure,
Warmth,
Tightness,
Sweatiness,
There's no right or wrong,
Simply noticing the sensations in the soles of your feet from moment to moment.
Noticing where the mind is now.
If your mind has wandered off to thoughts about the past or the future,
Judgments about this practice,
Distracting noises,
Or off to any other sensation in any other part of the body,
Just notice that.
And then the moment that you notice your mind has wandered,
Gently returning your attention once again to feeling the physical sensations in the soles of your feet right here,
Right now.
Now I invite you to begin to walk gently and slowly,
Noticing the changing sensations in the soles of your feet.
Notice the sensations of lifting the foot,
Stepping forward,
And then placing the foot on the floor.
Now do the same with the other foot,
And then one foot after another.
Walk at whatever pace supports you to maintain your balance,
But also to notice the experience of walking and the sensations in particular in the soles of your feet.
Try that now at your own pace.
Feeling how each foot lifts up,
Moves forward,
And then lands.
How the soles of your feet feel when they make contact with the ground beneath you.
As you walk,
Perhaps appreciate how small the surface area of each foot is,
And yet how it supports your entire body.
If you're comfortable doing so,
You might even allow a moment of gratitude for all the hard work that your feet do,
And that they are doing right now,
Which is usually taken for granted.
Feeling the physical sensations in your feet,
The soles of your feet,
And noticing how they move through space to take each step.
As we move towards the end of this practice,
I invite you to pause and return to a standing position.
Feet shoulder width apart,
Arms hanging loosely by your side,
Relaxing.
Give yourself a moment to notice if this practice has impacted you in any way.
Has there been a shift or change in the state of your body or mind?
Either way it's okay,
But just notice if there has been a change or no change.
As we approach the end of this practice now,
I invite you to join me in rolling your shoulders up towards your ears as you breathe in,
And then relaxing your shoulders back and down again as you breathe out.
To finish this practice I will ring the gong three times.
Good on you for taking a moment to practice mindfulness.
Let your intention be to carry this focused and calm presence with you as you begin what's ahead of you now.
Thank you for practicing with me.
I hope you will join me again.
