17 Minutes To More Clarity

Join me on a 17-minute voyage to a secret mountain lake where we'll get more clarity in our minds--and our hearts. Every time we visit the lake together, we'll get more clarity in our lives. Some of the ideas will fall away and sparkling diamonds will appear.

Music license credits to: "tunes2you" and "maestro-misha2012" at Envato Market.

Transcript

17 minutes to more clarity.

I'm your guide,

Bradley Charbonneau.

Today we'll be traveling to a secret lake in the mountains near South Lake Tahoe in California.

It holds a special place in my heart as my kids grew up going to this secret spot.

It's warm outside and the water is clear and fresh.

The sky is blue,

The trees are lush and have deep green hues like steamed broccoli.

It's a magical wonderland for the eyes,

Ears,

Body,

And soul.

Today I'm going to share it with you.

Everything here is clear and we're going to get some more clarity for ourselves.

Get settled in and find a comfortable spot to sit with your feet on the ground and your arms at your side,

Your hands in your lap or wherever they are most comfortable.

Ideally,

Your spot is somewhere where you won't be bothered for the next 17 minutes.

You might want to wear an eye mask and have some over-the-ear headphones.

If you're listening to this via your phone,

Set it to do not disturb.

Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose.

Let it out slowly through your mouth.

Again,

In through your nose over the course of four seconds.

Hold it for another four and then let it all out slowly for six.

Let's do it again.

In,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Out,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five,

Six.

I'll let you count on your own now.

Two more times.

In,

Hold,

Out.

In.

There's a great way to test if your muscles are tense.

Tense them up now.

Grit your teeth.

Tighten your shoulders,

Your fingers.

Hold your breath.

Tighten your ribs,

Your butt muscles,

Your thighs,

Your toes.

Now let it all loose and exhale as if you no longer have bones.

Hold yourself up only enough so you don't fall over in your chair.

Now you know you're more relaxed than you just were.

Let's head into the water.

Slowly take a few steps into the lake.

Your toes feel the sand and it's as if every single grain is massaging your feet.

The temperature is perfect.

Take a few more steps forward in the water.

You can go as deep as you like,

Up to your ankles or your knees,

Your thighs or all the way up to your stomach or even your shoulders.

Whatever feels more comfortable.

Stop walking and stand still.

Your body is perfectly balanced and it takes zero energy to keep standing,

As if each molecule of water is holding you upright.

Take a deep breath in.

Smell the fresh water,

The pure air,

The pine of the trees,

Maybe even something else.

The wood of the trees,

Maybe something more.

Let it out through your mouth.

Each breath is cleansing your body,

Taking in the purity of the lake air,

Letting it go through your lungs,

Lightly pulling anything out that your body doesn't need.

You don't have care in the world.

Your focus is solely on the water and the air,

Which you can smell and feel.

How the sand feels on your feet and the water feels surrounding your body.

If you have cares or worries or your shopping list for the grocery store comes up,

Just set it onto the surface of the water as you would a leaf and let it float away.

You won't forget it later.

Let them all float away.

Look up into the sky,

Billowing white clouds like giant pillows.

The sky is blue,

The trees are green,

And the mountains are majestic.

All is well with your world right now.

Now look down into the water.

It's so clear you can easily see your feet.

The sunlight sparkles as if tiny diamonds are floating in the lake.

It's warm and delicious.

The sand is fine and settled on the lake bed.

Scrunch up your toes slowly and watch as the sand is displaced.

Squeeze your feet tight so it moves more and more of the sand.

Even kick your feet a bit to stir things up even more.

See it floating down there,

Shimmering in the sunlight?

Each grain of sand might represent an idea or a thought,

Both negative or positive.

We have so many thoughts per day.

Scrunch your feet,

Wiggle your toes,

And let's shake up all those ideas and thoughts,

The good ones,

The bad ones,

Until there's a whirlwind of our mind down there in the sand by our feet.

So many grains of sand,

So many ideas.

Let them float and shimmer and just be.

Then slow down your movement.

Then stop.

Breathe in.

Hold.

Breathe out.

Look down.

The sand grains are slowly making their way to the floor of the lake.

As they fall lightly and easily,

Let the same thing happen in your head,

Even in your heart.

Let all of the thoughts,

The ideas,

The plans,

The to-do lists,

The meetings,

The shopping lists,

All of it,

Just like the grains of shimmering sand,

Fall lightly and easily down.

Let them through your head,

Down your neck.

They might tickle.

Through your body,

Down your core.

Through your thighs,

Sliding easily to your lower legs.

Finally,

To your feet.

And then allow them to leave through the bottom of your feet and into the soft bed of the lake.

Don't worry about any ideas you think you need to remember.

You won't forget them.

And pay no mind to those ideas that possibly got stuck on the voyage down your body.

Clarity isn't a question of absolute purity.

It's not a blue sky without a cloud.

It's not a forest without a dead tree.

Clarity is being able to focus on the shimmering grain of sand that is the one you see.

The one that shines bright and catches your eye.

Breathe easily and lightly and notice the last glimmers of sand that are stragglers down by your feet.

They're almost all gone.

Some of the sand might have come to rest on your feet.

Some might be swirling still.

Nothing can bother us here.

If one of those last sparkles has a message for you,

Let it come into your heart.

Acknowledge the message and let it sit there.

You won't forget what it is.

Close your eyes even tighter.

Take in a deep breath and smile ever so slightly.

For you have just achieved a level of clarity you didn't have only a few minutes ago.

Let your breath out and celebrate this moment of success,

Of beauty,

Of peace and tranquility.

Look again at your feet and move your toes.

Stir up some sand again and we're going to make our way out of the lake.

Thank the water for holding you up.

Thank the sun for keeping your body warm.

And thank each and every grain of sand that sparkled below.

Especially those that sparkled the brightest and gave you a message.

Say goodbye to the trees.

Wish the mountains a fine day.

Whisper a greeting to the birds.

Maybe even a wink to the deer hiding in the woods.

Turn and slowly make your way back to the shore.

Take your time.

You have time.

Feel the water move around your body as you slowly head back to the shore.

Feel the sun on your back.

Smell the pine trees.

Listen for the birds.

Maybe there are kids playing in the distance.

We're heading back into the world.

There might be people on the beach but we're in our own world still.

We are coexisting with them while still in our state of utter peace and clarity.

Find a nice warm spot on the sand and have a seat.

Look back over to the water and know the power you now have over your ideas.

You can let them go.

You can shake them off.

You have the patience to let them fall to the lake bed.

Know that you have the skill to sift and sort and shake off the ideas and overwhelm you don't need and the experience to let the sparkling grains of diamonds come to you.

Each time you return to this lake,

Your experience and talent grow.

Each visit to the lake brings fewer and fewer grains of sand.

Maybe there are even brighter sparkling diamonds that have bigger and more relevant messages.

Each time you learn to sift through the dull sand and find the ideas and messages that were meant for you on that day.

Each day you visit the lake,

Your mind and heart are more pure,

More clear,

And more full of energy.

Thank the lake.

Thank the diamonds of sand.

Sit there on the beach for the next few minutes and let the music sink in.

I'll be back at the end to send you off on your way.

Thank you for joining me at the lake.

Open your eyes.

Take one last deep breath in through your nose and hold it for two,

Three,

Four,

And then let it out through your mouth for two,

Three.

Even if your clarity is sharper by a single grain of sand,

It's one grain of sand more than yesterday.

We create our own realities.

Keep creating.

Love and fireworks.

Bradley Sharpener.

Reviews

Lovely! I was able to sift the many swirling ideas to find a way forward.

That was so amazing! And original. I actually got the clarity I needed for a decision I needed to make. Thank you 🙏🏾 8/16/23. 8/8/25. 11/27/25

I enjoyed this beautiful and magical journey to the mountain lake. I feel such peace and clarity. I will definitely come back to this meditation again and again. Thank you, ❤️

What a sweet experience! 💕
Thank you. I love the clarity of the lake ✨