Begin this meditation by sitting comfortably in a chair with your feet flat on the floor.
Sit up straight with your shoulders back and your head tall.
Now close your eyes.
Start by breathing in through the nose and then exhaling out through the mouth.
So let's breathe in through the nose.
One,
Two,
Three.
Exhale out.
One,
Two,
Three.
Again,
Inhaling in through the nose.
One,
Two,
Three.
Exhaling out the mouth.
One,
Two,
Three.
Another deep breath in through the nose.
One,
Two,
Three.
Exhale out through the mouth.
One,
Two,
Three.
Last big breath in.
One,
Two,
Three.
And exhale it all out through the mouth.
One,
Two,
Three.
Now visualize above your head light streaming down from the sky,
A beautiful golden or white or silver light coming down from the skies and pouring in through the top of your head.
As you see that light coming in through the top of your head,
Maybe imagining there's a big hole in the top of your head where the light is streaming through,
Imagine that light turning into water.
So seeing that water now flooding through you,
Still lit up maybe by a golden or silver or white light,
And just see that flooding in through you,
Really lighting up your entire body.
See it coming in through your chest and through your arms,
Through your torso,
Through your legs.
See it coming in through your feet and your hands and pouring out through your hands.
As this light keeps pouring through you,
See it getting brighter and brighter,
And notice that it's now pouring out from the outside of you too.
So almost like your body is completely lit up like a light bulb.
And just feeling that light,
That water,
Just everything pouring through you and lighting you up from the inside out.
Now imagine that light is pouring through the bottoms of your feet,
But instead of pouring out,
It becomes roots,
Like the roots of a tree.
And see that light pouring out through the bottoms of your feet,
Creating this beautiful rooted system,
Pushing into the dirt,
Into the ground,
Really creating a big space all the way around you,
Filled with roots.
Now imagine that this light is also pouring out through the bottom of your spine,
Through your tailbone area,
And sense that light pouring out and creating another root.
This root will be thick,
Also like a tree root,
Coming down out your spine and pushing into the ground below you as well.
So see that root getting longer and longer,
Continuing to push into the ground further and further.
Keep pushing that root further and further down until you feel that you've reached the lowest level that will help you feel rooted and grounded.
So you may see yourself in the center of the earth with this root,
But you may not.
You may see it just partially down into the ground.
Wherever it ends up,
Just make sure that it feels really stable.
And if it doesn't,
See it growing further and further.
Now when you're ready,
Find yourself coming back up into your body,
Going through the layers of rocks and soil,
Leaving that root right where it is.
And now once you're in your body,
Take a breath here.
Imagine now a forest filled with beautiful,
Strong,
Tall trees.
Now this forest can look however you want it,
Just making sure that it is an older growth forest and that it's very healthy looking.
Now that you've brought to mind this forest,
Imagine that you're standing in the middle of it.
As you're standing in the middle of the forest,
Feel into the sensations.
Is it warm?
Is it cool?
Is there a breeze coming through?
Is there sun on your shoulders?
What does it smell like?
What does it look like?
Do you hear birds chirping?
Do you feel peaceful?
As you take in all those sensations,
Feel into those roots that you planted earlier.
So you have roots coming out of the bottoms of your feet.
You have a root coming out of your tailbone.
Now see those roots getting bigger and bigger,
Stronger and stronger.
Sense into them growing longer,
Pushing into the ground further.
Find that rootedness now traveling up into your legs and into your torso.
You're becoming a tree.
Embody what does that feel like to be a strong tree in this place.
This forest.
Sense into the strength of your branches,
The strength of your trunk,
Of your roots.
Find yourself growing taller and taller.
Feel the sunshine on your leaves.
Feel the strength within you.
Now just take a moment here and really feel into the sensation of embodying a tree.
Notice the sun on your leaves.
Notice the gentle breeze blowing through your branches.
Notice the steadiness,
The groundedness you feel.
Now visualize a gentle rain blowing through,
Coming down from the skies.
Raining on your leaves,
On your branches,
Cooling you down.
Notice it getting stronger,
This rain.
Maybe there's a heavier wind blowing.
Noticing that though your branches sway,
Though you feel the weight of the rain on you,
It's not uprooting you.
It's just part of nature,
Part of the day.
Now see that rain stopping and the sun coming out again.
Blue skies.
Peace.
Notice that sun on your leaves is warming you,
Making you feel calm.
Now what if a snowstorm blew in?
Notice what that feels like.
The wind,
The cool air,
The snow collecting on your branches and your leaves.
Feeling the weight of that snow.
Almost like the weight of the world or the stresses and responsibilities we have in this life.
Maybe you feel heavier.
But notice that you're still standing.
You're still rooted.
The sun coming out now,
Warming the snow.
Warming you.
The snow melting and resetting you.
Now you're feeling strong again.
That weight is off of your shoulders,
Off your branches.
It's the cycle of life.
Taking a moment and really reflecting on your trunk,
The trunk of the tree.
Noticing that you're a strong tree.
You have wisdom from years of growing,
Of being in this world.
This wisdom,
This years of growth really anchors you.
It gives you confidence.
It gives you strength.
This knowledge.
Now remembering that you are one tree in the forest.
Sense back into the other trees in the forest while keeping yourself as a tree,
Embodying that tree.
Notice the connection you have with the other trees in the forest.
Even if it's unspoken.
Maybe sense like there's a yellow light that connects you Maybe it's a root system that connects you.
Maybe it's just the feeling of knowing there's others there with you.
This connection you have together makes you not alone.
This bond creates a connection to your ecosystem too.
See that you are instrumental in the support of the forest,
Of the other trees,
Of the animals,
Of the plants,
Of the soil,
Of the bugs.
You are one with all.
Feel the strength of that connectedness flowing through you,
Flowing around you.
Keeping your eyes closed now.
Coming back into your own human body,
Still being rooted.
Sense into and carry with you that same feeling of strength,
Of being rooted.
Just how you felt as a tree.
Feel this inside your own body.
Now just as you felt that connection with the forest and the trees and everything around you,
Feel and see that connection with your neighborhood,
With the people around you,
With your city,
With your state or your country,
With your friends,
Your family,
The animals,
The plants,
The trees,
Everything around you.
See and feel that bond.
Feel it.
The oneness that you have with everything in this world,
Everything around you.
Maybe you see a light tying you all together.
Maybe you're seeing it as something else.
Maybe you're just feeling it.
But really sense into that.
Really focus on that.
Your strength is the strength of everyone and everything around you.
And their strength is your strength.
Your joy,
Your steadiness,
Your rootedness is that of everyone and everything around you.
And theirs is yours.
Together you are strong.
Together you are whole.
You are connected.
You are never alone.
You're always supported with that bond,
The oneness.
Feel that strength and that knowledge coursing through you,
Filling you,
Rooting you.
Take in a deep,
Strong breath.
Fill your lungs as big as you can.
In.
Exhale it all out.
One more deep,
Strong breath.
Exhale it out as big as you can.
Now open your eyes,
Still feeling rooted and strong.
And go forth today with this feeling and this sensation and this wisdom of connectedness.
