Hello,
This is Shannon and today's practice is a grounding meditation.
Find a comfortable seat and close your eyes.
Take a long,
Slow,
Deep breath in and then slowly exhale.
Let's do that again.
Long,
Slow,
Deep breath in and then release.
Let your shoulders relax away from your ears.
Let your face relax.
Your forehead,
Your eyes,
Your cheeks,
And your jaw.
Settle into your seat and breathe.
As we sit in this moment,
Notice how you feel.
Notice any emotions that might be flowing through your body and your mind.
No need to judge them or even label them.
Just notice.
Find your awareness and breathe.
Is there a place in your body where you're holding tension?
In your shoulders?
Your throat?
In your belly?
Is your rib cage feeling tight or constricted?
Just notice and breathe.
Feel the expansion in your body that happens with your inhale.
And with each exhale,
Let a little tension go.
Notice your rib cage broadening as you take your breath and relaxing as you let it out.
Let your belly relax and feel the movement that comes with your breath.
Can you feel that subtle expansion in other parts of your body?
In your throat,
In your thighs?
See if you can feel the echo of your breath in the bottoms of your feet.
Imagine that your body is a tree,
Stable and strong.
Feel your roots grounding down into the earth from wherever your body is touching the ground.
Breathing down through your seat,
Maybe through the bottoms of your feet.
Imagine your tree.
What does it look like?
Is it big?
Or is it small?
Is it a pine tree?
Or a redwood?
Or maybe a willow?
Feel your roots anchoring you deeply in the earth.
Notice the air around you,
The sunshine feeding your leaves,
The gentle breeze in your branches.
And breathe.
Feel the earth cradling your roots and begin to feel a flow moving down your trunk,
Down your roots and into the earth.
Coming back to your breath,
Feeling any stress or tension you're still holding flowing down through your roots with your exhale.
And with your inhale,
Feel fresh energy coming in through your branches.
Exhale and ground.
Inhale and expand.
Breathe.
As we sit here,
Rooted deep in the earth,
Feeling nature both nourishing us and healing us,
Notice how present you're feeling.
Are you here in this moment?
If you're feeling distracted by stress or anxiety,
Focus on letting that flow down your roots.
Let gravity gently pull it away as you release it.
Bring yourself fully into this moment and breathe.
Bring your attention back to your tree and feel the deep sense of connection,
Of grounding.
Take a long,
Slow,
Deep breath in and let that go.
Let's do that one more time.
Long,
Slow,
Deep breath in and release.
Throughout your day,
You can come back to this connection whenever you need to by just closing your eyes,
Taking a deep breath,
And feeling your roots grounding you deep into the earth.
Whenever you're ready,
You can slowly open your eyes and let yourself sit here and breathe for a few more moments before you go back to your day.
From my heart to yours,
Thank you for meditating with me.
