Daily Centering: Your 20-Minute Anchor

Life has differently textured experiences we often wish were to our liking but when not everything goes our way we need to adapt. In this practice, Sarah helps you learn a new skill called "Holding Center" to help you not only to adjust yourself to these experiences but to create a practice to love these differences and enjoy the smooth and rocky roads of the journey.

Transcript

It's time to remember now the calm within the chaos,

The choice within the dream.

There's a skill we must learn,

And the skill is called holding center.

Life as we know unfolds before us in a myriad of ways,

Some joyful,

Some painful.

Some that cause us to rejoice and skip on light,

Others that feel like stones or blades,

Constricting forces that wrap around us.

It's so easy to want only those that feel good.

It's so easy to want one more than the other.

But there is no life without polarity.

There is no life without the excruciating tug and tension of both worlds.

It's wise to find a way,

To find a process to hold center.

So that life may come as it does,

Dancing on winds through our door.

So we have a place to sit from,

From the seat of awareness.

We can come to enjoy all of the friction,

All of the colors that come,

All of the faces of our life can become beloved,

But we must practice.

So today we're just going to gently orient ourselves toward a center,

A calm spot within the very eye of us that we know of,

But we often forget and neglect.

So let's just settle now into a position that feels comfortable.

Strong spine,

Soft front,

Sinking like a stone to the very bottom of yourself,

As if you're being pulled by weights down toward the earth.

As if sand and seed are settling in your body and finding the ground.

We use our breath to anchor us even further into the body.

Just by acknowledging and noticing the presence of this gentle friend in us.

Rising and falling like waves.

Breathing in,

I'm aware of my in-breath.

Breathing out,

I'm aware of my out-breath.

In-breath,

Out-breath.

It's easy to get disoriented in our lives,

To get lost in the spin and swill of our experience.

It's easy to rise into anger,

Into contempt,

Into doubt.

It's easy to be swallowed by our fears and our worries.

It's easy to be lost for weeks and months from what is good,

From our heart-speed,

From our gentle breath.

It's easy to forget the calmness in the room and the peace that is ours.

I know it's easy.

There is a great untapped source of power and wealth in us.

A muscle we were not taught to strengthen.

A very sacred and holy spot at the very center of our being that houses the wisdom of our body.

And it sits quietly inside of us like an island,

Waiting for us to remember.

Waiting for us to land here as we are.

This is the first step,

Often the hardest step,

But you are here and so you should give thanks to the being in you that has led you to this very moment that has urged you to embrace the solitude and the quiet of your being.

I thank you,

Great wisdom in me.

I thank you,

Great wisdom in me,

For speaking out through the chaos,

For guiding me here to this quiet moment with my heart and my breath.

You see,

There is something spinning us toward this calm,

Something asking deep within us to find center and find ground.

You see this guidance is coming from you.

And now we accept the invitation to deepen the conversation.

We are tired of being spun dizzy in our lives.

We are so very tired.

There must be another way.

It's time to remember now the calm within the chaos,

The choice within the dream.

When placing your hands on your heart,

I'd like you to explore the idea that you are the answer.

That somewhere in you is a piece of earth that cannot be disturbed.

Somewhere in you is a small plot of land that cannot only hold,

Endure and withstand the winds of our lives,

But can love all of it.

I'd like you to explore the possibility that you know everything.

Here in this place,

We can let go of everything we do not need.

We can let go of our doubt,

For we already know.

You already know how to stand in your life.

No one needs to teach you.

You are wise.

Let yourself remember this.

So we let go of our doubt,

We let go of the fight,

We let go of the noise.

We gradually remember what we have known all along.

That we are mighty.

That we are beloved.

That we are still and we are calm.

That we are wise and we are whole.

That we are capable and we are brave.

That we are resilient.

And we tend to these truths as the wild garden living within us growing and changing.

We honor what is sacred,

What quietly lives at the very center of us.

By visiting this island.

By taking these small moments to lay down.

To lay down our torment.

To replenish.

To drink from the clear spring.

It's easy to get lost.

To rise in anger.

To get swallowed by fear and worry.

It's easy to judge,

Condemn,

Belittle.

I know.

But it's also easy to sit here with your hand on your heart letting all of those things go.

Remembering what is even moveable in you.

Remembering what is actually true.

Remembering the calm within the chaos.

The choice within the dream.

Breathing in I am only aware of my in-breath.

Breathing out I am only aware of my out-breath.

Suspended for a moment in time with our hands on our hearts.

We remember.

And day by day we strengthen our resolve.

We tend to this garden.

We cultivate the land on this island.

We lean ourself toward the goodness and the wisdom of our own bodies.

And gently we are warmed from within by a fire that is ours alone.

By a love that lives within us.

Sustained by a heart by a breath that is kind.

We remember.

I am coming back into the room with me.

Opening your eyes.

Be gentle with yourself as you move forward through your day.

Be conscious of ways that you are losing yourself in the experience of your life.

And settle like a stone into your body.

Strengthening the muscle each time you remember.

This is a practice.

This is a process.

It never stops.

It requires your utmost love,

Attention,

And devotion.

But I can assure you the fruit is sweet.

You will not have wasted a minute of your time practicing this.

Thank you for being here with me.

And thank you for taking the time to love who you are.

Have a beautiful rest of your day.

Be well.

Reviews

This is so helpful to calm and re-set myself, it’s beautiful, thank you!

Her voice is so perfect to hear to calm the mind 🤎🙏🏽

Thank you 🙏🏻 I didn’t realize I had lost my way again until your words brought me back to center

Angelic voice, deepest wisdom from heart. Thank you.

Thank you, this has been one of my Absolute favorite soul nurturing daily meditations lately.

exactly what i needed to start my day from a centered place 🙏

This one really centered me and also gave me clarity on the next step to focus on. ☀️ Thank you so much! 😊 And your soothing voice is really one of a kind. 🙏

Such a kind voice and solid reminder to find that still center.

Thanks 🙏🏽 was having a panic attack and it help settle me a little

This meditation helped me find my center. Thank you

This meditation is a great way to get back to your center before starting your day ! Thank you

I felt so grounded and peaceful after this meditation, visualizing my heart center as a beautiful, quiet place to which I can return for respite. Thank you for this powerful lesson!

Simply Beautiful, your voice is so mesmerising, magical 🌟

Thank you for the meditation. Lately my life has been in such an upheaval. I've been tossed in so many different directions. This helped my to find the calm within my heart and being. Thank you

So peaceful and calming. This is one I'll return to again and again. Thank you, Sarah.

Such a good way to start your day! Her meditations are the best👏

When are you holding a workshop at Esalen in Big Sur, California?

Beautiful! Just at the right moment as I was struggling!

Thank you Sarah. Your voice and words are a gift . Love Nicole

I caught just a glimpse of this place.
Such a good time to practice this, to weave this into my days. 🕊