So I'm going to invite you,
If you are able,
To join me in a seated upright position.
You can meditate anywhere,
In any position,
And it's totally fine,
But I do find that it's easier for me to concentrate and stay with the practice if I am seated,
And in particular if I find that upright,
Kind of neutral spine with my chin slightly tucked.
I did a meditation once with my children where we practiced stacking imaginary gold coins on the top of our head,
And I always remember that very fondly when I think about a meditation posture.
So it's just an invitation,
But if you are able to and you feel comfortable doing so,
I invite you to find a comfortable place to sit and be upright.
And as we join this practice together,
Today I would like to lead us to the top of a hill.
And it's a hill that's the just right level of strenuous where our legs are burning a little and our breath is short as we reach the top and our cheeks are flushed.
And we celebrate,
We made it,
We got here.
We're at the top of the hill.
And as we sit to rest,
We find comfortable spaces that are near enough to each other,
But also enough space that if we need to move or stretch or take care of our bodies in any way,
We have the freedom to do so.
As we find our spots,
We look at the vista around us,
And you may choose to have it overlook the sea or a cityscape.
Perhaps there's a sunset or sunrise,
Or it could be a beautiful mountain view,
Anything you like.
Let's take a few moments to decide what is your vista today and then add in some color and some shape and some texture to what's around you,
Letting it be totally for you.
Take a deep breath in and smell the air.
Let it be the perfect temperature and be slightly scented with any kind of outdoor smell that you enjoy.
I'm finding myself in a eucalyptus forest overlooking the sea.
Taking a few more breaths here to breathe it in.
And today,
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr.
,
I'm going to invite us to reflect on his I Have a Dream speech.
And while he had a very specific and beautiful dream,
It was his dream,
And so I want to invite you to have a dream today.
As you're sitting here on top of the world,
Looking at whatever beautiful scene that surrounds you,
I want you to think about the what if question.
What if it could be different?
What if anything was possible?
What if our dreams could be reality?
Take a few deep breaths here and begin to think about the more beautiful world you would create if you had the power.
What would you edit and change about your current experience,
Circumstances?
Or perhaps you're ready to dream big and you want to think about how the entire world could be different or at least the society that you exist in.
Without overthinking,
Just allow this dream to arrive.
This is the world I want to live in.
As you are becoming more aware of the world you want to live in,
I invite you to think about who you are in this world,
This dream world.
Take the words I am and chew on them.
I am.
I am.
Again,
If anything is possible,
You can be anyone you dream in your dream world.
So who would you be?
See if you can distill it down into two or three words.
How would you finish the sentence I am?
In this moment,
I invite you to take those words and marinate in them.
Let them be true in this moment.
For me,
I chose I am kind.
I am beloved.
I am powerful.
As you marinate in your own dream of who you are,
I now invite you to think about what is possible for those that you love in your dream world.
What's possible for them in your dream world?
You can use their name or you can use the phrase you are.
Reflect on what's possible for those you love with you are.
Perhaps it's you are to me or it could be you are in this world.
But again,
Breathe into you are.
Again,
See if you can distill it down into two or three words.
I'm hearing an echo of my own words.
You are kind.
You are beloved.
You are powerful,
But also you belong.
Whatever came up for you,
Let that be an echo in your own heart.
You can marinate in this possibility for those you love,
Remembering also what you chose for your own dream yourself.
And now let this dream be for everyone,
For the whole world,
For every living being,
Every creature.
I invite you to use the phrase we are.
For me,
That's we are kind.
We are beloved.
We are powerful.
You may choose to echo the same words or you may choose to pick new ones,
But let it be a dream for the world.
As you hold this dream in your heart,
I invite you to imagine an interaction.
It could be one that you are having with another person or an animal.
It could be an interaction between two people.
It could be people you know or complete strangers.
But in this interaction,
Imagine what would be possible if your dream came true.
What might you observe in this interaction?
Take some deep breaths.
Watch this interaction as if it was on a movie screen behind your eyelids.
What is possible in your dream?
If you'd like,
You can choose an anchor to remind yourself of this moment and of this dream.
You may choose an object that symbolizes our time here together,
Dreaming together,
Or you could choose a gesture,
Perhaps both of your hands over your heart as mine are,
Perhaps touching your forefinger and thumb together.
Any gesture can do,
But let it be the memory of this dream.
And this gesture can be something you can do at any time you want to return to this dream just for a moment.
We create our own realities and if we practice the reality we want to create and co-create,
We have the power to change the world.
Begins with ourselves and then it shows up in our interactions and then it spreads like a ripple around the world.
We are that powerful.
Our dreams can come true.
They just take time and intention.
So taking all the time you need,
Begin to gather yourself on this hill that we found ourselves on at the beginning.
Take another sweeping view of the vista you imagined.
Breathe in the beautiful air and then find yourself preparing to leave,
Perhaps we're all leaving together,
Perhaps you're going your own way,
But let there be a smile on your face as we depart.
Thank you for coming and being with me today.
Thank you for sitting and staying a while.
Thank you for dreaming.
