Welcome everyone.
I am absolutely delighted to have you all here today back after the new year and dedicating a little time to yourself and to meditation and knowing yourself better,
All of those good things.
I thought today that given it's the new year,
I know I wasn't here last week.
I was sick,
But it's the 10th and a lot of people actually are falling off of their intentions and resolutions right about now.
I think you mentioned this date one time in one of the self-love classes that people fall off around the 17th is sort of the average date.
So I thought today what we would do is just sort of refresh ourselves with a little bit of intention setting again and with going inward to really,
Really,
Truly know what we want in the new year.
The new year often brings a lot of resolutions and a lot of introspection and for a lot of us that can be really stressful.
It can be a time of putting too much pressure on ourselves of self-improvement and trying to do everything at once.
What's really kind of interesting about that when you pair it up with meditation is that you quickly realize that there's a real paradox going on there.
That pressure that we're putting on ourselves to be better,
To do whatever it is,
To have set intentions and really live them every day is really in direct opposition to how you truly get to that place inside of you where you really know who you are and what it is you want out of life.
That when you sit with meditation and you strive to get to a place,
It becomes more and more and more elusive.
Striving is the hard part.
It makes it impossible for you to get to that quiet.
So today's meditation will be a little bit of the intention setting but mostly I want us to sit and get very grounded and very centered and really just sort of listen to our own heart,
Our own spirit,
Our own inner voice.
Because that's where you're going to hear the real truth of what it is that you need and what you want in your life for this new year.
So with that little background and explanation,
Let's go ahead and get comfortable.
Shift yourselves.
Get centered on your sit bones.
If you need to during the meditation to move and shift your legs or whatever,
Please go ahead and do that.
Don't feel like you can't.
It's not fun to get to the end and realize your feet are asleep.
So comfort is what is important.
Go ahead and let your eyes gently close.
And let's begin to bring our attention back into our own bodies.
Bring yourself home.
Allow yourself to let go of the rest of your day,
Of to-dos,
Of anything that is swirling around.
Just let it float away.
And let's start with three nice intentional heart breaths.
Breathing in,
Nice big breath from the back of the heart.
Hold at the top and release out the front of your heart.
Let's do that two more times.
Breathing in,
Hold,
And breathing out.
Breathing in,
And breathing out.
Let your breath return to normal.
Just notice how it feels to have the air flowing into your body and flowing back out.
Maybe with each out breath,
Allow your shoulders to drop down your back.
Allow your hips and legs to just fall,
Relax.
Bring your attention now to the very,
Very tip of your tailbone.
From there,
Allow a grounding cord to just drop.
It had a big heavy anchor to just drop down through the earth to the core.
Allow that connection to be solid.
Feel yourself completely,
Solidly connected to the earth.
It's our home while we're here,
Walking around on this earth.
It's a nurturing and safe energy that the earth has,
Supportive.
Just allow yourself to feel that,
Completely connected.
If you have thoughts that pop into your head,
Just let it go.
Let them drift on by and come back to your connection to the earth and your breathing.
Now can you notice just a spot at the very top of your head,
The crown of your head?
Focus your attention up there.
Picture another cord to the center of the universe,
Another connection that stabilizes and centers you.
Picture that connection above and below,
And as if it were sort of taught.
It straightens you up and it pulls you down at the same time.
It allows you to be completely centered.
The cord's running straight through you,
From the top of your head,
All the way through your center line,
Down to your base,
And the other way as well.
From your base,
All the way up all the way up through the top of your head.
Now bring yourself and all your attention to your heart space,
There in the center of your chest.
Not just your heart,
But the space around inside of you.
Picture a warm,
Glowing light there at the center of your heart space.
The light can be whatever color you'd like.
Let's take a few more heart breaths here.
And with each one,
Allow that light to grow and expand,
Fill you up,
The rest of your body,
To extend outside of your body,
Maybe an arm's length,
All around,
Above and below,
Above and below,
Breathing in from the back of your heart,
Letting your light shine.
You breathe out,
Expand the light,
Breathing in and breathing out.
Let's do that again.
Breathing in from the back of your heart,
Breathing out,
Expanding your light.
Take an observer's perspective.
Look at yourself sitting in the middle of your beautiful light bubble,
And then seating yourself in the center of your own light bubble,
Breathing it in,
Allowing it to fill you,
Allowing it to permeate all your veins,
Your skin,
Down all the way to your cells,
Filling up with your own light,
Your own presence.
Thoughts come and intrude.
Just notice them and let them go.
Come back to your heart space and your own light.
From this place of presence,
Awareness,
Centeredness,
Ask yourself,
Ask yourself,
What word,
What intention do I want to bring into my day,
Into my awareness,
Into my year?
Sit quietly there in the center and let it bubble up.
Keep breathing,
Letting your light shine and grow.
Take that word,
Whatever it is,
Your intention,
And see if you can't crystallize it as if it were a beautiful jewel spinning right in front of you,
And bring that jewel into your heart space,
That word,
Your intention.
Bring it in,
Plant it into your heart like a seed,
And let's take another big heart breath to seal it there,
Breathing in from the back of your heart and breathing out that intention into your space,
Into your life,
And now let it go.
The universe knows what you've asked for,
What your intention is,
And you don't have to strive.
Now allow yourself to come back to your breathing,
Just noticing how it feels flowing in and out,
Noticing your body,
How it expands when you breathe in and releases when you breathe out.
Notice the air on your skin,
Notice the sounds,
And come back to your heart,
Your center.
You still notice your connections?
Let's ask one more question.
Who am I when I'm at my best?
Who am I when I'm at my best?
Word,
Is it a phrase?
From your heart,
Let the answer arise to who am I when I'm at my best,
And release the question.
Bring your hands to prayer position.
Thank yourself for taking the time to come home to your heart,
To your center,
For taking the time to give yourself a little break,
For allowing yourself to really listen to your own heart.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you know peace.
And may you feel love.
Namaste.
