Wherever you are,
Find a relatively distraction-free place to take a seat.
If it's comfortable,
You can close your eyes or you might just cast your gaze down a few feet out in front of you.
Take a moment to get settled,
Any last-minute stretches or fidgets,
Getting five or ten percent more comfortable.
Then take a nice slow deep breath in through the nose and release that breath away.
This time fill all the way up.
Hold the breath at the top and squeeze the muscles of the face,
Tighten around the eyes,
Furrow the brow,
Clench the jaw.
Then release and smooth out all the muscles of the face.
Breathing in nice and slow.
This time as you breathe in,
Raise the shoulders up to the ears,
Hold tense and tighten the shoulders and on an exhale,
Let the shoulder blades melt down the back,
Create more space around the neck.
Breathe in nice and slow.
Fill up this time as you hold the breath at the top,
Ball the fists,
Clench and tighten through the arms,
Even bracing the chest and core.
When you're ready,
Release it away.
Fill up nice and slow.
This time when you get to the top,
You'll squeeze the muscles of the legs,
Flex the feet,
Tighten the shins,
The quads,
The hamstrings,
And then relax and release on the exhale.
This time fill all the way up and squeeze the muscles of the entire body,
Anything that wants to tighten,
Let it tighten as you hold the breath for a moment here.
Then release it away.
Feel more ease than you did even five or six breaths ago when you sat down.
Give yourself a moment here to let the breath return to its natural rhythm,
No force or effort around the breath,
And if there's anywhere that still needs some letting go,
See if you can just soften and relax the body.
Then notice where you feel the breath in the body most strongly,
Where it's easy to feel and follow the breath,
And anchor your attention there for the remainder of this short time.
All you're going to do is silently think one on an inhale,
Two on an exhale,
Three on an inhale,
Four on an exhale,
Up to five,
Back to four,
Three,
Two,
Back to one on an inhale and beginning again.
So silently counting the breath in this way,
Knowing that the odd numbers will always fall on the inhales,
The even numbers will always fall on the exhales,
And whenever the mind wanders,
Just picking up at whatever number you left off at,
Or just begin again at one without any story around it.
On your next exhale,
Let go of the counting,
Let go of any focus or effort at all and let your mind be totally free.
If it wants to think,
Let it think,
If it wants to sit still,
Let it sit still.
Then simply come back to the space around you,
Bring movement back into the body,
Blink the eyes open or raise your gaze,
And re-enter the stream of activity for your day.
