Hi and welcome.
I'm Tim.
I'd like to share with you a four-part meditation practice that I created called GROW.
It's an acronym that is an integration of distinct and essential aspects of a mindfulness practice.
You can use each part individually as a stand-alone practice,
Or you can practice them together sequentially,
Like we'll practice here together.
The G stands for ground.
This is when we ground into our bodies in order to access the present moment.
The R stands for relax.
So this is helpful for relaxing any areas of tightness,
Tension,
Or contraction in our body.
When we relax the body,
Our minds often follow.
The O stands for open.
To open to whatever arises in our moment-to-moment experience with a sense of acceptance and curiosity.
And this could be the breath,
Thoughts,
Sounds,
Emotions,
Or visuals.
The W stands for warm-heartedness.
So inviting a sense of kindness and warmth to our experience.
So let's get started.
Start by finding a comfortable seat and posture that supports meditation.
Helps to find a posture that feels relaxed yet alert.
You can feel invited to close your eyes if that's comfortable for you.
We'll start by taking a few deep,
Long,
Grounding breaths.
Settling into the body.
And begin to notice this feeling of having a body.
What's it feel like to have a body?
And sensing and connecting to this feeling of being grounded in your seat.
Feeling the weight of your sitz bones in the chair or cushion.
Feeling the contact of your feet on the floor.
Noticing your alignment of your posture.
And simply resting in this embodied presence.
Simply being in the body.
Next we'll move into relax.
So inviting the sense of relaxation in the body.
You might invite your eyes to soften,
Allowing the muscles in the face to soften and loosen.
And the cheeks and the lips.
Allowing the jaw to slightly unhinge.
It might be helpful to release the tongue from the roof of your mouth.
And allow it to gently rest into the lower jaw.
And you can allow your shoulders to relax and release back and down.
Resting the hands wherever they are.
Softening and releasing any tension or holding in the belly.
Notice as you exhale,
The body naturally releases and softens.
And letting go of any tension or contraction in the hips or the pelvic floor.
Notice how your legs are relaxing and resting already in place in a seated posture.
And allowing the body to relax.
Good.
And now we'll gently shift into open.
So allowing your awareness to open and receive whatever is present for you now.
In this step we widen our awareness,
Include everything in our experience.
This could be bodily sensations,
Sensations of breathing.
It might be sounds,
It could be emotions or thoughts.
Just gently resting your attention on whatever is happening now,
Moment to moment.
Not pushing anything away,
Not attaching to any particular experience.
And letting everything arise and pass away,
Come and go all on their own.
Good.
Good.
And now we'll gently shift into warm heartedness.
So inviting a sense of kindness,
Compassion and care to your present moment experience.
There can be a sense of tenderness and appreciation for this moment.
Simply greeting each moment with a sense of warmth and friendliness.
Allowing this feeling of warm heartedness to grow and expand inside of yourself.
And let yourself rest in this feeling of kindness and compassion.
Good.
Good.
And as this practice comes to a close,
Inviting a sense of gratitude for yourself here.
A sense of appreciation for the time you spent doing something good for yourself and for those around you.
Good.
All right.
Thank you for your practice.
Take good care.
