So let's take a moment and listen with an attitude of openness.
It always starts,
Of course,
With connecting with the breath.
Making the breath more aware.
As you become aware of the breath,
You could ask yourself,
How do I want to breathe right now?
What kind of breath do I feel like doing?
Kind of intuitively.
Just connecting with the breath.
Kind of listening to where you feel the breath,
What areas are lighting up as you notice it.
And as you exhale,
What areas might need to relax a little more and soften.
Areas where there might be a slight tension or tightness.
You're kind of tapping into the tones of your inner body.
Almost like the muscle tone.
You might also want to welcome the noises around you,
If there are any.
And the more you breathe and feel the body,
The more you start getting in touch with your physicality,
With your sitting bones getting grounded,
Your spine elongating,
Your jaw is relaxed,
Your eyes are relaxed,
The face muscles let go.
And you notice how we sometimes not only tighten the jaw,
But also sometimes we wrinkle the forehead.
Again,
Noticing the muscles in the face,
Even in the skull.
If there's any sense of sleepiness or low energy,
You can also acknowledge that,
Feeling it.
And I always like to tell myself,
This is perfect.
This moment with all its complexity and no one is perfect.
It's sacred,
Unique.
And my practice of meditation is to flow with this moment as it is.
By allowing it and fully becoming intimate with it,
Tuning into the experience.
Are your arms relaxed?
Are your hands relaxed?
Are your legs and feet relaxed?
How is your mind this morning?
Even your mood this morning?
Some days we're in the mood of meditating,
Other days we're not in the mood.
That could also be there,
You know?
A slight resistance.
But we can acknowledge that too,
One subtle form of resistance.
Sometimes just some agitation.
The tendency of the senses to be looking outward.
And as we soften into the body,
We feel more.
We sense more into what sensations are predominant this morning.
Maybe there's a shoulder that aches or a muscle in the back that is slightly sore.
What is arising this morning?
Remember,
You're not only experiencing the body,
You're experiencing everything around you too.
With each exhalation,
We practice allowing whatever is there in your experience to be there.
Can I allow everything to be just the way it is?
Even my own resistance to the present moment,
Can I allow it to be?
And become curious on what exactly am I experiencing inside?
You might want to tap into the heart center in the chest,
Or sometimes the belly,
Or even the throat.
Noticing the subtle movements of your internal experience.
Maybe a subtle tension in the neck that moves to the heart.
The more you gently hold space for yourself,
Without expectations,
While staying open to the experience that you're having,
The more you soften into the internal experience.
Allowing whatever you're experiencing and maintaining your curiosity on the experience.
Can you soften a little deeper in the chest?
On the inside.
Come up with a quality of loving-kindness to whatever you're experiencing in passion,
Self-love,
Self-acceptance.
May I be well.
May I be happy.
May I be filled with loving-kindness.
May I be strong and healthy and flow with ease in all my activities.
May I be filled with loving-kindness.
May I be well and happy.
May I be strong,
Healthy,
And flow with ease in all my activities.
May I be truly happy and fulfilled.
Feeling how these affirmations resonate in your inner body.
May I be filled with loving-kindness.
May I feel safe and secure.
May I be strong,
Healthy,
And flow at ease.
May I be content,
Happy,
Fulfilled.
