This is a centering practice for cultivating presence.
And so beginning with coming into the body,
So acknowledging your body against the surface you are making contact,
Maybe just even some micro movements,
Some stretching,
Notice any points of tension,
Constriction,
But just any movement that you need to take in order to really sink in and settle into the body at this time.
And as you begin to settle into this centering exercise,
Really taking the time to relax into that sense of softening and a soothing sensation throughout the body.
So bringing your awareness and attention to breath and noticing the inflow and outflow of breath,
Its cadence,
Its rhythm,
Not forcing,
Just gently noticing,
Where am I at in this moment?
And so together,
I want us to take three deep cleansing breaths.
And so on the first two breaths,
We will breathe in through the nose,
Pausing at the top and exhaling through the nose.
And at the last breath,
With the option to exhale through the mouth,
Bringing your attention with that breath all the way down to the feet and really connecting to the fullness,
Wholeness expansion of breath throughout the body.
And so together,
Taking that full first deep breath in,
Breathing out,
Again,
Another breath,
Breathing in and breathing out.
And in this next third and final breath,
Breathing in,
Really feeling the expansion of the chest,
The lungs,
Pausing at the top,
Feeling into the fullness and that exhalation through the mouth and bringing that breath all the way down through the body to the soles of the feet,
Continuing to let the mind rest and settle in as we continue drawing our attention inward.
And so noticing what sensations or feelings or experiences am I noticing in this moment?
What is happening right here,
Right now?
So I invite this in as being a loving witness to self,
Without judgment,
Without story,
But just a noticing.
And so bringing this attention from the top of our head to the soles of our feet and so gently and lovingly moving through the body,
Noticing from a place of curiosity,
Really sensing into the textures,
Temperatures,
Sensations,
Vibrations,
Noticing for any points of tension or constriction that you may be called to breathe into.
So we're just cultivating that simple sense of presence by noticing what is in this moment.
And if you find the mind wandering,
Just gently using breath to bring you back to now.
Now bring your awareness and attention to the thoughts.
What thoughts are you present to in this moment?
And practicing acknowledging these mental events that we hold as thoughts and allowing them to be there and then allowing them to pass through.
So we welcome in the thoughts and then we release the thoughts,
Bringing our attention back to this moment using breath.
And so there's a much deeper consciousness in noticing the thoughts coming in.
I take a moment to acknowledge the thoughts and then using breath or in whatever way,
Releasing the thought to pass through and bring ourself back to this moment.
And perhaps there have been thoughts going on recently that have generated tremendous amount of feelings,
Emotions.
And so really wanting you to begin to drop into the body,
Now shifting your attention from thought to bringing your attention and awareness to the feeling body.
And so what feelings are you noticed that you are present to in this moment?
And maybe even silently or out loud naming the experience,
Naming the feelings.
Maybe it's mentally frustrated or sadness is here or exhaustion is here,
Excitement is here.
Just a naming,
Just a noticing to connect with what am I feeling in this moment?
What am I truly present to?
And so we continue to gently keep turning towards the feelings and meeting them with compassion and great tenderness.
And so we don't want to push away or suppress.
This is really about cultivating that sense of presence,
Centering into what is and allowing myself to experience it in its fullness and wholeness.
Our feelings are a part of who we are.
And it's so critical that we are slowing down and pausing enough to provide the space and time to experience our feelings in their fullest form.
For many of us,
We've walked through life numbing,
Escaping,
Suppressing,
Pushing down,
Compartmentalizing.
And we are taking time in this moment to create spaciousness,
To really feel into,
To name,
To notice,
And to let rise what needs to come up.
And so to practice tending to some of the feelings,
I want you to imagine now that you could breathe a soothing and tender breath into and out from wherever you feel the sensation connected to the feelings the most and holding it with love and care.
So maybe in this moment,
I am feeling tremendous grief and I could just feel the constriction in my gut.
And so I imagine just breathing a soothing,
Tender breath into the gut area to lovingly care for and hold the grief.
And so really taking this moment to connect what it is that I am feeling and experiencing in my body and holding it with love and compassion.
So we're meeting the feeling,
We're meeting the sensation,
The experience with kindness and compassion.
We're not seeking to try and change or to force something.
We're in a practice of tending to what is present in this moment without judgment,
Without resistance.
We are tending to and fully experiencing what is going on in this moment.
Knowing that we are not our feelings and that our feelings,
Our experiences and experiences can come and go and move and shape shift and transform.
And if at this time,
Some of the feelings feel too charged in this moment to spend any time with or significant time with,
Just simply acknowledge its presence and affirm that you will return to it at a later time to move through,
To digest,
To metabolize,
To release when you are in a space and holding environment to do so.
And so you also may notice a feeling that is seeking some form of expression or release.
And so be in a practice of honoring the feelings wisdom and give yourself a moment to express that feeling.
So maybe tears,
We allow tears to arise.
Maybe tears maybe we allow for a guttural cry or wailing to arise as we release.
Maybe a smile awaits,
A deep breath,
A sigh,
A yawn,
Taking your arms and wrapping them around you to experience a tender hug.
And so as we notice,
As we tend to,
We're able to tap into what is it I need in this moment?
What is it that I need so that I can feel in full expression of what is right now?
It's through this awareness,
Through this expression,
Through this presencing that we're really able to settle in to the body with greater ease to feel that groundedness,
That centeredness,
And potentially a greater sense of peace within.
So begin to deepen the breath and bring your awareness to your surrounding.
And as you do,
Take a moment to thank your heart,
To thank your being,
To thank your beautiful spirit,
And to silently express gratitude for this moment,
For this sweet,
Sweet tender moment.
And as we begin to deepen the breath and start to orient in our surrounding,
Making those micro movements with the body,
Stimulating the nerve endings,
And awakening to move this body into the day.
Maybe the morning,
Maybe the evening,
Maybe the afternoon,
But awakening to lean into what's next for you in this day.
And so sealing your practice in whatever ways feels good to you to honor your body,
Honor your heart,
Honor your mind,
And being in whatever way that really just feels nourishing in this moment.
And if it feels good to continue to just stay here in this pause,
In this presence,
Do so.
Otherwise,
Gently opening the eyes if they are closed.
And I thank you for taking this time to be in practice together,
And to allow yourself the gift of pausing,
Of stillness,
Of presencing.
I wish you a blessed,
Beautiful day.
