Dear friends,
Welcome to this short meditation on gratitude.
Let's ensure first of all that we are in a comfortable position that helps meditation.
It's important to be comfortable.
Some people like to have eyes lightly closed so they won't get distracted,
But eyes open are fine if you find that more comfortable.
It's important that we keep our backs straight.
Not rigid,
But not slumped either.
A sort of dignified sitting.
And it might help to see if you can tense your shoulders for a second or two and then release them.
This helps you to notice the difference between the tension and the release.
We want to relax.
And of course,
If you can relax your shoulders,
You can relax any part of your body.
You can fully relax.
And for the next minute,
Just 60 seconds,
Let's become present by noticing our breathing out and our breathing in.
Let's use the breath to become aware of our body at rest,
Here and now.
And let's bring our minds to a feeling of thankfulness for the fact that we are alive,
In the amazing existence of ours.
Music Welcome back.
May I be filled with thanks for the fact that I am alive,
Here and now.
May I be thankful for the fact that I woke up this morning.
That I had the means to get out of bed.
That I had a bed to sleep in.
That I had a house to sleep in.
For these blessings,
May I be filled with thanks.
May I be thankful for the fact that I had food to eat,
Clean water to drink.
May I be thankful for human society with all its supports.
For farmers who produce the food.
For factories and machines packing the food and keeping it safe.
For transport people and shopkeepers who get the food to me.
Every bite I eat is a gift of the whole universe.
The earth in which it grows.
The sun which gives it heat.
The rain which waters it.
Insects who fertilise the plants.
And the hard loving work of countless people,
Without whom life as we know it would be just impossible.
For all these blessings,
May I be filled with thanks.
May I be thankful for the emergence of life on earth,
Including and especially my own life.
May I be thankful for all the benefits of civilisation,
Education,
Healthcare,
Transport,
Communications and all the scientific advances that we take for granted,
But without which life would be unimaginably more difficult.
For all these many blessings,
May I be filled with thanks.
Let's pause for one minute now to be thankful for all these benefits.
Thank you.
Welcome back.
There are days when life seems to go against me.
Days when I suffer loss of one kind or another.
Sometimes heavy and almost unbearable loss.
And then there are the ordinary everyday irritations.
Traffic jams.
People going against me.
But in these moments,
Let me recall all the benefits of my life.
All that I can and should be thankful for.
And help me come back into a present moment,
Which when I find it,
Always is filled with contentment and peace.
For all the benefits of every day,
May I be filled with thanks.
And finally,
A word of thanks to you for joining in this short period of meditation,
This gratitude reflection.
Let each of us go out into the world through a door of hope for the future,
Remembering these words.
Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces,
I would still plant my apple tree.
So may it be with us.
May we be filled with loving kindness.
May other people experience loving kindness through us.
May we all be safe and free from inner and outer danger.
May all of us be well in mind and body.
May all of us be at ease and happy.
Namaste.
