Hello my loves,
Welcome.
I'm so happy you made it here today and I know we're online together but I still believe we're so connected.
Begin to find comfort in your space so your body feels both supported and spacious.
And if comfort doesn't feel attainable right away,
That's okay.
Offer yourself patience and grace as you arrive.
Know that however you are arriving is perfect.
This space is less about attaining some sort of hierarchical spiritual goal and more about loving the entirety of you exactly as you are right now,
In this moment,
In this body,
In this breath.
Observe the quality of your current breath and with gentleness,
Begin to breathe a little bit more lovingly into the fullness of this body that is your home.
As you do so,
Allow any active chatter of your mind to find relief in the downward pull into the body.
Here you may want to place one palm on your belly and one palm on your heart.
Welcome home,
My dear.
Welcome home.
I find that finding home in our bodies is less about always staying in that place of presence yet more about knowing that it is a place within us that we can always come back to at any moment.
This life is a journey less about discovering and reaching and more about coming back in and remembering.
What do you remember?
What do you remember about yourself as you walk into the temple that is your body?
What do you remember about yourself as the vessel of your body relieves your mind of its doing?
Are there closets of grief,
Aching to have the doors opened,
Longing for the dam to break open and the river to spread wide within you,
Bringing you back to life?
Are there corners of shame that could be sifted through like sand by the ocean with loving palms?
Are there pieces of heartbreak that can be foraged and gathered,
Collected with tender hands that have been brave enough to feel,
That have been brave enough to love?
Are there pieces of heartbreak that you can find peace with not putting back together?
Are there pieces of heartbreak that can find new shape,
New form,
New life,
New breath?
What is within you?
What lives within your home and whatever you find,
Can you breathe towards it?
Look down my dear and see the temple that is your body.
Release your palms to your lap if they're still on your heart and belly and begin to slowly and gently slide your palms back and forth on the tops of your thighs,
Making this connection of palms to body,
Feeling the structure,
The wholeness of you.
What a gift it is to have this home.
What a gift it is to remember what is inside of it.
I know that remembering what is inside is not easy.
It is a brave and patient and lifelong excavation.
Now find stillness in your hands as they soften on your lap and gaze back up.
Breathe.
Trust the current of your breath to guide you into places of your home that miss you.
Allow the tide of your breath to call you back in like an ocean wave coming back home to the deep of the sea,
Like autumn's exhale.
Bring your awareness to your heart and to your body as you breathe in and breathe out.
Bring your awareness to your spine that lifts you upright,
Maybe finding a little bit taller of a seat,
Feeling a little bit more sturdy in your bones.
With that sense of sturdiness,
Soften your belly.
Soften your shoulders away from your ears.
Soften your jaw.
Soften into your home.
We find structure in the foundation of who we are so we can ultimately soften into the safety of that structure.
As we prepare to close,
You may want to rest both palms on top of your heart.
Feel the connection of your palms to this temple that is your body.
Feel the gentle coming and going of your breath that moves your palms.
Reminding you that this is a living home that shifts,
Changes,
Adapts,
Falls,
Walks forward,
Breaks,
And opens.
Welcome home,
My dear.
Welcome home.
Thank you so much for sharing your practice with me today.
It's truly a joy to be in this space with you and I hope to be here with you again.
