Welcome.
Let's start by settling in,
Finding a place that you can sit,
Stand,
Or even lie down,
And still remain both relaxed and alert.
You may have noticed there are times that it feels like our mindfulness practice doesn't work so well,
And we remain preoccupied or trapped by past or future-focused thinking,
Unable to access the present.
At other times,
Just a few breaths can take us immediately home to the present moment.
It's helpful to me to remember that I am creating this moment,
And I'm actually quite able to gift myself with what I need from the inside out.
So let's experience the power of our own remarkable presence and learn to gift ourselves with peace and well-being.
Settling in even more,
Let's take a moment here to inventory our body and mind.
What is your inner state like in this moment?
Is it turbulent or calm?
Just notice.
No judgment.
This is where I find myself in the present moment.
Now scan your body,
Paying particular attention to any places you might have stored up some tension or feel some constriction,
And just breathe into those places,
Seeing if you can release a little of that tension on the out breath.
Scanning the body,
Really noticing the body here in the moment.
Now let's turn that inner inventory to the mind.
What thoughts are preoccupying you in this moment?
Notice and name them.
Is it worry about a meeting or anticipation of a vocation?
Whatever it is,
Name it.
We're simply observing its presence in our minds.
Notice and name.
Now let's relax more fully into the breath,
Slowing down the breath to breathe a little more slowly and deeply than normally.
And today we'll use a practice called heart focused breathing.
Very simple.
Just imagine as you breathe that your breath is coming in and out of the heart or chest area.
Settling into heart focused breathing,
Breathing in and out of the heart.
Let heart focused breathing take you more deeply into the moment.
And for the next few moments,
We'll simply observe.
Let's watch ourselves as we breathe in and out of the heart.
Let's enjoy the experience of breathing.
Let's also watch as thoughts arise,
Naming them and watching them pass through.
We're simply observing our inner landscape with attention and compassion.
Heart focused breathing,
Observing our thoughts,
Naming them and letting them pass.
The observer,
The one who notices the thoughts,
The one who's been noticing the breath,
Noticing the air,
Noticing the aches and pains in the body.
Let's imagine that observer actually stepping behind our seated body and observing us from that point of view.
So we are literally standing behind our seated bodies,
Observing the thinking,
Observing the rise and fall of the breath,
The tightness or warmth or coolness of the body.
So take the next minute to stand behind your body observing it all.
And as you do this,
Continue to breathe in and out of the heart.
And as you observe yourself,
We place your hands on the shoulders of your seated self of the body and mind that you're observing.
So let your observer's hands fall on those shoulders,
Offering warmth and compassion.
Offer yourself a sense of groundedness,
Of peace,
Of well-being,
Of knowing that everything in this moment is all right.
You're simply observing yourself and offering this reassuring presence,
Hands on the shoulders,
Without words,
Offering through those palms on the shoulders,
That sense of well-being,
Of peace,
Of perfection of the moment.
And we'll take the next minute of clock time to offer this to ourselves,
Continuing to breathe in and out of the heart as we do so.
And now return to awareness of sitting in the chair.
Of breathing in and out of the heart.
And scan your body and mind again.
Notice if anything has changed since we began.
Is it possible to offer yourself this peace,
This reassurance,
This groundedness?
And it is,
For you've done so.
And as we step into the day ahead,
Let's set a simple intention to return to pause and to gift ourselves with peace and presence as often as we need to,
Returning to a sense of home in the body,
Home in the mind,
Home in the spirit,
Whole and complete.
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