Hi friends,
Welcome to today's practice.
In the art of mindfulness,
We check in with four things.
We bring our loving awareness to our surroundings,
Our body,
Our mind,
And our emotions.
By noticing and checking in with these four things,
We become more present and aware of what we need to do to take care of ourselves,
To nourish ourselves.
As we start today's practice,
I invite you to do this either sitting down or lying down.
Whatever feels more comfortable for you.
Relax your fingers and your toes.
Let the shoulders melt away from the ears and unclench your jaw.
Option to keep your eyes open or close them.
Breathe in deeply and breathe out slowly.
For the next few moments,
Just breathe like this.
Deeply and slowly.
Gently letting go of anything that's happened before our practice.
Letting go of any expectations for how the practice should go.
With every exhale,
The body softens just a little bit more.
Start to gently observe your surroundings.
Notice the air on the surface of your skin.
Is it warm?
Is it cool?
Notice any sounds near or far.
Notice any other beings in your space or home.
Letting the surroundings be there just as it is.
Shift your focus slightly inwards as you start to notice the body.
Notice how the physical body feels today.
Noticing where you feel a bit tight,
Sore,
Or tense.
Breathe into these spaces.
Allowing the breath to gently open the body.
Then start to notice what feels good in the body today.
What feels open,
Healthy,
And strong.
Offer your body the healthy parts,
The tight parts,
A smile.
A smile of gratitude to the body for always being there for us.
Start to compassionately check in with the mind.
What's going on in the mind today?
Is the mind calm and clear?
Is it busy with thoughts and stories?
Is it somewhere in between?
Notice any patterns in your thoughts.
Let your thoughts be there.
Let them travel through the mind like clouds in the sky on a windy day.
Coming and going.
Not getting carried away by any thoughts or stories.
We are simply observing.
Noticing with kindness.
Breathe in deeply.
Breathe out slowly.
Shifting your awareness now to your emotions.
Ask yourself,
How am I feeling today?
Ask and observe with compassion.
No judgment.
No analyzing.
Just observing.
Notice if you feel calm and joyful.
If you feel sad and angry.
Can you name your emotions today?
Holding any emotions that arise right now with understanding.
Letting them be there just as they are.
Notice if tension has started to build in the body.
If resistance is starting to form.
Breathe in deeply.
Breathe out calmly.
And as we close our check-in today,
Let go of any observations you might be holding.
Return to the journey of the breath in and out through the nose.
Bring your awareness back to the body.
Back to the room.
And when you feel ready,
You can very gently start to flutter the eyelids open.
Take a look around.
Enjoy a yummy stretch.
Notice how you feel at the end of this check-in practice.
I invite you to use anything that came up from your check-in to take care of yourself today.
To take care of any tightness you noticed in the body.
To do things to water your energy of joy,
Peace,
And calm.
Have a wonderful day ahead.
Thank you friends.
