Thank you so much for joining us for this meditation.
We embark on this meditation with the spirit of curiosity and compassion,
Being gentle with ourselves as we move through this practice.
Take a few moments now to get settled in to a comfortable position and to begin to find the rhythm of your own breath.
When you are ready,
You can close your eyes.
Bring your awareness to your body,
Paying attention to the parts of your body that are touching the ground,
Allowing yourself to be present,
Allowing your thoughts to calm,
To sink deeper within yourself in this beautiful,
Safe space.
So often we move through this life under the weight of so much expectation,
Expectations of ourselves,
Expectations that may have been placed upon us by society and even our friends and family.
And while these expectations were probably never intended to be quite as heavy as they are now,
They add up over time,
Slowly bowing our shoulders and hunching our backs.
The more of these expectations that we try to meet,
The more we find them piled upon us,
Making us feel that we might never be able to get ahead,
All while becoming more and more disconnected from our true selves.
We strive and push and reach ever upward in the pursuit of perfection,
While we lose our grounding and become exhausted as we try to hold something in our hands that endlessly slips through our fingers.
Let's take a few breaths together now.
We'll begin by taking a slow breath in through our noses,
And then a long and slow exhale out through our mouths.
One more breath together in through the nose,
And then slowly out through the mouth.
There is no right way to do this.
This is your breath,
And how it moves is unique to you.
Take a few moments to really connect to how your breath moves your body,
Raising your chest and belly,
And then your belly and chest coming back to center on the exhale.
Just continue to connect to your breath,
Not trying to force it to move in any particular way,
Just embracing your authentic rhythm.
Turn the word perfection over in your mind.
How does it feel?
What memories or feelings does it bring up for you?
You might feel this in your soul,
Your spirit,
Or you might even feel it in your physical body.
Take a few moments to breathe into these sensations,
Not attaching to them,
But rather letting these feelings come and go,
Gently bringing your attention to these areas as we help to soothe and release these areas with our breath.
Take a deep inhale,
And on the exhale,
Just let it go.
Allow your mind to travel back to a time before all the weight of expectation was put on your shoulders,
Before we were told that 100% was a perfect score,
Before we were compared against someone else and found to be lacking.
Find the space within you,
However small,
That knows deep down that you are not less deserving of love,
Affection,
And attention because you are not perfect.
The concept of living a perfect life begins so early and is wound into so many aspects of our lives,
A blueprint on how to live what is supposed to be a successful life.
What if we could let go of the weight of that?
What if you didn't need to be perfect?
What if you are exactly as you are meant to be and are deserving of all the love,
Affection,
And attention just as you are right now?
What do we need to let go of to step into the truth of this?
Be compassionate and curious with yourself.
We breathe into our busy minds and on the exhale release the thoughts that tell us we need to be perfect.
We breathe into our intuition and on the exhale release the need to go against our knowing to please others.
We breathe into our mouths and throats and on the exhale release all of the imperfect words that we have wanted to utter but haven't.
We breathe into our hearts and on the exhale release the expectations of others that have weighed heavy there.
We breathe into our bellies and sacrum and on the exhale we release the internalized emotions we have buried in the pursuit of perfection.
We breathe into our hips,
Thighs,
Calves,
And feet bringing our breath all the way down.
On the exhale we allow ourselves to ground everything flowing out,
Connecting us,
Rooting us.
We release the need to be anything other than what we are,
Beautiful,
Imperfect,
And so worthy of everything we are and will ever be.
We'll repeat this one more time.
We breathe into our busy minds and on the exhale release the thoughts that tell us we need to be perfect.
We breathe into our intuition and on the exhale release the need to go against our knowing to please others.
We breathe into our mouths and throats and on the exhale release all of the imperfect words that we have wanted to utter but haven't.
We breathe into our hearts and on the exhale release the expectations of others that have weighed heavy there.
We breathe into our bellies and sacrum and on the exhale we release the internalized emotions we have buried in the pursuit of perfection.
We breathe into our hips,
Thighs,
Calves,
And feet bringing our breath all the way down.
On the exhale we allow ourselves to ground everything flowing out,
Connecting us,
Rooting us.
We release the need to be anything other than what we are,
Beautiful,
Imperfect,
And so worthy of everything we are and will ever be.
Taking one more deep breath in and then let the exhale be a loud sigh,
Really letting that breath out.
Slowly you can let your breathing return to your regular rhythm checking back in with curiosity and compassion.
Noticing anything emotionally,
Physically,
Or spiritually that might feel a little bit different after this meditation.
Remember to be gentle with yourself as you move through your day.
It's hard work to begin changing patterns that have been a part of us for so long.
You're doing beautiful work.
Whenever you are ready,
You can begin to bring a little more awareness into your body,
Wiggling your fingers and toes,
Bringing your attention slowly and surely to the here and now.
When it feels right for you,
You can open your eyes.
Thank you so much for joining us for this meditation,
Sending you love and hoping you have a beautiful day.
