Settle yourself into a comfortable posture that allows your body to be still and your mind to remain alert.
Either closing the eyes completely,
Or if it feels more natural,
Simply allow the eyelids to become heavy,
Lowering until they're almost closed and softening the gaze.
Take a few rounds of full,
Slow,
Deep breaths to bring yourself fully into the moment.
On the inhales,
See if you can find a little more length in your spine,
And on the exhales,
Allow yourself to soften and settle into whatever posture you have chosen today.
With your next exhale,
If you haven't already,
I invite you to allow the eyelids to softly close as you relax even further into your practice.
Allow the breath to settle into a rhythm that feels natural and easy,
Maintaining full awareness of the breath and simply allowing it to be exactly as it is,
Completely effortless.
Observe the sensations that are associated with this simple and automatic process.
You might tune into the air passing through the nostrils and throat,
The temperature of the air and how it is changed by the warmth of your body,
The subtle movements of your chest,
Belly,
And ribcage,
Or perhaps you become aware of the flow of all these things happening at once.
The goal in this moment is to pay attention to your breath,
To completely immerse yourself in the sensation of breathing without trying to control the process in any way.
Noticing here where your thoughts are and remembering that it is not uncommon for the mind to get distracted by other things.
This practice asks us to consciously step out of the routine or in some cases the chaos of the rest of our day and simply be.
And it can require some practice and patience to develop this skill.
If you find at any point that a thought has come up and pulled you out of your practice,
Simply notice what happened and gently bring your thoughts right back here to this moment,
Doing so without judgment and perhaps even with a sense of satisfaction that you were able to notice that moment of distraction and redirect your attention to your practice.
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Bring your thoughts back to your breath again,
Just observing it exactly as it is,
Noticing here the pace,
The depth,
The quality of your breath,
And how those things may or may not have shifted since you first began your practice today.
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When you're ready,
Allow your next inhale to be a little bit deeper.
Start to reconnect with the space around you,
Noticing any sounds or smells and feeling into whatever surface is supporting your body.
If you'd like,
You can gently wiggle your fingers and toes,
Maybe even finding a nice easy stretch,
And eventually blinking your eyes open,
Finding yourself fully back and ready to meet the rest of your day.
