As you get comfortable,
Just spend a few opening moments finding that best position,
A position you think you could hold for about 20 minutes without growing uncomfortable or falling asleep.
Settle the body and begin to relax.
With that next inhale,
We're going to break it into three parts.
Begin to inhale,
Then inhale a little bit more,
And just a little bit more,
And then enjoy one long exhale.
Inhale,
Inhale a little more,
And just a little bit more,
And one long exhale.
Do that two or three more times,
And then as you're ready,
Just let that breath relax,
And just be slow and deep,
Turning that focus inward for meditation,
Away from everything else in our life and in the world.
Right now,
We are safe,
Comfortable,
Relaxed,
Just here with our breath.
We want to spend our practice listening to our heart,
To our inner self,
Letting the rational part of ourselves be quiet and relaxed.
Feel the shoulders soften,
And let that heart open.
Inhale in the sounds and smell of your space,
Of your room,
And feel yourself going deeper into your meditation with each exhale.
Fill and expand with the inhale,
And soften in the heart,
Mind,
And body with the exhales.
Now with each inhale,
Envision the breath bringing in light,
A bright white light.
Let the light fill your body more and more fully over the next few breaths.
The light is bright and warm,
And as you feel this white light filling you,
Visualize your stress and negativity as darkness.
Begin to scan the body and the mind,
All the nooks and crannies for bits of this darkness.
Any worry,
Doubt,
Negativity,
Stress,
Allow it to leave through your exhales.
As you inhale in the white,
Bright,
Warm light,
Feel it pushing this darkness out.
See and feel the light finding all the dark corners and small spaces where darkness likes to hide.
See the darkness leaving your body to make room for more light.
Continue using your inhales to bring in fresh,
Bright light,
And your exhales to purge the black and dark.
Feel the lightness of your body and mind as you replace dark with light.
Allow yourself,
Give yourself permission to embrace the lightness and to let go of the weight of worry.
Allow your mind to transport you now to a grassy area,
An expanse of grass for as far as you can see.
The grass is green and feels soft as you walk.
You feel happy here.
The sun is warm,
But not hot.
There's a slight breeze.
The sky is blue.
You feel yourself smiling.
As you look around,
You see patches and pockets of dandelions,
Spots and specks of yellow welcoming you.
And while some see these as weeds,
And while you may not even always enjoy them,
Today in this place,
Right now,
Right now,
You see them as friendly pops of color,
As examples of brightness blooming where it has been planted,
Where its seed has flown.
And you think about how each dandelion becomes more dandelions,
Multiplying and multiplying,
Spreading and spreading,
How each dandelion uses what it has within it,
Along with a gentle breeze to continue this spreading and growing.
Allow the mind to think about what seeds we have been planting.
What have we been sending out into the world to multiply and spread?
Have we sown hope,
Love,
And gratitude?
You decide to pick a dandelion that has gone to seed.
And holding it closely,
You notice the intricate nature of the dandelion seeds,
How each stem holds a multitude of seeds,
And how they are able to easily fly free,
And how this release helps the dandelions continue to spread.
Allow the mind to see this dandelion seed as representing things for which we are grateful.
Gratitude is something to cultivate and spread in our lives and in our world.
And so as you look at the dandelion seed you have picked,
Again notice each individual seed.
And as you notice each one,
Assign it a name of something for which you are thankful.
Maybe it's a name of a person,
Maybe for something you've been given or granted,
Maybe for a skill or talent you possess,
Maybe for something you love in the world.
Allow the mind to investigate all areas of your life and name each and every seed.
When each seed on the stem has been named,
Gently begin to blow.
Watch as they fly away,
To be planted,
To spread,
To grow,
Knowing that each seed grows to be a dandelion,
And then into a stem of seeds that when spread grows into a multitude of dandelions.
May our seeds of gratitude do so as well.
Feel free to watch the seeds float away or pick another stem to send more seeds of gratitude out into the world.
Or simply use your next few long slow breaths to continue naming and sending out into the world additional seeds of gratitude to spread and grow.
Soak in the warmth of this grassy area for a few more breaths,
Smiling,
Filling up with the warmth of feeling grateful and of knowing that gratitude can and will continue to spread and grow even as we leave.
With your next inhale,
Begin to leave the grassy area where you have been.
See it grow hazy and fade away,
But allow the mind and the heart to bring the feeling of gratitude from that place as we come back toward this world,
Knowing as well that it can spread and new seeds of gratitude can grow here as well.
Begin to notice the feeling of your breath in the body again.
Notice your feet,
Legs,
Your hip,
Your back,
The shoulders,
The neck,
Arms,
Your hands,
The head as you feel yourself coming back to this place.
Allow yourself to smile,
To be thankful for this time,
To plant a seed of gratitude for your ability to meditate today,
A seed of gratitude for prioritizing self-care.
Taking a few more deep breaths.
If you are lying down,
You can begin to wiggle fingers,
Toes,
Maybe draw the knees in towards the chest as we roll to one side or as we maybe seated or in another position.
We can seal in our practice here.
Just spend a few final breaths returning,
Breathing in the good,
Exhaling out anything we want to leave here.
Then as we're ready,
Returning to seated,
Maybe bringing hands to heart center.
You can keep the eyes closed or a soft gaze,
Always taking your time returning to the world.
I thank you for sharing practice with me today.
Namaste.
