The Sacred Pause: Grounding & Grace For The Holiday Season

Hello and welcome everyone to our Sacred Pause.

I'm really excited about our discussion tonight,

Our webinar,

And just an opportunity,

Right?

So we'll begin with just taking a few slow breaths together and I want to emphasize we are just simply here tonight sharing this moment of stillness and as we step into a full season.

So just a reminder that there's nothing to do,

Nothing to perform,

Nothing to get right.

So let's begin by just sitting comfortably,

Feet on the floor,

Hands may be resting on your lap or at your heart center,

And we can close our eyes or soften our gaze and just take a slow gentle breath in through your nose,

Out through your mouth and imagining with each inhale that we're breathing in calm and with each exhale we're releasing all of our tension and tightness and with each inhale we breathe in calm,

With each exhale releasing tension,

Tightness.

And we'll do one more breath,

Inhaling in calm,

Exhaling tension,

Tightness.

And just noticing the way our shoulders begin to soften,

Our mind slows down,

And our breath becomes smoother.

This is our nervous system rebalancing itself.

This evening,

This space is our sanctuary for the next hour,

A space where we get to soften our breath,

Return to ourselves,

And rest in what's real inside of us.

Tonight,

This sacred pause is not about changing who we are,

It's about meeting ourselves gently.

So let's all take one more soft breath,

Letting that exhale be a little longer than the inhale,

Just enough to let our bodies know that we're safe to settle here.

All right,

Excuse me.

Now let's move forward with just naming the holiday tenderness.

As we've begun to move towards the holidays,

Many of us can start feeling that quiet heaviness that we don't always talk about.

The memories that may be popping up,

Some of the expectations that are weighing us down,

The roles we might find ourselves slipping into,

Family patterns,

The pressure to just be okay or to be positive and merry.

All of it can live inside of us without being named.

So even if nothing dramatic is happening,

Our nervous systems remember.

This season often brings a kind of bracing,

That subtle tightening inside the chest,

The belly,

And the jaw.

A sense that we're supposed to hold more than we truly have room for.

So tonight,

We get to pause together,

Soften the edges,

To let our breath return to our body,

And to reconnect with the steadiness that we each carry inside of us.

So let's jump into a grounding practice.

A grounding practice will help us feel anchored to that steadiness inside of us.

So an invitation for you,

If it feels comfortable,

Allow your gaze to soften or gently close your eyes.

And we can begin by noticing the support beneath us,

Whether it's the chair,

The floor,

Whatever is holding us up right now.

Let's feel into that support,

Knowing we don't have to carry everything alone in this moment.

And let's relax the shoulders just a little bit.

Feel free to roll them if that feels good for you.

And let's unclench the jaw.

You can wiggle your jaw around if that feels good as well.

And loosen the base of the skull.

And now let the breath fall lower into the belly.

Let the inhale be soft here.

And let the exhale be just a gentle release.

And if it feels supportive,

We can place one hand over the heart or the lower belly.

Just enough pressure here to feel our own presence.

And as we breathe,

Imagine a little more space opening behind the heart.

Opening as if the ribs expand just enough to create a sense of ease,

A sense of spaciousness,

A sense of belonging to ourselves.

And let's stay here for a few soft breaths.

No need to force anything.

We're simply arriving more deeply into this moment.

And when we feel ready,

We can gently come back to the room,

Allowing our eyes to open,

Our gaze to come back to neutral.

And an invitation here for us to just take a few moments for gentle reflection.

And I encourage that as we bring ourselves into reflection,

Let's remember that this is not about analyzing or fixing anything,

Nor about judgments.

It's simply an invitation to listen inward.

And if you'd like to journal,

You can.

Feel free.

And if you'd rather just reflect quietly,

That's welcome too.

So here are three questions to help guide our reflection.

Let me also put them in the banner.

The first of our questions.

Yes.

Excellent.

What am I carrying into this holiday season that feels heavy or tender?

What am I carrying into this holiday season that feels heavy or tender?

And a reminder here,

This is not about judgment or fixing or analyzing.

Simply an invitation to be curious.

So as we move into our next reflection,

Number two.

What would my body or heart love to feel more of in the days ahead?

Is it ease,

Maybe warmth,

Spaciousness,

Peace,

Or maybe something else?

What would my body or heart love to feel more of in the days ahead?

And we're just gently listening inward with curiosity.

As we prepare now to move into our third reflection question.

Here we go.

What might grace look like for me this week?

What's one small act of softness that I can offer myself?

Just a gentle reflection here of what might grace look like for me this week.

Just one small act of softness that we can offer ourselves.

Now take your time with each of these questions.

There's no right way to do this,

No wrong way to do this.

Reflecting a bit on what am I carrying into this holiday season that feels heavy or tender?

And we move into what would my body or heart love to feel more of in the days ahead?

And what might grace look like for me this week?

And as we turn inward with curiosity,

Take notice if anything arose that feels meaningful.

We'll welcome that.

Hold it close without needing to change it.

This practice,

This presence,

Is simply about listening to ourselves with kindness.

Allowing space for those things to just be here and be present with them.

Now in a little while with your recordings,

We'll all receive a sacred pause practice card.

I'm actually very excited to share this with you.

This practice card is a simple reminder that we can keep nearby for ourselves during the holidays.

As we go through the holiday season,

I've always been a fan of having tools in our back pocket,

Something to reach for.

And so this tool can be something that we can just reach for as things are going along for us.

Again,

Our nervous system is remembering some of those heavy weights that we've carried throughout these seasons previously.

And we are also wired to pick up on the tension around us,

Some of the unnamed stressors that people are grappling with.

So the sacred pause practice card can be just that simple reminder that we hold nearby.

Maybe it's in our phones.

Maybe it's something that we've tucked away for ourselves or even literally in our back pockets.

It has just three steps that I want to share with you today.

The first of those is to pause.

And in this pause,

We're just taking one breath.

So much like this evening,

We took the opportunity,

We took that step back to just give ourselves space.

And a wonderful way of giving ourselves space is with our breath.

So we begin with step one,

Pause,

Just that one breath.

Next,

We notice our step two.

Now that we've taken a step back,

Now that we've paused,

We now notice,

We become curious and we see what's happening in our body,

What's happening in our heart,

What's happening in our mind.

Often,

Without that pause point,

There's so much in the flurry of activities,

Internal activities,

Even for us.

And we're often just on the go.

So when we pause,

We can actually notice what's happening for us.

So here,

Step two,

We've now paused and we notice what's happening in our body.

What are we experiencing?

And again,

It's not about judgment.

It's not about fixing.

It's not about analyzing.

It's not about is this good,

Bad.

It's just noticing.

It's being present.

It's being curious with kindness.

Just noticing.

And our third step,

Once we've taken a pause and we've started to notice what's happening in our body,

We can then nourish.

We can take the opportunity,

Now that we've noticed what's here,

To nourish it.

One small,

Steadying action.

And we don't have to do this perfectly.

Even a single gentle breath can really bring us back home to ourselves.

So we begin with a pause in step one,

Just a single breath.

Then we,

In step two,

Notice what's happening in the body.

And in step three,

We nourish with just one small,

Steadying action.

So this practice will help to support us in moments when things might feel tight.

They might feel overwhelming or emotionally charged.

The moments that we often forget to tend to ourselves.

So you'll all have that with you to just maybe literally tuck in your back pocket as we go through the holiday season.

But I also wanted to share with you that beginning tomorrow morning,

You'll receive the first note in our seven-day sacred gratitude journey,

Which I'm actually very excited about.

And I decided to add some bonuses,

Too.

So these will be daily reflections that are very short.

Just a moment to ground ourselves,

To breathe,

And reconnect with what steadies us.

Gratitude,

Especially when approached with softness,

Can open the edges of the day and bring a sense of calm into moments that feel chaotic for us or just decentering.

And so what I've decided to add is also a daily gratitude meditation.

So we'll actually walk through the whole week together,

Including Thanksgiving Day itself,

With tiny,

Meaningful touch points to keep us connected to ourselves,

Connected to that steadiness inside of us.

Because there's nothing to keep up with in this seven-day gratitude journey.

There's nothing to perform,

Nothing to complete.

Just a gentle presence with yourselves,

One day at a time.

So you can receive,

You can experience,

And maybe just notice.

This can serve as your pause,

An opportunity to notice,

And also an opportunity to nourish.

So I'm looking forward to sharing that with you.

And what I'd like to do,

Oh,

Let me take that nourish off as well.

Sorry about that.

And what I'd also like to do is just bring us into an invitation for a gratitude practice together.

If you've worked with me in any capacity,

Know that it is one of my favorite practices,

One of my favorite tools.

Because I think it offers us so much to experience.

And studies have shown that it really does rewire our thinking processes and also just the way that our brain processes information and its capacities.

So let's make room for gratitude with a meditation I like to call Making Room for Gratitude.

I'd like to just share as we get started with this,

That gratitude is an emotion that arises when we experience appreciation.

So it's important for us to pause,

Take a breath,

And create some space for this wonderful emotion.

So go ahead and get yourself comfortable.

You can sit or lie down,

Make any adjustments necessary just to make sure that you're as comfortable as possible.

And as you settle in,

Give your body permission to just relax.

Maybe closing your eyes,

Allowing your limbs to just lie limply,

And allowing your shoulders to drop,

Your mouth to part,

And your hips to settle.

And now begin to connect with your breath,

Simply noticing the rhythm of your breathing as you inhale and exhale.

And as you observe,

You may feel that you need to change your breathing.

For now,

Don't worry about that.

Simply keep your awareness on your breath,

Gently noticing,

Simply observing.

Now let's bring more air into the lungs,

Breathing more deeply,

Now pulling the air to the very bottom of your lungs,

And exhaling very slowly to completely empty the lungs.

And again,

Inhale deeply,

Exhaling slowly.

As we continue to deepen and lengthen our breaths,

Let's begin to bring gratitude into our awareness.

How does it feel to be grateful?

How does it feel to be grateful?

Continue to breathe deeply and fully as we keep gratitude in our awareness.

Now begin to consider,

What's it like to express our appreciation?

What's it like to express our appreciation?

And with our next inhale,

Let's deepen this.

Breathe in gratitude.

Imagine it flowing throughout your entire body.

And as you exhale,

Breathe appreciation out into your surroundings,

Letting it touch everything around you.

Breathing gratitude in,

And breathing gratitude out into your surroundings.

Imagining the gratitude flowing throughout your entire body with your inhale,

And breathing appreciation out into everything surrounding you with your exhale.

Bringing it deep into your body,

And letting it flow effortlessly from your heart.

And if your thoughts begin to wander,

Maybe wondering about what's for dinner or your to-do list,

Simply notice and bring your thoughts back,

Bring your awareness back to your breath.

And once again,

Imagine gratitude coming into the body with every inhale,

And flowing out of your body with every exhale,

Expressing gratitude for each breath as well.

Now,

Let's deepen this experience by bringing some pauses to the breath.

An invitation here to find some stillness between the inhales and exhales if it feels good for you.

First,

Let's begin by simply noticing the small pause at the top of the breath after the inhale,

And the pauses at the bottom of the breath after the exhale.

Now,

After your next deep inhale,

Hold the breath for a few moments,

Staying with this stillness.

Pause before inhaling again,

Feeling the fullness of your lungs.

And let's breathe now,

Extending the pauses even further.

So,

We'll inhale,

Pause,

And exhale,

And pause.

And let's go deeper now.

Inhale,

Pause,

Exhale,

Pause.

And again,

Continue to practice breathing with this stillness,

Finding gratitude for each breath and the stillness in between them.

Throughout our busy lives,

We don't often get the chance to find stillness.

With a relaxed body and a calm mind,

It's easier to let gratitude in.

We can simply breathe and experience this wonderful sensation of appreciation.

We can more comfortably express it and receive it.

We can let gratitude wrap around us like a warm blanket,

Comfortable,

Relaxed,

And grateful.

With your next few breaths over the next few moments,

Let yourself feel the warmth of this blanket of gratitude.

Simply allow yourself to breathe and just experience this wonderful sensation,

Filling yourself with appreciation,

Gratitude,

In this relaxed stillness.

And if you notice your mind wandering,

Just bring them back to your breath,

Back to this sensation,

This warmth of gratitude and appreciation.

Letting yourself imagine gratitude coming into your body,

Flowing throughout your whole body,

And flowing out of your body,

Filling everything that's surrounding you.

And now,

Allow your breath to return to a more natural state,

Its own rhythm,

Its own flow.

Easy inhales,

Gentle exhales.

Begin to notice the sensation of your body.

Maybe begin to wiggle your toes,

Your fingers.

Maybe start to flutter your eyes,

And open your eyes with your next inhale.

And allow yourself to return to your surroundings softly and gently,

Feeling alert,

Energized,

And grateful for this gratitude practice.

Take a moment to also extend gratitude to yourself for allowing this space to practice.

Now let's take a few moments and just allow you to reflect and be in this space,

In this practice,

In this stillness.

If it feels good for you,

Maybe reaching for your journal,

Maybe just staying anchored in this feeling.

Again,

An invitation here to simply notice,

Simply be present,

Not to fix,

Not to analyze,

Not even to change.

Just allow the experience to be here.

Next,

I'd like to offer some affirmations of gratitude for us as we take this amazing sensation of appreciation and gratefulness in this deeper space of Thanksgiving that's ahead of us in the coming few days.

And along the full holiday season over the next couple of weeks.

That stillness for us can remind us of the steadiness,

The grounded anchor that we hold in our space of gratitude and appreciation can bring an invitation for us to soften and deepen into that broader awareness.

And so affirmations offer inspiration and support for us in building our capacity to identify and remember gratitude each day.

From our research,

We know that something must be repeated a minimum of seven times to be remembered.

So I encourage for you,

Repeat each of these affirmations seven times.

You'll have them included as we go through each of our seven days of gratitude journey.

So the first of these affirmations I share here for you,

I am grateful for the gifts I receive from others.

Take a moment to repeat that.

Take a few moments and repeat that seven times.

And if you have your journal,

Take it with you,

Jot it down so you can say it each day.

I am grateful for the gifts I receive from others.

Our next affirmation.

My heart holds gratitude towards others.

Oops,

Let me show it.

Myself and the greater good.

My heart holds gratitude towards others,

Myself,

And the greater good.

Take a moment and repeat that,

Allowing yourself to feel the words.

I am open to receive and give thanks.

I am open to receive and give thanks.

So often we might just by rote and in a mindless way say thanks,

And so often when we hear thanks,

We just wave it off with,

Uh-huh,

Okay,

You're welcome,

Sure.

But what would it feel like to really receive it?

So I am open to receive and give thanks.

Our next affirmation.

I release hurts through compassion,

Kindness,

And thankfulness.

I release hurts through compassion,

Kindness,

And thankfulness.

We don't often think about the space of hurts or pain as opportunities for compassion,

Kindness,

And thankfulness.

Knowing what we know about those emotions,

Those experiences of compassion,

Kindness,

And gratitude and thankfulness,

They're part of what allows us to soften the heart,

Soften that survival space within us in order to release the experience of compassion,

Kindness,

And thankfulness.

Now,

We don't have to be thankful for the hurts,

But we can be thankful for surviving,

Growing,

Resilience,

The supports that we received,

Ourselves for being courageous.

This affirmation can allow us to soften into those spaces.

Now our next affirmation.

I am grateful for my health.

It's our health on all the levels that allows us to show up in our world,

In our life,

And it's not an all or none,

Right?

But as we soften into that appreciation,

That gratitude for our health,

We start to acknowledge the gift in well-being.

So,

I am grateful for my health.

And our last affirmation,

One of my favorites.

I am grateful for the gifts I receive from others.

Earlier in the day,

A friend offered me a hug on a Zoom call.

That was a wonderful gift,

Right?

Our gifts can just be presence,

Can be connection,

Or even the willingness of someone sharing their day or their trust in us.

And so,

I am grateful for the gifts I receive from others.

All right,

So we have our affirmations to take with you after deepening that sense of appreciation,

Gratitude for ourselves within ourselves.

Anchoring in that stillness,

Which helps us to feel that steadiness within us.

Now,

Let's take some time to anchor into that gratitude for ourselves,

To ourselves,

For showing up this evening.

For choosing this moment of care for ourselves,

This sacred pause in the midst of a full season.

So,

As we prepare to close out our time together tonight,

Let's take one last soft breath together.

Inhaling gently,

Allowing ourselves to feel gratitude flowing in,

Filling our entire body.

And a long,

Slow exhale,

Breathing out gratitude into everything in our surroundings.

As we exhale,

May we move through the days ahead with more spaciousness inside of us.

May we feel supported by our own breath.

May we offer ourselves the grace we so easily give to others.

And may we remember that we belong to ourselves,

Even in tender moments.

I'm so grateful that we gathered here together,

And thank you for sharing this space with me and for your trust in me.

I look forward to our calm,

Grounded,

Graceful,

And presence throughout this holiday season.

Namaste,

Everyone.