Hello there friend and welcome,
My name is mark roland find a position that feels comfortable for you today allow your hands to rest naturally letting your shoulders drop a little and begin by simply noticing that you are here breathing listening you're just taking a few moments away from all the noise and expectations of the world today's meditation is about something many people carry inside themselves the tension between following their own path and trying not to disappoint anybody around them perhaps you have felt that before the feeling of wanting to grow,
The feeling of wanting to create maybe the feeling of wanting to change your direction the want to say yes to something that's meaningful inside of you yet maybe you are also feeling the weight of other people's opinions of their reactions,
Expectations,
Feeling the weight of their comfort this meditation is not about becoming cold or uncaring but recognising that your life cannot be fully shaped around keeping everybody comfortable while still remaining true to yourself,
To who you are because every meaningful path asks something of us and often it asks us to tolerate misunderstanding take a slower breath in now and a longer breath out just allow your body to settle a little more with each flowing exhale see if you can bring awareness now to the feeling of your body being safely supported by the chair,
Bed or floor beneath you the gentle movement of your breath rising and falling notice if there is any tension anywhere in the body that's connected to responsibility the jaw the neck the chest the stomach the places that tighten when you feel pulled between your own needs and the expectations of others around you and without forcing anything to change,
Simply notice awareness itself can already begin to create space as you breathe in,
Imagine creating just a little more room inside yourself as you breathe out,
Imagine releasing the pressure to constantly manage how everyone feels about your choices my friend,
You are allowed to care about people deeply and still choose your own direction I say that again,
You are allowed to care about people deeply and still choose your own direction those two things can exist together bring to mind now a dream,
Direction or part of yourself that feels important it may be creative,
Personal,
Spiritual or professional or it could be simply a quieter way of living that feels more aligned and honest for you notice what happens in the body as you think about fully stepping toward it you might find that excitement appears,
Perhaps fear,
Perhaps guilt perhaps you find the mind immediately begins listing people you may not understand sometimes we believe that if we explain ourselves well enough then eventually everyone will approve but you see,
Life very rarely works that way of course some people will understand your path but others may not some people may even prefer the version of you that stayed smaller,
Quieter or easier to predict for them and yet my friend,
Your life still belongs to you not to their comfort,
Not to their expectations and not to the role that they became familiar with take a breath in now and as you breathe out,
Imagine loosening the invisible ropes of obligation that are tied around your chest let them unravel you do not need universal approval to move toward what matters to you imagine yourself standing at the beginning of a long path the natural ground beneath your feet,
The open vast sky above you the path stretches gently ahead into the distance behind you are the voices of expectation all those opinions,
Doubts,
Advice and pressure the fear of disappointing others and the feeling of needing to keep everyone happy all at once all behind you you do not need to fight those voices,
Just acknowledge that they are there and then turn your attention toward the path ahead forward imagine taking one slow step forward now just the one and feel that quiet strength in choosing to move away the power in taking that first step toward the path for you with each subsequent step,
The path becomes clearer and that's not because all of uncertainty vanishes the path is becoming clearer because your action brings that clarity then you begin noticing the further you walk,
The lighter your body feels you realize carrying everybody else's expectations was heavy and exhausting you can put them down now ahead of you is a version of yourself standing calmly in the distance they're not completely perfect or fearless,
But real,
Grounded,
Authentic and alive someone who's stopped waiting for permissions from others to fully live their own life their own dreams,
Their own path you walk toward that version of yourself now and when you reach them,
Notice how they look at you they are not judging you,
They are looking at you with understanding it's as though they are saying thank you,
Thank you for finally choosing your own path now begin bringing awareness back to your breathing the rise and fall of your chest,
The feeling of air flowing in and out you do not need to become somebody else to follow your dream and of course you do not need to stop caring about people but you may feel you need to accept that authenticity will sometimes disappoint those who just expected you to remain the same forever but this is part of being human,
Part of growth,
This is part of becoming who you truly are take a fuller breath in now and exhale slowly,
Feel the surface beneath you again the room around you any sounds the weight of your body gently give your fingers and toes a little wiggle allowing yourself to gradually return fully as you gently open your eyes as you move back into the rest of your day carry this reminder with you my friend,
Your life is not meant to be a performance designed to keep everyone comfortable your life is yours and meant to be lived authentically to you and honestly thank you so much for meditating with me today have a beautiful rest of your day go in peace Namaste
