Thank you for joining me for this guided meditation.
It's autumn in upstate New York.
It is a time when the leaves start to change color,
The trees start to let go of the leaves,
Preparing for their winter hibernation.
Please take a comfortable seat or lay down comfortably and let's see what we can let go of together.
Close your eyes if you feel safe to do so.
If you'd like to sit in a cross-legged position with your hands on your knees or in your lap,
Feel free to do that.
If you are comfortable sitting with a yoga mudra,
You are welcome to hold whatever mudra is best for you at this time.
Allow your jaw to relax as much as you can.
There are no rules here and this session is all about you,
So only go to the place where you are most comfortable.
Breathing in through your nose for four counts.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold at the top for two seconds.
One,
Two,
And then breathe out through your nose.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
We're going to repeat that three more times.
In through the nose.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold.
One,
Two,
Breathe out.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
In through the nose.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold.
One,
Two,
Breathe out.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
In through the nose one last time.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold.
One,
Two,
And breathe out.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Allowing your breathing to come to a natural,
Comfortable pace here.
Allowing your tongue to fall from the roof of your mouth.
Relaxing your jaw a little bit more.
Notice any tension in your body.
Are your eyebrows scrunched up together?
Are your muscles of your forehead tight?
Allow those muscles to relax as much as they can.
Is your jaw clenched?
Relax your jaw as much as you can.
Are your shoulders up at your ears?
Allow them to relax down and back.
Allow any muscles in your chest to relax.
Your arms,
Your hands,
Your back,
Your belly.
Allow your hips to relax.
Your thighs,
Your calves,
Your ankles,
And your feet to relax.
Allow yourself to be supported by whatever you are sitting or lying down on.
This is time and space for you.
Breathing at your own natural pace.
And if you haven't been to an upstate New York fall,
I'm gonna guide you through one.
Imagine that you're either sitting in an Adirondack chair,
A wooden chair,
Or a lounge chair outside.
Imagine yourself looking up and seeing the beautiful leaves of red and gold and yellow.
The tall trees that surround you.
Are you sitting in a forest?
Are you in a backyard?
Wherever you are seated,
You are hanging out in upstate New York feeling the beautifully warm autumn breeze.
The breeze gently kisses your cheeks.
It tickles your nose.
You look up and you see a beautiful blue sky with white fluffy clouds floating by without a care in the world.
The sky is beautiful and blue just for you.
The clouds are fluffy and white and just for you.
Can you take any thoughts that come up,
Any pressing matters that keep coming into your head,
And allow them to float up like the clouds and to float on by?
Relaxing back in the chair or the lounger or the blanket if you're seated on the ground.
Feel your body completely supported by the structure underneath you.
Watching the leaves rustle in the breeze.
The sun illuminating them from the other side.
The translucent golden glow of the leaves.
The reds,
The oranges.
The temperature is so comfortable.
Maybe you see some birds flying by.
Maybe you look over and you see some bumblebees taking in the last bit of summer's nectar.
Welcome autumn.
It is a time of change.
We all have seasons of change in our lives.
Can you be able to be open to going with the flow of the change of seasons in your life?
Is there anything that no longer serves you that you've been holding on to?
Can you be like the beautiful trees in upstate New York when they let go of their leaves and let go of that which no longer serves you?
You don't have to think about what it is right now.
You are here relaxing on a chair,
On the earth,
On a blanket,
In a lounger.
Letting that beautifully comfortable breeze tickle your skin.
You are watching nature just be.
And for the next few minutes,
Can you also just sit here or lay here and just be?
Coming back to the room that you're in.
Taking your time.
Wiggling your fingers,
Wiggling your toes,
Shifting your hips back and forth.
Remember that as you are now supported by the surface that you are laying or sitting on,
Know that you are supported by the universe,
By source,
By God,
By whatever higher power you believe in.
Slowly open your eyes when you're ready.
Coming back to the room,
Feeling relaxed,
Feeling ready to either complete your day or to go to bed and have a beautiful restful sleep.
Thank you for sitting with me.
