This meditation is designed to offer space for us as government employees to acknowledge our current feelings and cultivate inner strength during a time of particularly strong uncertainty.
Please begin by finding a posture that feels both stable and comfortable,
Allowing your spine to be uplifted but not rigid,
Your shoulders to gently drop away from your ears,
Placing your hands wherever they are comfortable,
Perhaps resting in your lap,
And when you're ready you can gently close your eyes or simply lower your gaze,
Taking this moment to fully arrive,
Allowing your attention to gently settle on the feeling of your breath.
No need to change the cadence of your breath,
Simply noticing the rhythm of your natural breath.
Feeling the air entering your body,
Then feeling the air leaving your body.
Our breath is an anchor,
Always here,
Always present in every moment,
Allowing the breath to be simple,
Reliable support as the anchor of our attention.
Throughout the practice,
Thoughts,
Sensations,
And emotions may arise.
This is natural.
When this occurs,
Simply notice the arising of these sensations,
And when you notice,
Come back to your anchor of attention,
Either the grounded sensation of support in your body or your natural rhythm of breathing,
Inviting you to gently expand your awareness to include your internal emotional landscape.
In times of uncertainty,
It is completely natural for a range of feelings to be present.
You may feel worry,
Frustration,
Fear,
Anger,
Or sadness.
There may be feelings of being ungrounded or unsettled,
And you may notice other emotions specific to you arising,
Allowing them to arise in non-judgmental awareness,
Gently acknowledging that this is what is present right now.
It won't be this way forever,
But right now,
These emotions are present.
Whatever emotions are here,
Let's offer them a space of gentle acceptance.
There's no need to judge these emotions or push them away,
Simply acknowledging them.
Perhaps you can quietly name them in your mind,
Such as,
There is worry,
Or there is a feeling of unease.
Whatever arises for you,
See if you can observe it briefly,
Then name it.
Noticing where these emotions live within your body.
Does worry feel like a knot in your stomach?
Perhaps frustration feels like tightness in your chest or jaw.
Consider being a curious,
Kind observer of your present moment experience,
Which includes your emotions,
Thoughts,
And bodily sensations.
Now,
Having noticed emotions in the body and physical sensations associated with those emotions,
Let's now turn towards resilience in times of change.
Resilience is not the absence of difficult feelings,
But it is the capacity to meet those feelings and continue to move forward.
Consider bringing to mind the parts of your life that remain stable,
The things you can rely on.
Perhaps bringing to mind your inner character,
Your dedication to public service,
Your skills and experience,
And the people in your life who support you.
Seeing if you can gently call upon a feeling of inner resourcefulness or strength.
As you breathe in,
Breathing in a sense of steadiness.
And as you breathe out,
Releasing the need to control the uncontrollable.
Breathing in,
Steadiness.
Breathing out,
Peace.
If you'd like,
Consider repeating these phrases to yourself.
I am grounded in this moment.
I am grounded in this moment.
I meet uncertainty with courage.
I am peaceful.
It may help to imagine yourself like a sturdy tree.
The wind is blowing,
The winds of uncertainty,
But your roots go deep into the earth.
You can sway and move,
But you remain fundamentally intact and supported.
If you'd like,
Consider bringing your hands to rest gently over your heart as a small gesture of self-care.
And self-acceptance.
Acknowledging the challenging nature of your situation.
You are not alone in this experience.
Many people are navigating the same landscape of unpredictability.
Consider silently offering yourself a message of kindness.
Something such as,
May I be patient with myself.
May I be well and safe.
May I have the strength I need.
Allowing yourself permission to simply be in this moment.
Not as a government employee,
But as a human being worthy of care and compassion.
Resting in this feeling of connection to your own humanity.
Now gently beginning to broaden your awareness.
Noticing the weight of your body in your seat.
The sounds in the room or the space that you're in.
And your breath moving in and out.
Consider taking an intentional deep breath in.
Gathering all the steadiness and kindness you've cultivated.
And then consider taking a long,
Slow breath out.
Perhaps sighing as you release this breath.
Then returning to your natural rhythm of breathing.
And when you're ready,
Gently bringing your awareness back into this space.
Opening your eyes if you had closed them.
And consider bringing this sense of mindful presence into this space.
And quiet resilience with you as you move into the rest of your day.
May your practice be a benefit to you and those around you.
Thank you so much for your practice.
