Gently settle to a position that feels supportive.
Allow the gravity to hold you in the environment to cradle you tenderly.
Feel the weight of your body being held.
Inhale deeply into the belly,
Ribs,
Chest.
As you exhale,
Release the need to figure anything out.
Just for a few moments.
Simply be.
And before we look at any thoughts,
Step into your sanctuary,
Your inner resource.
Be a sun-drenched meadow or a quiet room or a feeling of deep safety.
Noticing smells,
Temperature,
Stillness.
This is your bench.
Place of the impartial judge.
You are safe here.
Just the observer.
Now,
With curiosity,
Invite an anxious belief to step forward into the center of awareness.
What is this belief?
Hear the words clearly.
I'm not doing enough.
I'm not enough.
I'm unlovable.
I'm a failure.
What are these words?
Prosecution brings this belief before the judge and the jury of your higher self.
Ask,
What is the evidence this belief is true?
For a moment,
Listen to the prosecution.
And feel where that evidence lives in your body.
Does it feel tight,
Like a tightness in the chest?
Heat in the shoulders?
Observe it without judgment.
Now,
Let's invite the cross-examination,
The defense to come forward,
To speak.
Is this actually true?
Or is it masquerading as a fact?
Look for the glitches in the testimony.
Are there extreme words being used?
Always,
Never,
Must,
Forever,
Can't,
Every time,
Shouldn't,
Should've.
Take a moment and decide if this belief is absolute,
Rigid.
And then let's ask,
Is this black and white thinking?
Is this all or nothing?
Is it either yes or no,
There's no in between?
Is it either all right or it's wrong?
Is it all good or it's bad?
Am I looking at the whole picture or just one little piece of the story?
Challenge the evidence.
Feel the sensations in the body.
Does the tightness begin to soften?
Perhaps ask,
Where did this idea come from?
Where did I get this?
Is it a feeling?
Did I hear it from somebody that I don't trust?
Is this a reliable source of information?
Is it an echo from the past,
Old,
Not new?
Recognize that a thought is just a messenger.
It may be loud,
But that doesn't make it true.
It may bring intense emotional sensations,
But that doesn't make it true.
What's the probability that this is true,
That this thought is 100% accurate?
And in the silence of your awareness,
Allow a new belief to emerge.
Not a perfect belief,
But a balanced one.
Not black or white,
Not right or wrong,
Not good or bad.
What are the facts?
What is the truth?
Usually the truth is somewhere in the middle,
Because there is somebody who loves me.
Let the court fade away.
Let the trial end.
The verdict,
You are not your thoughts.
You are a vast open sky in which these thoughts pass like clouds.
Rest in this pure awareness and feel the rhythm of your breath.
As you inhale seven,
Exhale seven.
Continuing with that count all the way till you get the one.
You are whole.
I am whole.
You are complete.
I am complete.
You are peaceful.
I am peaceful.
Fence around the jaw and the hinges of the jaw,
Around the lips,
Tongue,
Gums,
Roof of the mouth,
Floor of the mouth,
Left side,
Right side,
And the whole mouth and jaw.
Up around the head and scalp,
All the hair follicles,
Brain,
Skull,
Inside,
Out.
Down the shoulders,
Down the torso,
All the way down to the palms,
Hands,
Fingertips.
Back around,
Down the torso,
Down the hips,
Down the legs,
Thighs,
Knees,
Shins,
Calves,
Ankles.
Heels of the feet,
The foot,
The toes,
And the soles of the feet.
Sensing the wholeness of vastness,
Equanimity.
From the crown of the head all the way down to the soles of the feet.
Smells the breath,
The air,
The temperature,
The sounds,
The light.
Dissolve into awareness.
The night sky and everything that twinkles,
Everything that arises is nothing but a star and a night sky.
Watch the stars.
Back to the breath,
Sensing the body,
Reconnecting with that inner resource,
Bringing a smile to the lips and to the heart.
Thank you for spending this time with me.
Namaste.
