Good morning.
Thank you for joining me in these first moments of your day.
My name is Charlie and I'm grateful that you are here with me now.
The intent of this meditation is to start your day uncluttered and with grace.
This grace will help set the trajectory of the rest of your day.
To start,
Be comfy.
In fact,
You don't even need to get out of bed.
If you have,
Snuggle up and embrace the comfort that your space provides.
As your body slowly awakes,
Take a moment to focus on your breath.
Pick a specific place,
Could be your diaphragm,
Your throat,
Or your nostrils,
But cover all
of your attention on your breath.
Give up all control of the breath.
Try not to anticipate it,
But notice the moment your inhalation arrives.
Notice the moment when your exhalation is complete,
And notice the space between.
As you breathe,
Now turn your attention to your body and the comfort that you find here.
Feel and wiggle your toes.
Sense your heels,
And now your shins,
And calves,
And your knees.
Become aware of your thighs,
And the great strength they possess,
Your pelvis,
And lower
back.
Appreciate the awesome intuition it possesses,
And how it guides you in mysterious ways.
Now sense your chest,
And the endless love inside,
And how it holds your ever-present breath.
Turn your attention to your shoulders,
Your upper arms,
Your lower arms,
Your wrists,
And your hands.
Bring some movement to your fingers.
Think of the incredible things you have done,
And can do with them.
Become aware of your skull,
Your jaw,
Your chin,
Your gums,
Your teeth.
Become aware of your nose,
And the incredible sense of smell,
And your eyes.
Reflect on the joy of sight.
Your eyes allow you to see the faces of loved ones,
Sunrises,
And sunsets,
All of the gifts
that Mother Earth has provided.
Think about your forehead,
And the power of thought.
There are more than 8 million species on this planet.
The vast majority do not possess the ability to think,
But you do.
Appreciate the miracle in that.
Become aware of your ears,
And your hearing.
Without your ears,
We could not be meditating together right now.
You would not be able to hear the voice of loved one,
Or music,
Or wind in the trees.
Now become aware of the very top of your head.
Now let's bring your attention back to your breath.
You are alive.
Next let's try to cultivate a physical feeling of gratitude.
Expand this feeling by reflecting on all of the blessings you find in your life.
The comforts of your space,
The gift of food,
And a warm beverage.
Be grateful for the clothes that you have,
The comfort and protection they provide.
Be grateful for water,
And that it sustains your life,
And all the life on this planet.
Be grateful for the air that you breathe,
And the sun,
The moon,
And the rain.
Be grateful for the plants,
And the trees,
All the life they enable.
All of the animals,
The beauty,
The uniqueness,
The companionship,
The comfort they can provide.
Be grateful for Mother Earth,
And sense the wonder of her divine complexity.
Be grateful for the people in your life that fill your heart.
Sit with this gratitude for a moment.
Now extend that gratitude to all of the challenging things in your life.
It might be a person that you continually struggle with,
That leaves you feeling miserable.
Maybe it's a part of your job,
Your education.
Maybe it's a physical or health challenge.
Maybe it's a task that you are dreading,
Or a mountain of work that you are facing.
If you're like me,
Those thoughts might have loosened your grip on gratitude.
That's okay,
It's to be expected.
But without these pressures,
You would be stuck.
They are helping you grow into the best person you can be.
And while challenges are rarely comfortable,
The growth they enable is profound.
See if you can find that sense of physical gratitude for the hard stuff.
Today is a new day.
Every day before this day has delivered you here.
It is filled with opportunity and potential.
You are an amazing person with qualities that make the world a better place.
Thank you for starting your day with me.
I wish you peace and grace as you embrace your day.
And maybe we can do this again soon.
Peace.
