Let's begin in the moment and space in which we've arrived for this meditation.
Lying down.
Sitting.
Standing.
Walking.
Unless you're walking,
As long as it's comfortable for you,
You can let your eyes closed.
Let yourself settle from the top of your skull to the bottom of your feet.
Beginning to allow any tension that you bring into this meditation to dissolve.
Your scalp softens.
Your temples and your jaw become heavy and relaxed.
Let your neck become soft and open,
Maybe just fractionally longer and extended just a bit.
Let your shoulders fall as your arms get heavy down to the elbow,
The wrist,
Palms,
Each finger becoming soothed and open.
If there's any tension in your chest,
Around your ribs and lungs,
See if you can't give it permission to settle,
To open,
Even dissolve.
Extend and open your spine,
Deep in your belly,
Getting heavy.
Let that heaviness begin to permeate your hips.
With a softness and a weightiness and generous awareness into your thighs,
Hamstrings to your knees,
Letting them breathe and settle.
Open to your calves and shins,
Yawning into your ankle,
Beginning to extend and flex from your heel,
Through your foot,
Out your toes,
Just finding renewed softness,
Noticing the weight of your body,
Sturdiness.
Consider the system from your nose and mouth,
Down your throat,
To your lungs and chest.
Just feel a single breath entering and then exiting,
And then another,
In deeply,
Out slowly,
Inhaling and exhaling,
And returning to that as a focus if you become distracted,
Which is natural and unavoidable.
Inhaling kindly and exhaling with generosity,
Continuing to breathe.
Starting in your chest,
And this is more challenging and not intuitive,
See if you can't identify your pulse,
The push and thrum,
Steady beating of your heart.
Maybe you notice the pulse more easily in your upper chest,
Through the arteries in your neck,
Serving your brain.
Attend to it with curiosity.
Maybe you can make room for your breath and pulse to slow down just fractionally.
And now we'll begin a conversation with that that is most unique within us,
And that which is most awesome beyond us,
By whatever name you know it.
As you continue to settle and breathe and slow,
Have a little conversation with what is mysterious and beyond about something you're grateful for.
Acknowledge something in gratitude.
Maybe you express yourself in words or images or just sensations.
Maybe you can explain why you're grateful or not.
Whatever pattern you find yourself in in this conversation is terrific.
As you continue to breathe and settle,
Transition the conversation with what is beyond to an admission of something you are disappointed by,
A place where you fell short recently.
A way of saying sorry to the great mystery of the universe.
In a conversation that's kind,
Just admit to yourself and the world a place you fell short,
As all humans do.
Without dwelling there,
Return to your body and breath.
Settling in,
Slowing down with gracious awareness.
And allow that conversation with what is beyond and mysterious to turn into a question,
A simple request,
An acknowledgement of a desire you might have at this moment or going forward.
What does your heart's need?
And express that in conversation.
And lastly,
As you relate to the wonder of the universe and its incomprehensibility,
Say wow for something.
One of our most powerful words.
Acknowledge the awe you might feel for the created world with wow.
As we begin to wrap up this dialogue with eternity,
Start to let go of the specific gratitude or disappointment or desire or even awe.
Let that conversation come to a close with an internal word of greeting and goodbye.
And return to your body and breathing.
