You might take a deep breath in here to start to settle in,
Checking in with your posture,
Noticing if you want to roll your shoulders up and back,
Sit up a little straighter,
Tuck your chin a little bit.
If you haven't already,
Closing your eyes or taking a soft gaze,
Whichever is more comfortable for you,
Finding some support behind your back that can help you feel upright and alert,
But not straining to sit up.
Sometimes it feels like we'll just never settle in,
And sometimes the settling feels easy to fall into,
Just letting it be exactly as it is today,
Not thinking about what it was yesterday or two years ago,
And not worrying about what it might be tomorrow.
Checking in with the quality of your breath here,
It might be imperceptibly soft or you might notice your breath is quite active,
And while you don't need to change anything as it is,
I do encourage you to consider pushing your belly out as you breathe in so that you're really engaging your diaphragmatic breathing.
So rather than your ribcage expanding,
It might be more your abdomen that can help give your nervous system a signal that it's okay to settle in here,
A signal that it's safe to be in your body in a relaxed state here,
And that can be such a needed and welcome break from other parts of our life where even if you're just scrolling on your phone,
That gets activated,
Your body reacts as though it's unsafe to be there.
So gently breathing into your belly,
And either out through your mouth or your nose,
Whichever feels best.
Where are you noticing your breath most easily?
It might be the sound,
It might be the sensation at your nostrils,
It might be the rising and falling of your belly.
Seeing if you can just rest your attention there,
Noticing,
Of course,
When your brain comes online with thoughts about the practice,
About your lunch plans,
About something in a month from now.
And when you notice you're lost in thought,
Or simply notice that you're thinking,
You can offer yourself some gratitude,
Saying,
Thanks,
Brain,
For always trying to keep me safe,
For creating a distraction in a world that sometimes feels like it needs a distraction.
But right now,
Right now I'm meditating.
And just gently bringing your attention back to your breath where it feels most comfortable.
And if being with your breath just really doesn't feel good today,
Or any day for that matter,
Finding a different place in your body where you feel sensation that's either neutral or pleasant.
Could be the gentle pressure of your hands in your lap,
Or seeing what it's like to notice the tip of your nose.
So let's find a place to rest together here in silence for a bit.
You choose what feels most accessible to you.
Just gently keep thinking your brain or any other sensations that arise in the meantime.
Wherever your attention is here,
Just noticing exactly where it is.
Not worrying about where it ended up from where you started.
Just allowing that to be exactly as it is.
Maybe moving your attention here to the quality of your thoughts.
What's it like in your brain right now?
Does it feel chatty,
Quiet,
Busy,
Fuzzy,
Hard to focus,
Easy to focus?
What is the quality of your brain?
And can you notice if there are any judgments that come alongside that?
Oh,
I shouldn't be this way.
Oh,
I shouldn't be that way.
Oh,
I wish it were this way.
On an inhale,
Breathing in through your nose.
And on an exhale,
Just letting go of any of those judgments,
Of those thoughts,
Of that kind of mental tension.
Breathing in through your nose.
Breathing out tension.
And moving your attention down to your heart space here,
Your emotional body.
Checking in with the quality of your heart this morning.
Notice what's asking to be seen.
And it might be a lot or it might be kind of quiet.
Either way,
You might find it supportive to offer yourself a phrase such as,
May I hold this too with kindness.
May I hold this too with kindness.
Sometimes softness or kindness,
Gentleness feels a little far away,
So you might modify that offering to be something more like,
This is how it is right now.
This is how it is right now.
And you might pick your favorite of the two phrases or make up your own.
And I encourage you to imagine yourself sitting in really beautiful warm sunshine.
It just feels like,
That this imagined warm light can soften all of the little pieces and parts of your body that you didn't know were still holding on.
You breathe in through your nose.
And breathe out even 1% more tension or holding.
Offering yourself one of those phrases.
This is how it is right now.
And you might bring one hand over your heart and one on your belly.
Feeling that gentle contact,
Pressure,
Sensation.
Sending gratitude to yourself for taking the time to practice.
For taking the time to check in with your body,
Your heart,
And your mind.
Especially in this world that our attention is a commodity,
Constantly being pulled outside of ourselves.
It's such a gift to give yourself the time to go inward.
And before you move into the rest of your day or thinking about the time ahead,
You might ask yourself the question,
What can I do to support myself today,
Tomorrow,
This week?
And you might not get an answer right away.
You might keep coming back to the same question.
This inquiry of how can I feel the most supported?
When the time feels right to you,
You can gently let your hands rest in your lap again if they're not already there.
You can blink your eyes open coming back into the space and noticing if there's anything your body wants,
Like a stretch or a yawn or anything.
As you come back.
So I hope you'll take your phrase with you into the rest of your day.
This is how it is right now.
Thanks for practicing with me.
