Hi and welcome.
It's Melissa here.
Every winter solstice,
I like to turn off the lights,
Sit in darkness,
And allow myself to feel any sadness or grief about what is gone or what is lost.
It might seem opposite of the holiday cheer,
But I feel it is a deep self-care to make sure I'm not suppressing or hiding truths within me.
Darkness,
In this sense,
Could be very supporting and healing,
So I invite you to sit in darkness in whatever level you're comfortable with.
And we can begin by settling down into your body,
Finding a comfortable position,
Feeling your chair or bed,
The surface supporting you,
Letting your shoulders relax,
Your stomach relax,
Feeling any tension around your muscles,
Around your face,
Your jaw,
Your shoulder,
Your chest,
Letting them relax,
Noticing your breathing,
Noticing the air coming in and out,
In through your nose,
Into your chest,
And out from your body,
Out from your nose or your mouth,
Noticing you have this awareness of the present moment,
Noticing that you get to do this practice right now,
Feeling the space around you as if it is hugging to the shape of your body,
Noticing the temperature,
Any breeze or stillness in the air,
Any sense.
You are in a safe place,
Supported by the surface beneath you,
A ground beneath you,
Protected by the air and shelter around you.
You also acknowledge it is deep winter,
In the depth of the night,
The longest night.
You are as far away from the summer sun as you can be,
Far away from the ease of comfortable temperature,
Abundant daylight and activities,
Far away from who you were and the hopes and ambitions you had at that time.
And now the leaves have fallen,
The flowers are gone,
Fruits have been harvested,
And the plants are dormant.
The earth seems to be closing doors,
Quieting down,
Leaving to hibernate,
To escape the challenges of winter.
Feeling into this rhythm of nature,
You feel yourself as a part of the earth,
Part of the soil that is now quiet and dormant.
This is the current season.
You can no longer hold onto hopes and dreams of the past.
Feeling yourself burrowed in the earth,
You are slowly sinking,
Sinking softly into the air,
As if you're floating in the deep,
Dark soil with the roots,
The seeds.
All is deep and dark.
And feeling yourself letting go of the dreams you had,
The plans,
The idea of who or where you would be.
Anything that was not completed,
Promises not fulfilled,
They are all gone now.
What are you feeling?
If you feel self-talk arise,
Self-criticism,
You can acknowledge those opinions and let them go as well.
Shackles of opinions from others and yourself,
Letting go.
You are safe to release,
Safe to feel what needs to be felt.
The only witness is yourself and the darkness supporting you.
You're staying here in accordance with the natural rhythm in deep winter and darkness.
And you notice the quality of winter to shift from loss and death to protection and preservation.
In darkness,
You rest.
Once you release the emotions that were hidden,
Rest and relief seemed like the only natural thing.
You're here in the darkness where nothing is asked of you.
And now you're sensing a stirring.
The earth spins in its own way,
In ways you can't measure or really send,
But have a deep knowing of.
Because of your rest,
You know when life calms,
When life calms and you can respond.
Once again,
Noticing your breathing,
Taking a few deep breaths,
In and out,
In and out.
Getting ready to close this practice.
When you're ready,
You can open your eyes.
