Cabin On The Lake

Fall into a deep relaxing sleep tonight as you listen to this adult bedtime story and guided meditation.

There is a cabin on a magical lake that holds the most cherished of your memories and where you return to at the end of each summer to relish the last of the warmth and watch as fall arrives.

Nostalgia for a simpler time will be found as you let go and listen.

I invite you to get cozy,

Cuddle up,

And let yourself surrender to the serene journey that awaits you.

It's time to dream away.

I would like to take this time to welcome you to Michelle's sanctuary.

I am Michelle and as you are listening,

You may think of my voice as that of a dear friend and guide who is here to help you create the most beautiful dreamscapes before you surrender to slumber.

If anyone has not told you recently,

You matter and your life and story are a part of a bigger experience we are all having,

Creating ripples on the lake of time and human existence.

This moment right now is set aside just for you to take a mental vacation and any concern beyond your comfort can wait until tomorrow.

You may fall asleep at any point in this story and return again if you wish to hear the ending.

It's your time to do with it whatever you like.

Take in a deep breath and then sigh it all out.

Make a sound and wiggle in your bed to get rid of any lasting impressions of your day.

And inhale again deeply,

Letting your belly rise like a hot air balloon as you feel you could float into the night's sky.

And then sigh it all out,

Letting your belly fall as you sink deeper into the comforts of your bed.

Visualize that you are standing on a winding stone path that leads to a cabin that is surrounded by evergreen trees reaching towards the afternoon skies.

You hear the gentle crunch of your canvas shoes as a breeze wafts towards you,

Blowing strands of your hair off your face.

You inhale the fragrant air that is peppery and piney with a thin aromatic veil of the lake that makes you think of wet stones and splashing in shallow waters.

The air has a lightness to it,

Clean and warmed by the sun,

But within the tepid breeze there is a cool taste of autumnal air on the way.

You pause and admire the cabin,

A cozy structure built many decades ago with amber colored logs that glisten in the sun.

The coniferous trees cast shadows like skinny cones that pour over the cabin and towards the lake behind the home.

Your treetops are like fingers reaching towards the pure,

Clean body of blue-green water with a silvery glean.

You are with a dog who is your best friend on this journey and like you has come to this respite in nature over many years and seemingly many lifetimes.

As a child the cabin felt like a mansion to you,

But as perspectives change over time,

It now feels quaint and cozy.

There is a deck that wraps around the entirety of the cabin and you and your pup come to the front steps and ascend.

You stand on the deck and approach the door,

Feeling the same anticipation you felt many times before after the long drive to the cabin.

You feel the weight of your luggage on your back as you reach into your pocket and remove the key,

Inserting it into the lock and unlocking the door as you turn the knob.

Your hand lands on the cool textured grains of the wooden door as you push it open and are overcome with a vibrant ray of sunlight that shines on your face like a spotlight.

Particles of dust dance on the light as if a satchel of glitter were thrown into the air enchanting you.

And each glimmering particle of dust is like a memory kept in this rustic getaway that plays before you in many reenactments.

The sound of your own laughter and the laughter of those you love most serenades you as a melody that transports you back in time.

Your dog runs towards the center of the room and jumps on a soft,

Worn-in sofa before spinning in a circle and getting cozy while you set down your heavy bags in the foyer.

The ceilings are high above and there is a loft overhead that houses a sleeping nook.

The main room smells of old books and these books rest in a built-in bookshelf that covers a wall where a fireplace rests in the center.

You walk towards the mantle of the fireplace to take in the antique picture frames containing photos of you in different stages of life,

Enjoying the lake both alone and with others.

All the seasons of your life are represented before you and you take a moment and feel gratitude for the special place in nature that exists for you right now.

The back of the cabin faces the lake and the windows expand from ceiling to floor,

Angled to accommodate the A-frame ceiling.

There is a kitchen that overlooks the lake and you saunter across the wooden floor that leads to it as the old floorboards creak and sigh.

The kitchen is nostalgic as well and antique tins store hot cocoa and tea bags and coffee.

The wooden cupboards are weather worn and inviting and you open one to find a big round mug that you remove to prepare your favorite warm beverage.

You take the cast iron kettle from the stove top and fill it with water from the deep farmhouse sink.

Your pup runs into the kitchen with a fervently wagging tail and shadows your every move,

Looking to you for guidance on what happens next.

You fill your mug with your preferred beverage and wait for the water to boil.

You look out the kitchen window towards the silvery lake.

Ripples form as a neighbor is canoeing in the middle of the lake.

A few other cabins pepper the lake's perimeter,

Tucked into coves behind the lush greenery of evergreens and deciduous trees.

The sound of the water boiling pulls you back into the moment and you go to the stove and turn off the burner before pouring the water into your mug.

As the steam rises from the cup,

It carries the intoxicating smell of your beverage across the room,

Mingling with the fragrance of pine and old books.

You open a cabinet and remove a dog bone from a tin box,

Urging your pup to do a trick before catching it in delight.

You take your mug and return to the living room to retrieve a soft crocheted afghan from the sofa that you perch over your shoulder.

Your pup waits with a wagging tail near the glass doors as you come along and open them out onto the back deck.

Again you are hit from the damp air traveling across the lake with a woodsy aroma as you descend the stairs towards a pathway that leads to a dock.

You can smell a neighbor's campfire and watch as the smoke travels high above the water in a black squiggling line.

Your dog runs ahead as you slowly balance your hot beverage and blanket,

Tiptoeing down the path.

The lake is a mirror for the sky.

The clouds and cornflower blue sky are reflected like a watercolor painting on silk interrupted by gentle ripples.

Your canine companion beats you to the wooden dock and her nails click on the wooden planks.

The incoming waves cascade on the pebbled shore,

Sounding in a shush that feels like the whisper of a mother rocking her child to sleep.

As you reach the edge of the dock,

You remove your shoes and sit on the edge,

Dangling your feet above the water.

You dip in one toe and then another,

Feeling the warmth of summer that remains even as the late day air begins to cool.

The days are becoming shorter and this is your last hurrah of summer before fall encroaches.

Your dog lays down beside you,

Nestling her head on her paws as she looks out on the lake.

You watch your paddling neighbor in a canoe as he disappears into a cove.

A family of ducks glide across the water in order from largest to smallest,

As if a mother duck is leading her flock to the deeper waters of the lake.

The fish breaches the surface of the water creating a splash,

Just as other fish do the same as feeding time begins.

The sun,

Like a glowing tangerine orange orb with a marigold yellow halo,

Disappears behind jagged silhouettes of pine and spruce trees.

The last amber and honey-hued rays of light pierce through the spaces between branches before darkness sets in.

You watch as a maple tree nearby loses a few leaves in the breeze before they softly land on the surface of the lake.

While these iconic pointed leaves are still verdant in hues of green,

The warm glow of the sky casts them in golden hues.

It's foretelling as you see the leaves becoming orange and vibrant red from the fiery sky above.

You imagine in suspended animation what it looks like as the season changes before you.

The cool evening air rides the back of summer's warmth,

Setting the scene for autumn's glory.

As you squeeze every last golden drop out of summer,

When longing as a saturated magenta and orange sky dims,

Approaching twilight,

Every drop of warm light comes down upon you in a hypnotic stream of sun-tinged drops as you reach out your hands and collect them.

And you imagine these golden drops falling and melting into the warm lake where you kick your feet back and forth in waters that feel like a lukewarm bath.

Summer is yours to remember,

To hold onto,

To keep you warm in the inevitable cold months to come.

It may be collected in freckles,

Darkening complexions and tan lines,

And the feeling of warmth that penetrates your skin on the longest of days.

You look to your dog who continues to dreamily stare at the lake,

Which is now a deep shade of sapphire.

The dark sky above reveals stars like silver freckles cast against a dark blue-black blanket of night.

A sliver of a crescent moon takes center stage and is reflected back on the lake's silky surface.

Fireflies appear above the water,

Skirting around the edges of the lake towards the brown earth and surrounding forest.

You close your eyes and take in a deep breath,

Inhaling the fragrant lake that smells like flinty wet stones and the invigorating sensation of the pine and cedar trees.

You sip your warm beverage,

Relishing the soothing liquid as it cascades down your throat.

The lake rocks the dock and you surrender to the undulations beneath you,

Listening as the dock taps against stones in the lake.

The percussive sound is dulled by the viscosity of the lake and reminds you of your own heartbeat,

That you feel thumping steadily yet slowly within your chest.

You reach down to feel the downy fur of your pup,

Placing your hand on her heart as well and connecting with the sensation of life.

It is vibrant within you and within her.

It is vibrant within the lake,

Within the trees,

Within the setting even as the encroaching chill of autumn slows everything down in preparation for winter.

Having lived through so many summers at this cabin and this mystical lake,

You easily visualize the vibrant jewel tones of the deciduous trees in the coming months.

You imagine being in a kaleidoscope of colors,

Floating across the lake beneath the starry sky,

Like the maple leaf that has drifted to the center of the lake.

For now you surrender to the creeks of the dock and the crickets chirping around you.

The rustle of the leaves still remaining on the trees is like a soft murmur,

Hushing your mind and lulling you into a calm state.

You listen to your dog sigh and it causes you to sigh with contentment as well.

You look to the stars,

Spotting the Big Dipper and thinking back to the first time you identified stars in the constellation.

It feels like a lifetime ago,

Yet it also feels like it happened yesterday.

You sense the fluidity of time as you wiggle your toes and watch ripples flow across the moonlit water,

And memories appear on these ripples.

And it's as if every moment in your life's timeline exists right now.

You choose to conjure the summer's memory that makes you feel best and watch it play out on the reflective lake,

Like a movie projected on the screen at a drive-in.

You take a moment and see yourself living out those happy memories of summer's past,

Recognizing the part of you that feels exactly the same now as it did back then.

You feel the dark within you that lights up like the bright star in the sky,

And you connect with the infinite powers of the universe.

You appreciate the predictability of day turning into night,

And of summer turning into fall,

As they give you a security and sense of trust.

The trust pervades the night as you lie down on the dock,

All the better to see the stars.

The dark silhouettes of the trees shelter the lake,

Providing a sense of privacy and safety.

You hear an owl hooting in a nearby tree,

And your dog's ears perk up in curiosity,

Before once again she relaxes on the dock next to you.

You spread the blanket over you and your pup inches closer.

You feel the furry warmth of her body as she presses against you.

You look to the moon and imagine what it would be like to hang from it,

Floating among the stars,

Swinging on a moonbeam from one star to the next.

The firmness of the dock supports your spine as you begin to drift in a dreamy haze between sleep and consciousness.

You decide to return to the comforts of the cabin,

And so you slowly rise.

You take your shoes and muck and walk barefoot on the cool wooden planks of the dock.

The dock follows behind you as you step on the walkway and feel the damp ground below you,

Brought on by the humidity of the night.

It's like you're in the center of an orchestra of crickets and tree frogs that sing their nights a song as you come back to the cabin's deck and ascend the stairs,

As if you are floating through space rather than walking.

You enter the cabin with your pup in tow,

Guided by the soft glow of the outdoor spotlights.

They offer enough light for you to sleepily make your way towards the wood stairs that lead to the loft.

You ascend,

Counting each step as you go,

Looking out towards the wall of glass that faces the lake.

You admire the sapphire waters now cast in a pearly haze from the moon as a fog gently rolls in across the lake.

You inhale deeply and yawn,

Smelling again the aged pine beams of the cabin and the dusty books.

You continue up the stairs to the loft with your pup in tow.

A queen-sized bed awaits,

Covered in a patchwork quilt that bears the patches of fabric from clothing you once wore.

It is a tapestry of memories.

You remove your clothes and climb beneath a soft blanket and cotton sheets,

Getting cozy.

Come morning the last of summer's sunlight will pour through the windows that face the lake.

You will awaken restored and inspire to live the day to the fullest as you cherish the summer for all it has given you.

But for now you find sleep.

You let go as your eyelids close and you sink so deep into the mattress you are like a rock plunging into the deep waters of the lake and falling onto its soft muddy bed.

You drift and float,

Letting go of the night as you cross over into the dreamscapes that await.

The sweetest of summers gone by will dance in your dreams beneath a quilt of memories that keeps you warm and tucks you in safely for the night.

Finding bliss,

Finding peace,

Finding restoration,

Finding love,

Finding sleep.

It's time to dream away.

Good night.