Hello,
My name is Chris Maxwell.
Thank you for joining me for this meditation.
Before we begin,
Just settle down.
Find a comfortable place,
Either lying or sitting.
Make sure that you're going to be warm enough and undisturbed.
And then just begin by taking some nice deep breaths in and out.
Feel yourself settle and then gently either lower your gaze or close your eyes if you haven't already.
And I want you to imagine a beautiful autumn day.
The sun is shining,
The sky is blue,
But there's a nip in the air.
And you find yourself at the edge of a beautiful woodland area.
You can see trees and the path is a little uneven.
But nevertheless,
You decide to go for a walk through the woods.
Slowly and gently,
You begin to take a few steps,
Noticing the beautiful surroundings that you find yourself in.
The trees are all in different stages.
Some still have green leaves.
Some are just beginning to turn orange and red and yellow and golden brown.
As you walk,
You can feel some of the crunchy leaves under your feet.
And you notice that sound as you slowly make your way through the woods.
You might stop for a few moments just to hear the sound of the birds and take a good look around.
Notice the different kinds of trees.
Perhaps some are very tall,
Others much shorter.
But what captures your attention most are the beautiful colours.
Different shades of red and gold and orange.
Some of them are deep,
Vibrant colours.
Others are more muted.
If you look closely,
You might see some of the birds.
Maybe even a robin with its red chest perched on a tree.
Keep walking forwards through the wooded area.
Perhaps you'll notice the last of the brambles.
You might even reach out and pick a ripe,
Juicy blackberry.
There's not many left,
But there's still some hidden gems if you look carefully.
And then continuing deeper into the wood.
There's lots of leaves now underfoot.
You can feel them.
You can hear them crackle and crunch as you walk through.
Just stop and listen.
Maybe you can see a squirrel high up in the tree.
Maybe you can still see and hear the birds.
But the floor of the woods is covered in a beautiful carpet of leaves.
All colours,
All shades.
Crisp and crunchy.
The air's cool and fresh.
You can feel it on your cheeks.
You might dig your hands deep into your pockets to keep them warm.
And stamp your feet in the leaves,
Listening to the crunch as you do.
And then as you go deeper into the wood,
You come across an old bench.
It's in a clearing and the sun's shining on it.
So you take a few moments just to sit and watch nature as it is.
And right in front of the bench is a beautiful old tree.
A beautiful old tree.
It's tall and strong.
Its trunk is thick.
Its branch is wide.
And it reaches high up into the sky.
Its leaves are a mass of colours.
What's left of them?
You can still see one or two green leaves,
But not many.
You can see reds and golds.
And some brown leaves.
And as you sit and watch,
The tree releases some of those brown leaves.
They float gently to the ground,
Twirling as they go.
Gently reaching the floor.
Gently reaching the floor.
Followed by another.
And another.
And another.
And as you sit watching this,
You recognise how the tree lets go.
You recognise how the tree lets go of what it doesn't need.
It doesn't hold on to those leaves.
It gently releases them.
Giving the tree time over the winter months to go inwards.
And just like the tree,
We can let go of things that don't serve us anymore.
We can let go of our leaves.
And it doesn't mean that it's the end.
It just means that we're making way for something new.
We're giving ourselves time to heal.
Giving ourselves time to rest.
Before we pick ourselves up again.
Perhaps in the springtime.
And begin new patterns of growth.
Perhaps in different directions.
The tree stands majestically.
It doesn't think about what it's giving up.
It's looking for what it can slowly release to make way for something else.
And just sitting,
Watching the tree.
Begin to feel at peace.
Begin to feel at peace and calm.
Knowing that things happen for a reason.
Knowing that we can let go.
And letting go doesn't mean the end.
It's making way for a new beginning.
And slowly you stand up from the bench.
Continuing your walk.
Moving your fingers and toes.
It's a chilly day in spite of the sun.
But it's a beautiful day.
But it's a beautiful day.
And as you come to the end of the wooded path and out into the open sunshine just turn around and look at the avenue of trees.
The beautiful colours and the stillness.
And notice the stillness and peace within yourself.
Then taking some nice deep breaths slowly in and out.
In and out.
Gently making some small movements of fingers and toes.
And when you feel ready opening your eyes taking a deep stretch and continue with your day.
Namaste.
Namaste.
