Hello and thank you for joining me for this meditation.
So just choose whether you want to lie back or sit down and begin by taking some deep breaths.
Slowly breathing in and gently letting your breath back out.
Just do that a few times.
Slowly in and out.
And then just breathe normally.
You might choose to close your eyes.
And imagine a cold winter's day.
You can hear the sound of rain pattering on the window.
And you settle yourself down in front of a huge soft armchair beside a warm log fire.
The flames gently lick the wooden logs,
Sending dancing sparks up the chimney.
And you begin to relax and take some more deep breaths.
The heat from the fire makes you feel toasty and warm.
And you find a mug of your favourite hot drink sitting on a table right at your side.
Reaching out for the mug,
You place your hands around it and feel its comforting warmth,
Noticing what's inside the mug.
Your favourite drink.
Whether that's tea or coffee or milk or hot chocolate,
Perhaps sprinkled with cinnamon.
Just take a few moments to absorb the warmthness in your hand as you wrap your hands around it,
Hugging it close.
And then as you lift the cup towards your mouth,
Smelling in its delicious aroma,
Before taking the smallest sip.
And just noticing what that feels like and what that first taste is,
As the flavour gently eases into your mouth.
Your favourite drink.
Warm.
Just savour that moment as it slowly goes down through your body,
Bringing a feeling of warmth and happiness to you.
And as you sit,
Listening to the rain outside,
Your eye catches a particular raindrop as it slowly slides down the windowpane.
You follow its journey,
Right from the very top,
Slowly,
Slowly,
As it makes its way.
Sometimes going around other raindrops,
Sometimes going straight,
Until it reaches its destination at the bottom of your windowpane.
And it just rests.
As you finish your drink,
You place it back on the table at the side,
And as you do,
You notice a box,
Tied with a ribbon,
With a bow on top.
Just notice this box.
Is it big or small?
It really doesn't matter because the contents are the same.
But just explore the outside of the box first.
Explore the wrapping,
If it's wrapped in anything,
Or is it just the ribbon?
What colour is that ribbon?
Perhaps a big red bow?
Perhaps gold or silver?
Just whatever is your favourite colour.
And as you explore the box,
You notice a label that has your name on it.
And so gently,
You loosen the ribbon and watch as it drops to the floor,
Its colour highlighted in the glow from the fire.
You're curious now,
What could be inside this box?
What does it hold?
And so,
You reach inside.
It's not an object,
But rather something that comes to your mind.
And that word is love.
And just picture that word in your mind's eye,
And what it means.
What it means to you.
Perhaps what it means for those around you.
And take your time,
Thinking about that word.
And if you find this difficult,
Imagine yourself as your five-year-old self.
And imagine the love that your five-year-old self needs.
Imagine giving that love to your five-year-old self.
Just knowing what that feels like.
Feeling loved.
Feeling cared for.
Feeling happy.
Because we all have a five-year-old self within us.
And we can nurture that love.
And feeling warm and happy,
You just take a few moments to absorb that first gift.
That first gift of love to yourself,
Whatever age you might be.
And then reaching into the box a second time.
This time you visualise the word peace,
And what that word means to you.
It can mean peace for yourself,
Peace within the life that you're leading.
Peace for others.
For people in difficult times.
Just spend a moment or two absorbing what this gift of peace is that you've found in the box.
How does peace feel?
How does it feel inside to have peace?
Just take your time.
Perhaps say the word out loud.
And just enjoying a few moments of peace in a busy world.
A few moments of peace that you've carved out for yourself.
To give yourself what you deserve.
And then slowly reaching into the box again.
And this time the word is hope.
And again just take some time to think what this word might mean to you.
What are your hopes?
What are your hopes and dreams?
Just take time to think.
Are you hoping to see someone?
Are you hoping to do something?
Are you hoping that you get a particular job?
Are you hoping to go on a particular journey?
Everyone's hopes are different.
And you just think about what it is that you're hoping for.
Before gently letting that go.
And reaching into the box one last time for the final gift.
And the word that comes to mind is gratitude.
Being grateful.
Being grateful for what we have right here,
Right now.
Perhaps it's something small.
Something that keeps us warm.
We might be grateful for our gloves and socks.
We might be grateful for our home.
We might be grateful for those that we love.
We might be grateful for a pet.
We might be grateful for our friends.
We might be grateful for the blue sky and the sunshine.
Or even the rain and snow.
As seasons change and bring things different.
Just think about what we do have to be grateful for.
And how good feeling grateful makes us feel.
Even if it's something very,
Very small.
There's always something that we can be grateful for.
And now the box is empty.
The gifts have been taken out and stored within us.
There's something that we can carry about.
They're not heavy like material things.
There's something that we can carry inside.
And when things are not going right,
We can think about our gifts of love and peace and hope and gratitude.
We can think about how they make us feel.
How we can call them from within and spend a few moments with them,
Even in a busy day.
Just sitting back in that beautiful cozy armchair in front of the warm fire.
Perhaps beginning to make some small movements of fingers and toes.
Gently moving your head.
As you slowly begin to come back into the room,
Perhaps opening your eyes.
Or spending a little more time in that beautiful relaxed state.
