There are going to be up days.
There are going to be down days.
There are going to be days of numbness and the day feels completely wasted.
Which of those days are the most important in the grand scheme of a life?
The days you experience life.
The days you are fully alive and feeling whatever you were dealt on that day.
These are the days that count.
My most tragic days built in me something of immense value and carried by these days.
It's as if my bones were forged in the flames of the foundry of hell.
What was brittle is now unbreakable steel.
Looking back it all makes sense from here.
My inner teacher has built the road before me for my own highest good.
Life was my guru all along.
So let's spend some time with that inner teacher now.
And get guidance from their life changing voice.
Who will meditate for around 10 minutes.
Into a seated posture.
This can be on a chair with feet flat on the ground.
And try being seated towards the edge of your chair.
Palms rested on your lap.
Allowing the eyes to gently close.
And sit in a bright upright posture that is conducive to wakefulness.
Breathe in deeply.
Filling the lungs.
And on the out breath relax.
Allowing any tension and holding to drop away.
Relax.
Relax the top of the head.
The eyes.
The jaw.
Drop the shoulders and allow the arms to hang from the shoulder sockets.
Relax the chest.
The back.
And abdomen.
Relax the buttocks.
Thighs.
Calves.
And feet.
Relax the whole body.
There is nothing to do.
Nowhere to go.
Nobody to be.
Just let go.
Now bring your attention to the rims of your nostrils.
Wherever you feel the sensations of air most prominently.
That will either be towards the front of the nostrils or where the nostril meets the upper lip.
Find where it's most prominent for you now.
And station your attention at that one point.
We are going to be feeling the breath pass back and forth over this one point as if it's a tree rooted in the wind.
And what we are looking for is a very subtle sensation.
And because it's subtle it helps us to elevate the strength of our concentration.
It's a relaxed diligence.
So don't over-strive.
Just relax into the breath.
Gathering the energy at this one point.
Feeling those gentle subtle sensations of air meeting the nostrils.
Trying to stay with the whole process of a breath.
From the beginning of the in-breath to the end of the out-breath.
Remaining focused in the pauses between the breaths.
This is so simple yet so incredibly difficult to do.
So don't judge yourself harshly when the mind wanders away into thinking.
Just see the thoughts and say in your mind,
Thinking,
Thinking.
And then gently place the attention back on the breath.
Each time we do this we are strengthening our ability to notice we have entered the dream world and to wake up into the present moment.
Staying relaxed.
Not getting uptight or frustrated.
Letting go and just being with the breathing as long as we can.
Moving in a little closer to the breath now.
And investigating.
This breath here and now.
This in-breath.
Is it long or short?
Don't think about it,
Just experience it.
Is it smooth?
Coming in in one gentle flow?
Or is it stopping and starting?
And the out-breath.
Is this out-breath long or short?
Is it smooth?
Leaving the body in one gentle flow?
Or is the flow stopping and starting?
Is it smooth or bumpy?
Is it long or short?
Looking for these traits in each breath and maybe we can notice that no two breaths are the same.
The breath is always changing.
I'll leave you for a minute or so now in silence to work on your own with this practice.
And now dropping the breath.
No longer making any efforts.
If awareness of the breath remains,
Fine.
And just be here in this present moment.
Hearing.
Feeling.
Just being.
Connecting to any sense of joy or lightness that you may have cultivated.
If it's there,
Soak it in.
Bathe in it.
Now bringing the practice to a close.
Keeping the eyes closed.
Making any gentle movements the body wants to make.
Really feeling the sensations of a moving body.
Allowing the eyes to open.
Gently.
And taking in your surroundings with eyes of innocence.
As if seeing things for the first ever time.
Really look.
Now take this wonderful feeling with you wherever you go.
