Hello,
Hello,
Welcome.
Thank you for joining me in this practice of opening our hearts and sharing gratitude.
I'd like to invite you to move into a comfortable position,
Seated or lying down.
The most important things are that you allow yourself to approach this practice with a willingness to open your heart and that you choose to allow yourself to really feel the connection that we all have to each other as human beings and that we have as human beings to this planet.
When we practice gratitude our bodies and minds begin to soften,
To naturally relax and paradoxically the softening brings strength.
It brings us flexibility.
It brings the ability to see life in a clearer,
Brighter,
Kinder and more accurate way.
As we begin our meditation allow yourself to focus on your breath.
Pressing your lips together ensure the tip of your tongue gently touches the upper palate of your mouth,
Right behind your teeth and allow yourself to rest your attention on your inhale and on the exhale of your breath.
Breathing through your nostrils and noticing as the breath enters your body through your inhale and exits your body through the exhale.
Allow yourself for now to just breathe.
As you continue breathing,
With your lips pressed together allow yourself to smile and let your awareness follow your breath.
Allow the pace of your breathing to be whatever it is.
If it's shallow go ahead and let it be shallow.
If your breathing's deep let it be deep and just observe.
Now allow yourself to focus on the region of your heart.
What do you feel?
Looking deeply,
Stay present and just notice.
What emotions do you feel?
What are you noticing within your heart?
Stay present,
Just observe,
Without reaction,
Without judgment,
Just noticing.
And now on an inhale bring your breath deeper into your body.
Bring your breath down into your heart and then even further down into your abdomen,
Feeling the breath move down your chest into your belly as you inhale and then exhale.
Deeply inhaling all the way down to your belly and a nice exhale.
Continuing breathing and keeping your focus on this life-giving breath.
Allow yourself to feel the connection between you and the atmosphere and the air around you,
Receiving as you inhale and giving as you exhale.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude for this symbiotic relationship that you have with our planet.
You and nature are intrinsically intertwined in this beautiful cycle of giving and receiving.
Receiving as you inhale,
Giving as you exhale.
Noticing it's impossible to be separate from nature.
Nature is you and you are nature.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude for your connection to the air and for the atmosphere that surrounds you.
As you ponder this connection allow yourself to deepen and grow this emotion of gratitude.
Feeling gratitude for the air,
For this atmosphere and for the ability to breathe,
For your ability to feel this breath inside you and this exchange with nature.
And the compassion,
The love,
The support within this partnership that we have with everything around us.
Now allow yourself to feel gratitude for the earth and for the ground that supports you.
As you sit or lay there,
Begin to notice that the earth is holding you.
Notice that any effort to hold yourself in place is completely unnecessary.
You are supported.
You can let go.
You can trust.
If you notice and if you observe,
You can feel that any tension in your body is unnecessary in holding you up.
This earth is already supporting you.
Can you feel it?
If you feel tension in your body,
Can you observe the sweetness in this misunderstanding?
And as you breathe,
Let your body become heavy,
Soft,
Merging with the surface that's holding you,
Supporting you.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude,
Gratitude towards the earth and gratitude for this awakening of trust within you.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude towards your body for looking out for you,
For being ready to hold you up.
In your mind,
Silently communicate to your body,
Saying,
Thank you.
Thank you for caring about me.
There's no longer any reason to be on high alert on my behalf.
My dear body,
My dear mind,
I love you.
I trust you.
I am safe.
We can both relax.
Let your body and your mind know that when you hear things like thunder and when you see things like lightning,
That you will no longer believe that they are frightening.
Instead,
You will now allow nature to awaken your soul and to ignite your passion for life.
The earth's energy is awakening the same connected energy that can be found within you.
Can you feel that the fire within nature can spark the fire within your heart?
Allow yourself to feel gratitude for the energy of fire,
For the spark of excitement,
And for the passion that ignites and can grow within your heart.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude.
Allow yourself to feel it.
And now allow yourself to feel the flowy,
Wave-like motions of drifting deeply into relaxation.
Allow yourself to feel gratitude for the way in which water shows us how to unwind,
For the way in which water shows us how to flow with the current and how to utilize momentum.
Allow yourself to feel this gratitude for your connection to nature.
And just breathe.
As you continue to breathe,
Allow yourself to identify at least three more things for which you can give thanks,
For which you feel gratitude.
And now as you continue to breathe,
Allow yourself to fill your open heart with gratitude for everything on this earth.
And notice how in doing so,
You are also giving gratitude for yourself.
For you are part of this earth.
You're part of everything.
The only thing that ever separates us is a lack of awareness of the love that we share and of the knowing and the feeling that we are all connected.
Thank you,
My friend,
For opening your heart.
Thank you for trusting me in your meditation.
And thank you for contributing your gratitude and contributing your loving kindness to the energy of our planet.
Namaste.
