Hello,
My name is Sam and welcome to this short meditation for gratitude.
To begin,
Find a comfortable position to do the practice in,
Ideally with good spinal alignment and an open,
Relaxed posture.
Once you feel settled,
Start to take slow,
Deep breaths in,
Inhaling deeply through the nose and exhaling slowly through the mouth.
Let your breath be the focus of your attention right now.
As you focus on your breath,
Allow yourself to let go of any thoughts or worries that may be on your mind.
Simply allow yourself to be present in the moment with your breath as your anchor.
As you continue to breathe,
Notice the sensation of air entering the lungs and then leaving as you exhale.
Feel the air expanding your chest and filling your lungs with new energy.
Allow your body to relax even further.
Let go of any tension in your shoulders,
Around your neck and in your jaw.
Feel your body melting into the surface beneath you.
Now bring your awareness to your heart space.
Feel the energy of your heart radiating outward.
Notice the feeling of the breath in the chest.
Bring to mind something in your life that you are grateful for.
It can be something small or something big,
But allow yourself to fully appreciate and feel grateful for this thing.
See it in your mind's eye clearly,
Every detail,
Every colour,
Sound,
Texture,
Emotion that you may have attached with this thing.
Embrace this feeling of appreciation you have for it.
As you hold this feeling of gratitude in your mind,
Notice how it feels in your body.
Does it create a warm,
Happy feeling?
A sense of peace?
Allow yourself to fully savour this feeling of gratitude.
As you continue to hold this feeling of gratitude in your mind,
You may find that other things in your life that you are grateful for start to come to the fore.
Allow yourself to acknowledge and appreciate these things as well.
As you continue to focus on your breath and practice this gratitude,
You may find that you start to feel a sense of calm and relaxation spreading throughout your body.
Allow yourself to sink deeper and deeper into this state of relaxation.
And now bring to mind someone in your life who has been a source of support and love for you.
As you think about this person,
Allow yourself to feel a sense of gratitude and appreciation for them.
And notice how this feeling of gratitude feels in your body.
As you continue to focus on your breath and practice gratitude,
You may find that your mind starts to quieten and you're able to enter a deeper state of relaxation.
In this relaxed state,
Allow yourself to simply be present in the moment and enjoy the feeling of peace and calm that you're experiencing.
And bring to mind something in your environment that you can appreciate.
It can be something as small as a plant in the corner of your room or as big as the beautiful view outside your window.
Allow yourself to fully take in this thing and appreciate it for all that it is.
As you continue to practice this appreciation,
You may find that you start to notice the beauty and goodness in other things in your environment as well.
Allow your mind to drift from thing to thing,
Embracing that feeling of appreciation throughout your entire body.
A bit like a chain reaction.
Once one thing comes to mind,
Others will follow.
So let them in.
Take a few more deep breaths and as you exhale,
Release any remaining tension from your body.
Start to turn your focus back to your physical self now,
Getting a sense for the position you're in and how the body's feeling.
Perhaps you might like to deepen the breaths a little now to bring fresh energy and life back into the physical.
When you're ready,
Slowly open your eyes and come back to the present moment.
Give yourself a little time to stretch and move your body before continuing with your day.
And remember,
Take this feeling of relaxation and gratitude with you throughout the rest of your day.
I wish you all the best.
