Reflecting With Gratitude On Those Who Love Us

Dear friends,

Welcome to this meditation where we are going to reflect on the people who love us,

The people who are always there for us,

Come what may.

It's so important that we would never take these people for granted.

We'll begin this meditation by coming into the present moment,

Bringing ourselves into the present moment with a breathing exercise.

So make sure you are sitting comfortably.

We don't want this to be an endurance test.

Check that your back is reasonably straight,

A type of alert posture but not rigid.

Notice your feet firmly on the floor,

Keeping you grounded.

And if you feel any tension anywhere in your body,

See if you can release it now.

It might help if you deliberately tense up the muscle concerned and then let that part relax.

Watch out for any tension in your shoulders.

If there is any tension there,

Let the shoulders drop and notice the difference.

Let your jaws relax and just let yourself be.

You might like to close your eyes but you don't have to,

Whatever suits.

Your next step is to pay attention to your breathing and to help with this,

First of all,

Take in a deep breath.

Then let it out fully.

And the same again,

A deep breath in and out fully.

And now we will let our breathing return to normal but try to become mindful of the breathing.

We use words such as breathing in,

I notice that I'm breathing in.

Breathing out,

I notice that I'm breathing out.

Let's stay with the breath for a few moments.

What about a one-minute pause to allow us to bring our bodies and souls together in this same time and place.

Welcome back.

So now we want to spend a few moments reflecting on the people who love us.

People who are always there for us,

Day in,

Day out.

These people know us as well as anyone knows us and yet they stick with us through all the ups and downs.

We must never take for granted these people who love us and who stay with us.

So we'll spend a few moments now calling these special people to mind.

It might be a spouse or a partner,

A family member or family members,

A close friend or friends.

An idea might be to imagine yourself looking through photographs of these people.

Anything that helps to bring these people to mind before we express gratitude for them.

So a one-minute pause now to allow for this exercise in imagination.

Welcome back.

And now thinking of these people we say,

I am so happy that you are part of my life.

I'm so grateful for the fact that you are here.

Never let me take your love or kindness for granted.

Let me always be here for you as you are here for me.

Thank you for being part of my life.

Thank you for being with me in good times and bad.

Thank you for your love and friendship.

Thank you for your love and kindness.

Thank you for your love and friendship.

Thank you for your patience.

Let me always value these days when you are part of my life.

May you be well.

May you be happy.

May you never lack friendship and support.

May you stay calm amidst the ups and downs of life.

May you enjoy good health.

May you always have enough.

Let's spend a little time now thinking of these good people before we repeat these good wishes for them.

A one-minute pause.

Welcome back.

So now thinking of these good people,

May you be well.

May you be happy.

May you never lack friendship and support.

May you stay calm amidst the ups and downs of life.

May you enjoy good health.

May you always have enough.

And if you don't always have what you want,

May you still always have all you need.

And now we will repeat our words of thanks for these people who know and still love us.

Thank you for being part of my life.

I'm so happy that you are part of my life.

So grateful for the fact that you are here.

Never let me take your love or kindness for granted.

Let me always be here for you just as you are here for me.

Thank you for being part of my life.

For being with me in the good times and the bad.

Thank you so much for your love and friendship.

And for your patience.

Let me always value these special days when you are part of my life.

Thank you for being part of my life.

Thank you for being part of my life.

These special days when you are part of my life.

Now another one minute pause for reflection.

Welcome back.

And to bring our meditation to an end,

A final prayer of thanksgiving for friendship in the Buddhist tradition.

With gratitude,

I bow to all the good people in my life.

I acknowledge and appreciate the kindness and compassion they bring into my existence.

In this moment of reflection,

I give thanks for their love that warms my heart.

For their wisdom that guides my path.

For their support that gives me hope and confidence.

May I be mindful of the interconnections that weave our lives together in this wonderful web of all existence.

I give thanks for each individual,

Every single person who has touched me.

I give thanks for all the people who have helped me.

Every single person who has touched my life with goodness.

And now another short breathing exercise.

Coming back again to awareness of our breath.

Our simple breathing in and our breathing out.

As I breathe in,

I invite peace and gratitude into my being.

As I breathe out,

I send blessings of love and light to all those who have been kind to me.

All those who know me and still love me.

May they be happy.

May they be healthy.

May they be free from suffering.

May each and every one of them find peace and joy in their lives.

Namaste