Let's find somewhere for our body to rest,
Somewhere we can be comfortable,
Particularly if we're in worry,
In distress.
Let's see if we can let the tension out of our body.
Few deeper breaths and let's use that relaxing exhalation.
As we exhale,
Let's soften our muscles,
Muscles in the face and the shoulders,
Arms and legs somewhere they can be comfortable.
Having a little fidget till we find that place.
And pressing pause on the outside world and turning our attention to our inner world,
Noticing how we feel,
However we feel.
Can we accept and even embrace that,
Even if that's difficult.
That's where we are and it'll pass.
Let's sit for a moment,
Be wherever we are,
Acknowledging if it's difficult,
How it's difficult and knowing we're courageous even to look.
Well done.
Well done me.
Let's use a cleansing breath now.
So when we're ready to exhale,
Blowing out as much air as we can through slightly pursed lips and when our lungs are as empty as they can be without strain or discomfort,
Taking a long smooth in-breath,
Filling the lungs comfortably and then letting it all go,
Noticing how that feels.
As well as stale air from our lungs,
Let's imagine it's also like stale energy,
Thoughts and feelings that we wish to exchange for fresh ones.
So let's take that breath again,
Exhaling fully through the lips,
Emptying the lungs as much as is comfortable.
Long smooth inhale to fill the lungs with fresh air and energy and then letting it go comfortably,
Resettling our body if we need to and noticing how that feels,
Bringing our attention to the very center of our being and imagining that,
Feeling that any way we like,
Anywhere we like.
Maybe we don't feel anything in particular.
Let's bring our attention,
Our imagination to what feels right for us,
The very center of the center of our being,
Allowing the breath to energize the center of our being,
Our attention energizing this place,
Lighting it up,
Getting lighter and brighter.
It's going to start spilling out from us in all directions,
Above and below,
Side to side,
Front and back,
In all directions.
That light is expanding,
It's not stopping,
It's going further,
Further,
Further,
Stretching out even as far as we can imagine,
To the depths of space,
To the edges of what we can conceive of.
And I invite you to consider that in some sense our soul really does this,
To connect with all that is and all the other centers,
All the other beings also do this.
Coming back in now to our body,
Heart and mind,
Our local environment and feeling a little restored and energized,
I invite you to consider a worry that's been bothering you.
So let's bring it to mind.
If you feel like it,
You can address something big.
If you're not feeling energetic,
You might just practice on something smaller,
See how you feel.
Let's feel the energy of that worry.
So it takes some courage because it's not going to feel good,
But I want you to feel the contrast.
So as best we can,
Drawing that worry to mind,
Putting some words around it,
What it is that we fear,
How does it feel?
Are you able to get a few words that describe how you feel when you have that worry?
Maybe you feel small,
Shrinking,
Low,
Whatever it is.
Let's notice.
Good.
Our worry is a desire,
A desire in disguise.
Our worry is fearing the lack of whatever it is we desire.
Sometimes it can plague us and haunt us,
Hold us in its grip.
Sometimes it's just coming and going.
Sometimes it's holding us tight.
And we're going to see if we can flip it because our worry and our desire are the same things from different perspectives,
Like both sides of a coin.
So what is the desire that is the other half of that worry?
Let's focus on that for a few breaths.
The presence,
The having of whatever it is that is our desire,
The being or the doing.
We are it,
Be it,
Hold it,
Use your imagination,
Feel it.
Are we able to put some words around how it feels?
Like better,
Good,
Expanded,
Spacious,
However it feels for you.
And so,
Having felt the uncomfortable side of the fear,
Of the worry,
And the joy,
Expandedness and spaciousness of the desire,
Maybe we're ready to keep turning that worry upside down to find the desire underneath.
So take a deep breath and let it all go.
Hold only that thought that there is nothing worth holding onto any longer that keeps your peace and happiness at arm's length.
You might choose to be fully committed to the experience of happiness,
Even as we were previously committed to unhappiness,
Limitation and lack.
For a few moments,
I invite you to just sit and rest with your thoughts,
Not trying to bounce them away.
We're going to see what thoughts come up.
And if a worry appears,
Let's find the desire and feel that instead.
So we're going to practice flipping that worry on its head instead of feeling the fear,
Feeling the joy.
So,
Sitting with our thoughts for a few moments,
Allowing the mind to wander where it will.
And if it wanders to a worry,
We get to practice that technique of flipping it upside down to find the desire.
And so our practice becomes sitting in our observer seat,
Observing our thoughts,
Flipping them when we need to.
No burgers!
And we may choose both in our meditation practice and in the rest of our life,
Constant vigilance to guard ourselves against fear because we have that power if we choose it.
Maybe not easy,
No.
But if we recall how our fear affects our body,
Our biology,
Our minds,
The hormones,
The stress that affect our body's health,
Each cell is affected by stress.
And then we consider how joy affects our bodies and our minds.
Each cell operates better if we are happy.
Our minds are freer to be creative,
Both in terms of pens and pencils,
But also to create the lives that we're dreaming about,
To try new things.
In our fear we seek safety and familiarity.
In our joy,
In our security,
We try the new.
Noticing how our practice has affected how we feel right now,
If it's different from when we began.
And then taking a few deeper breaths,
Maybe connecting once more to that wider universe and our light stretching out across the void,
Drawing in that energy as we begin our transition back to the waking world.
Gradually moving the body,
Mobilizing the body,
And taking a stretch.
Thank you for practicing with me.
