So bringing your body
into an upright seated posture,
you can also lie down if you would like, but
I'd like to invite you to put your feet on the floor
and have them balanced.
And as a reminder that
you have a firm foundation.
You're on the earth.
We're all on the earth. And so
just by placing your feet on the floor, on the ground,
it can be a reminder that yes, you're practicing together,
but you're also practicing with the rest of us
and we're all anchored into the earth
with this beautiful force of gravity.
And then sitting in your chair in a balanced way,
so you're not tipping one way or the other;
This is a sign for you of equanimity or balance,
evenness, readiness
allowing your shoulders to fall down and back.
And your palms can be palms up or palms down on your lap.
If you'd like you can close your eyes
or just simply soften your gaze.
As I provide these instructions
they really are simply invitations.
Please create the practice that is yours.
So starting to focus in "what now?"
Maybe meeting yourself for the first time today,
creating as much stillness in your body as you can.
And as you start to draw your attention inward,
just allow your attention to focus on your breath
or on part of your body.
Let your attention rest like a butterfly rests on a flower,
just gently,
gently.
Tension just floats right on top of your breath.
So just noticing if thoughts come in or interruptions -
notice and let those pass.
Bring your attention back to the breath.
Just notice the in breath and the out breath.
Notice your body sitting.
Is it possible to imagine and accept that you are enough
just as you are, right where you are,
just doing this little piece of nothing.
That you really have no where else to go right now
and nothing else to do.
And you just set it all aside for a moment.
And know that just by being,
just by drawing each breath and letting it go,
you are enough.
And yes, you still have a lot to do in life
and you still have aspirations
and goals and things and ways that you'll become
and that's just fine.
For this moment, it's also just fine and right
to set that aside for now.
Can you maybe even pull back all of your identities,
all of your roles?
And just notice who you are when that happens.
When you're no longer daughter, son, cousin,
sister, brother,
no longer worker,
boss,
no longer a mother, father.
Thinking of all the roles that you play,
all the labels that are applied to you.
Just one by one, set those aside
and just be who you are in this moment.
And noticing if there's any resistance to that,
or if there's any celebration that goes with that —
just noticing.
And likewise, noticing in your body
if there's any place that you're holding on —
new tension or tightness,
and you just bring some warmth,
some attention, some nurturing, maybe some gentle movement.
Just letting that go a bit
until you're just a person
sitting or lying down,
breathing and being breathed.
You belong here, you belong right here.
You don't have to prove anything,
do anything, achieve anything.
Push, pull,
labor,
you can just know deeply that you belong right here.
Belong to yourself and you belong with us.
So now just deepening your breath, maybe for an inhale
and an exhale or two,
savoring what it's like to just simply sit with yourself,
knowing that you belong and that you're enough.
Checking in, maybe just scanning through your body right now
and seeing if there's any anything that you notice about
before you closed your eyes and now.
No judgment about that and nothing
that you need to achieve.
Just noticing. And then bringing some movement
into your body, wherever your body would like to move.
And your eyes can open now.
Thank you so much for that practice.