GARDEN | ADVENTURE | OBSERVATION | VALIDATION | RELAXATION | AWARENESS | FEELINGS

    All right now, it is time for you to enter deep within your heart.  This is your home.  All the colors of the rainbow.  Take a deep breath in…and breath the fresh air from the highest of mountains, from the most peaceful of gardens…and when you let your breath out, let all the worries and pain go…  This way you have more room to enjoy your life.  Take a deep breath in… then out…….In….. and then out….. 

    Going to use the symbol of the circle to bring you into this peaceful place within yourself… and this circle is a circle of light.  Maybe even one of the colors of the rainbow or all of the them… and this circle is bringing you a great feeling in your body and mind.  You are like a shining star, and when you learn something, your star shines even brighter.  Picture in your mind’s eye … a garden or even see the word written.  Garden.  You may walk around this garden and find there are many beautiful blooming flowers.  There are also many seeds there to be cared for so that they will grow too and bloom like all the other flowers in the garden.  To keep the garden clean you may want to pull out the weeds of what no longer is growing… and replace them with the new seeds…you may want to revisit this garden every time you go within your special space, and then… when you leave the circle that brings you to the quiet time, you can still remember your quiet space and understand what it is used for in many ways.  You will find the more you think about it you remember how it feels to have positive thoughts words and actions… and how meaningful that is… Remembering you are always being looked out for.  You are always being looked after… Anything that you set your mind to do, it can be done. 

    Feel and see the blue light going in and around your entire body.  Through your feet… through your legs… through your stomach… through your back, through your arms, legs, neck, shoulders, and face.  All around you.  Top, bottom, sides, behind and before you.  Blue.  The light of the angels always with you.  You can even remind yourself of this blue light that cleans your body and mind at anytime.  Using the color blue to take you out of the state of meditation now… and as you close , when you come back up out of meditation, you will only be open for positive thoughts words and actions.  Blue.  Eyes open and wide awake.  Blue.

Let's go on an adventure!

But, instead of rushing out the front door, let's go on an adventure within, to a beautiful place inside, in our thoughts...

Lying on the bed or soft carpet, or the lawn or beach in warm weather, stretch out on your back as a starfish. Close your eyes, let your body go limp as a Raggedy Ann or Andy doll, while counting to 10 in your mind.

Lying so still and relaxed, keeping your eyes closed, walk through the inner doorway in your mind onto the beach, on a warm sunny day.

In your mind, just feel yourself standing still for a moment looking around, seeing the waves wash against the shoreline in their regular rhythms, over and over again.

While watching the regular pattern of the waves, just breathe in and out, evenly in and out, over and over again.

Watch the waves, while breathing evenly, in and out.

Enjoy the relaxed feeling in your own body that is lying so limply on the bed or carpet. Feel whole and comfortable in your resting body and mind.

When enough time has passed, begin to come back to your everyday active self. Stretch out those limp arms and legs, take a deep breath, sit up.

Do you feel your new energy, all set and ready to go again?!

My dear friends, take time for this little restful timeout whenever you need it.

When you are swamped with homework, when you've had an argument, take time to find the place of rest within yourself, as you deeply relax your body like the limp Raggedy Ann or Andy doll.

And perhaps, when you get up and become active again, some new ideas will come to solve problems.

This is true for all your life to come. Even as a teenager, and adult.

Meditation, quiet time, with a relaxed body and beautiful thoughts is a natural way to make space for problem solving, and moving in the right direction.

Get comfortable-wiggle around, cross your legs and put your hands in your lap. I promise you this will only take a few minutes and you're going to have fun.

Take a big breath and blow it out really noisy.

Do it again and again. That's one way to breathe.

Now, let's try another.

Take a deep breath but slowly- now let the air out slowly and quietly.

Do this again and again.

Keep breathing this way. This kind of breathing is calmer and will help you during this exercise we call meditation.

Breathe in slowly.

Breathe out slowly.

While you are doing this look around your quiet place. Look at the things you see right in front of you. See everything. Now, without moving, glance to your side. What else do you see? The other side. What's there?

Now, close your eyes.

How's your breathing?

Still slow, still deep. Just think about that.

Slow,-deep, quiet.

Don't open your eyes but try to picture your place. See in your mind what was actually in front of you. What do you remember? What colors were there? What do you see in your mind as you glance to your right side and your left side?

After a few minutes of imagining the things in your place open your eyes and look again. Did you think of most of the things or only a few? It doesn't matter. Today was one way. The next time you try this it will be different. But, do try to notice the differences. Pay attention.

When you do this several times you will start to notice what you are seeing around you throughout your day. Make a game of it. What color

are the walls in your classroom? What color shirt did your friends have on

yesterday" Did you notice how many bikes were at the playground?

The more you notice, the more you know.

This exercise is a very special one. It's all about you and how you talk to yourself. This is a really good thing to do and to share so tell your family and friends about it too. We should all talk to ourselves about being special.

Let's sit quietly again. This time I want you to shake your head real fast and make a funny noise as you push out all the air that is inside of you.

Shake your arms out too. Now be still.

Give one last push through your mouth to get rid of all the air.

Close your eyes and calmly -- breathe. No matter what you are feeling at this moment, I want you to put a smile on your face. Keep it there while you think about your breathing, about relaxing and about keeping your eyes closed.

Choose to ignore any ideas that come to your mind about what has happened already today or what is going to happen later.

As those ideas try to come back to your thoughts just make up your mind to think about your breathing.

Gradually one thought will come to you. Let it have a place in your mind.

"I like myself".

Let that idea spread through your whole body. Feel it deep inside. You may sense a warm glow inside yourself. Feel it again.

"I like myself."

"I like myself."

Repeat these few words that came to your mind.

Tomorrow the sense that comes may be:

"I am happy"

or "I can learn my spelling words"

or I will try to be nice to my little sister"

or "I will stay calm when I feel upset"

or "I can be more confident".

Everyday take time to touch inside your own heart and soul to find the secret message you need to give to yourself. They're your feelings. They're real.

It's a gift you can give to yourself and you deserve it.

This is going to be very quick but also very quiet. And, it's going to be fun.

You may not want to right now, but I want you to lie down.

Start out by paying attention to your breathing. Right now, are you breathing fast? Are your breaths shallow? That's fine, but I want you to try to slow it down.

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.

Blow all the air out.

Now, do that again and again.

I bet you feel calmer. Just think about your breathing, eyes still closed.

Think about your feet. Pull your toes up toward your face as tightly as you can. Move to your legs; make them as stiff and straight as you can.

Now your stomach. Squeeze it in.

Put your arms by your sides- make them straight and stiff too. Keep them tightly next to your body. Make fists with your hands. Tight, tight fists.

Clinch your teeth, squeeze your eyes closed. Every bit of you is tight, tight, tight. Hold still.

Now, soften your eyes. They may flutter. Let your mouth open slightly. Open your hands, let your arms go limp, your stomach is soft.

Your legs fall to the side. Your feet hang loosely open. Your whole body is now fully relaxed.

Your breathing is still slow and steady and you are completely at ease. Just stay there gently breathing- resting your body.

You may fall asleep for awhile. Notice how nice it feels to be so calm and quiet.

You can feel this way whenever you want. You can practice first tightening all your body parts and then letting them go. You can do this before you go to bed at night. You can do this just because you want to feel peaceful.

This is a gift you can give yourself.

So, do it.

And maybe teach your Mom and Dad to do it too.

We're going to learn this here on the computer, but I hope you will soon do it first thing in the morning before you even get out of bed. We can all benefit from this delightful exercise so tell your family about it too.

As you awaken, take a deep breath- stretch if you feel like it and put a smile on your face. If you've opened your eyes, close them again.

Feel the warmth under your covers. Say to yourself:

"I feel the softness of the sheets against my skin."

"I feel the fresh air coming in through the open window."

"I smell the grass."

"I hear the birds."

"I smell bacon."

"I hear the traffic."

The garbage truck is backing up.

A train goes by.

The floor creaks as someone walks outside your room.

The clock is ticking by your head.

What else do you notice?

What always happens first thing in the morning?

What can you be sure of because of what you notice? If you hear rain you know you'll need a raincoat this morning. If the air is chilly through your

window you'll need a jacket. The birds are much livelier in the Spring.

Smelling bacon makes you hungry. Someone is up cooking already.

Certain things always happen. You can count on them. They make you feel safe.

They remind you of how good you feel about you. What a wonderful way to start your day. Good morning!

Choose a place to sit down for a few minutes. This is going to become a special place for you where you can be quiet, be alone, be comfortable and you're going to like it that way.

Now that you're sitting quietly practice your slow quiet breathing. Think about your breathing and try to ignore other thoughts that come to your mind. You can think about that later. Anything that comes to mind is for later. Close your eyes.

Breathe in through your nose – out through your mouth.

In… out.

In… out.

Start to notice what you feel. If your in a chair, does the material scratch your skin? Is it soft or hard.

You feel an itch on your nose. Don't scratch it, just feel it.

Your shoes are tied too tight.

Feel the breeze coming in through the window. Or, feel the heat on your back as the sun shines through the window.

Does your stomach feel full or empty?

Is your mouth dry?

These sensations will become so big because you are focusing on them. Pay attention to them. Try to just feel.

Don't shift to ease the scratchy material against your skin.

Don't move out of the sun.

Just let them be.

These feelings are real. They will go away later when you move but right now

just stay put and feel them.

What else do you feel?

Today you feel happy. Maybe the other day you were sad.

Do you like being alone or does it feel lonely?

Do you feel good about yourself right now? You did well in school today; that feels good. Last week someone was mean to you; that felt scary.

Pay attention to how you feel. What made you feel that way?

What do you call the feelings. Try to name them. Where in your body do you feel funny or good when you have these different emotions?

Now, put all the good feelings right inside of you. I bet you're smiling. I bet you feel like you do when you get a big hug. You can feel this way anytime.

Just remember what makes you feel good about yourself and how it makes you feel inside.

Give your self a hug!