December 31st, 2015
Those people in the yoga advertisements looking perfectly zen sitting in lotus position next to a lotus flower? Good for them, but that's not your life, is it? You have a cell phone, you have kids, you have noise in your life. But you also (we swear) have time to meditate. Join us for a weekly meditation you can incorporate into your life, anytime, anywhere.
You may find that you make the same goals every year. Perhaps they’re what you feel you should want: a better body, improved relationships, more savings. But unless they truly resonate with you, they're doomed to fail.
Meditation can help you to achieve your goals by helping you to recognize what you truly want for the year ahead.
Start by lying down. Make yourself as comfortable as possible, perhaps by placing a blanket or a bolster underneath your knees to help soften the lower back.
Notice and welcome your experience, whether you’re feeling agitated and restless, or at peace and calm. Release excess tension through your body and let a deep sense of relaxation permeate your mind.
Once you’ve brought yourself into your mind-body, connect to your heart. Feel what you perceive to be your heart centre, or the place where you access emotional energy. Settle and breathe there for a few breaths.
Then bring to mind your heart’s deepest desire. Something you want for 2016 but may feel is too big or too ridiculous to say out loud. It may be a wish for health or awakening, or a shift in your life.
Don’t feel rushed in exploring your desire but once you obtain it, feel it.
Feel your desire with your whole body. Let yourself settle on the idea as if it were already true, imagining and experiencing it in the present. Stay here for as long as you feel focused on your true self and your true dreams.
Take your time to transition out of the meditation, pausing for a moment to feel grateful for the opportunity to delve into pure awareness.
Then go and fully welcome in 2016.
Courtney Sunday from Toronto, Ontario
Courtney Sunday is a writer, yoga teacher, Pilates instructor and Thai massage practitioner. She teaches corporations in Toronto the fine art of breathing deeply, and travels too much for her own good. She likes to cook meals from scratch using ingredients from her garden, and would mill her own flour and make her own butter if she had more hours in the day. You can find out more about her at www.courtneysunday.com.
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