Welcome To The Present

As you read this, turn your mind to the sounds around you. There may be more sounds than you expect. Background sounds your mind normally filters out.

Don’t spend too much time on any one sound. Notice them as they come and go.

The purring of the car’s engine as it accelerates. The whirring laptop fan. The murmur from a nearby conversation.

You may notice your mind jumps from sound to sound. Allow this to happen. Don’t try to listen harder, or to pick out a particular sound. Just observe. Observe the way your mind moves from one thing to the next. Note the way your attention shifts.

Turn your attention to your own body.

Notice your connection with the floor, or the chair, or the bed. Examine the connection your body has with the surface beneath it. The way your body is held. The balance in your body.

Think of your face. Notice the expression you are making. Are you carrying any tension there? Is your jaw clenched? Are your eyebrows tensed down? Are you frowning?

If you notice any tension, release it. Without judgement.

Think of your neck. Are you carrying any tension there? Release the tension.

Do not judge yourself if you find yourself carrying tension. We all occasionally carry unconscious tension…