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jenettIt's been a productive morning - got an oil change, changed the cat litter, sorted out my closet and the spring/summer clothes, I'm waiting for laundry to be done in the dryer. I need to do some more cleaning and putting away, and move the computer (because there will be a Scott here in a few hours!)
I've also edited the meditation my group's using for the full moon ritual on Saturday. (Edited from last year). Since several people wanted to see it, here's the revised version. (It's about 3/4 of the length of the original)
If you're interested in using this, it's fair game. If you use it with other people, please keep my name attached to it (Jenett and the email address jenett@gleewood.org work great) and let me know how it works for you.
[insert basic meditation induction sequence here]
Your eyes still closed, you take a deep breath, smelling the damp earth and the tang of last year's meadow grass.
You open your eyes to find yourself standing in a broad open field. The wind is brisk, but it is warm enough to be out without a coat. The ground around you is muddy in spots, with yellowed grass, but feels springy beneath your feet. The sun above you is not yet strong but you can feel its growing warmth.
[short pause]
You stand for a moment, trying to get your bearings, when you hear the chirp of a bird behind you.
You see a cardinal. It lands on the ground in front of you and chirps, then hops toward the eastern edge of the field, cocking its head, as if encouraging you to follow.
You begin to follow it and it takes to the air. Your feet squish in the damp loam of the meadow as you make your way toward a break in the stone wall and the forest beyond the meadow.
Once you reach the edge, you see a footpath between the trees, and set off between the trees. Some are evergreens, their needles still dark and vibrant. Some have bare branches, with only the hint of leaf buds. White birches glimmer between the brown bark of the other trees.
You can hear animals moving around in the woods. You see a rabbit cross your path, several squirrels, and then hear a rustle that might be a deer leaping away from the soft noise of your feet. As you walk, the cardinal flits from branch to branch, waiting for you to catch up.
[pause]
The path curves shallowly down and around until you find yourself in a small clearing. Before you is a cottage. There are signs of weeds grown tall and crushed down by the snow. The paint is old and peeling and there are no footsteps in the soft ground around the door.
You peek in the window. Dust is thick as velvet on the furniture and floor. As you stand there the bird chirps again, off to your right. You look towards the sound, just in time to see the bird disappear around the corner.
You follow, to find a tall wooden fence curving out from the back corner of the cottage. Directly in front of you is a heavy door with a large padlock. Some gardening tools are pushed into the corner between the cottage and the fence.
You walk closer, noticing more details. Above the door is a simple sign - black text painted on a white board - which says "Open to all who would use their talents." You reach out, testing the padlock, but it is solidly locked.
You take a step back and see that the wall on your left is covered in a mural. Like the rest of the cottage, it has been neglected, but many of the colors are still bright.
The mural shows pictures of people doing things - cooking, sewing, making all kinds of crafts. People celebrate with friends, play with children, and talk with others. Some people make music, dance, write, read, or learn. Some people are doing chores or working hard. Others are helping someone, or even making an apology.
Looking at the mural, you realize these people are all DOING things. They are taking action in their own lives, and they are doing the hard work that sometimes needs to be done.
Your eye catches on scenes of particular meaning to you. Some are things you enjoy. Others are things which make you uncomfortable, but which have to be done. You look more closely at those uncomfortable scenes and begin to think about changes you might make in your own life.
[longish pause]
Eventually, your eye is drawn downward towards the gardening tools. A glint of sun catches on something just behind the watering can.
You bend down to find a golden key, the right size to fit the padlock. Three short phrases are painted on the wall above the key in clear black letters. The first says: "Clear the old". The second "Nurture growth", and the third "Embrace beauty."
You take the key off the hook and pick up the basket of gardening tools and the water can nearby. Turning to the door, you try the key in the padlock.
It unlocks, and you open the door to find yourself in a walled garden. It is in disrepair - there are weeds everywhere, and it is overgrown. A fountain in the center is clogged with fallen leaves. The trellises around the walls look dead and barren.
Once this garden would have been alive with color, vibrant with life. Now, it looks lost, alone and neglected. It's a little upsetting.
You could turn away, find your way back to your familiar surroundings. But there is a challenge in this garden. You start wondering if you could make a difference in how it looks - at least do *something*.
You look around and spot a rake leaning against the edge of the stone fountain. There is a wheelbarrow pushed into the shadow of one of the trellises. You decide to set to work.
You begin clearing the leaves from the fountain with your hands and the rake, dumping them into the wheelbarrow. As you clear the leaves, you uncover pure, clear water. The water feels invigorating and cleansing.
As you clear the last of the leaves, you spot a lever under the water. You flip the lever and the fountain starts flowing, an arch of water falling from the center into the fountain's pool.
It is beautiful in its simplicity.
You watch the water for a time and then turn to do something else. You look through the basket of tools and find a pair of gloves, a gardening trowel, and a bag of seeds.
You start at one side of the door, clearing away the leaves and debris. As you clear a small patch of ground, you suddenly see a shoot of bright green springing up from the damp earth. You clear around it, revealling a bright yellow crocus, not yet unfurled.
You stop for a moment, admiring it and its resilience. As you start clearing away again you move more carefully so as not to damage other things that may lie beneath the leaves. As you work, you find more early flowers glowing with life.
You admire their beauty.
[pause]
After a time, your knees and back begin to ache slightly. You stretch and look at what you have done. A good patch of ground is cleared, the wheelbarrow piled high with leaves. The ground is rich and pungent, damp from the water can.
You take in its beauty.
It is a good beginning. You can see a difference already. You realize, however, that it will take time and continued effort to finish the job. What you have done is a wonderful start, a good day's work.
You wash off your hands, and dump the leaves you have cleared at the edge of the woods, where they can decompose and feed new life. You put the tools away. When you're ready to do some more work, you'll know where to find everything you need.
As you walk back up the path to the field you started in, you think about other goals in your life that might work the same way as this garden - little steps, taken over time.
[something to bring people back]
As you enter the meadow once again, you feel a warm breeze gently blowing your hair. You close your eyes and let the breeze take you. As I count from 10, it carries you back to your physical form. 10, 9, 8, you feel warm and safe. 7, 6, 5, you remember all the things you saw in the mural and the insites you gained from it. 4, 3, 2, 1, as you come fully back to your physical body, you feel energized and inspired. Breath deeply and when you are ready, open your eyes.
Jenett : jenett@gleewood.org : 2004, 2005
I've also edited the meditation my group's using for the full moon ritual on Saturday. (Edited from last year). Since several people wanted to see it, here's the revised version. (It's about 3/4 of the length of the original)
If you're interested in using this, it's fair game. If you use it with other people, please keep my name attached to it (Jenett and the email address jenett@gleewood.org work great) and let me know how it works for you.
[insert basic meditation induction sequence here]
Your eyes still closed, you take a deep breath, smelling the damp earth and the tang of last year's meadow grass.
You open your eyes to find yourself standing in a broad open field. The wind is brisk, but it is warm enough to be out without a coat. The ground around you is muddy in spots, with yellowed grass, but feels springy beneath your feet. The sun above you is not yet strong but you can feel its growing warmth.
[short pause]
You stand for a moment, trying to get your bearings, when you hear the chirp of a bird behind you.
You see a cardinal. It lands on the ground in front of you and chirps, then hops toward the eastern edge of the field, cocking its head, as if encouraging you to follow.
You begin to follow it and it takes to the air. Your feet squish in the damp loam of the meadow as you make your way toward a break in the stone wall and the forest beyond the meadow.
Once you reach the edge, you see a footpath between the trees, and set off between the trees. Some are evergreens, their needles still dark and vibrant. Some have bare branches, with only the hint of leaf buds. White birches glimmer between the brown bark of the other trees.
You can hear animals moving around in the woods. You see a rabbit cross your path, several squirrels, and then hear a rustle that might be a deer leaping away from the soft noise of your feet. As you walk, the cardinal flits from branch to branch, waiting for you to catch up.
[pause]
The path curves shallowly down and around until you find yourself in a small clearing. Before you is a cottage. There are signs of weeds grown tall and crushed down by the snow. The paint is old and peeling and there are no footsteps in the soft ground around the door.
You peek in the window. Dust is thick as velvet on the furniture and floor. As you stand there the bird chirps again, off to your right. You look towards the sound, just in time to see the bird disappear around the corner.
You follow, to find a tall wooden fence curving out from the back corner of the cottage. Directly in front of you is a heavy door with a large padlock. Some gardening tools are pushed into the corner between the cottage and the fence.
You walk closer, noticing more details. Above the door is a simple sign - black text painted on a white board - which says "Open to all who would use their talents." You reach out, testing the padlock, but it is solidly locked.
You take a step back and see that the wall on your left is covered in a mural. Like the rest of the cottage, it has been neglected, but many of the colors are still bright.
The mural shows pictures of people doing things - cooking, sewing, making all kinds of crafts. People celebrate with friends, play with children, and talk with others. Some people make music, dance, write, read, or learn. Some people are doing chores or working hard. Others are helping someone, or even making an apology.
Looking at the mural, you realize these people are all DOING things. They are taking action in their own lives, and they are doing the hard work that sometimes needs to be done.
Your eye catches on scenes of particular meaning to you. Some are things you enjoy. Others are things which make you uncomfortable, but which have to be done. You look more closely at those uncomfortable scenes and begin to think about changes you might make in your own life.
[longish pause]
Eventually, your eye is drawn downward towards the gardening tools. A glint of sun catches on something just behind the watering can.
You bend down to find a golden key, the right size to fit the padlock. Three short phrases are painted on the wall above the key in clear black letters. The first says: "Clear the old". The second "Nurture growth", and the third "Embrace beauty."
You take the key off the hook and pick up the basket of gardening tools and the water can nearby. Turning to the door, you try the key in the padlock.
It unlocks, and you open the door to find yourself in a walled garden. It is in disrepair - there are weeds everywhere, and it is overgrown. A fountain in the center is clogged with fallen leaves. The trellises around the walls look dead and barren.
Once this garden would have been alive with color, vibrant with life. Now, it looks lost, alone and neglected. It's a little upsetting.
You could turn away, find your way back to your familiar surroundings. But there is a challenge in this garden. You start wondering if you could make a difference in how it looks - at least do *something*.
You look around and spot a rake leaning against the edge of the stone fountain. There is a wheelbarrow pushed into the shadow of one of the trellises. You decide to set to work.
You begin clearing the leaves from the fountain with your hands and the rake, dumping them into the wheelbarrow. As you clear the leaves, you uncover pure, clear water. The water feels invigorating and cleansing.
As you clear the last of the leaves, you spot a lever under the water. You flip the lever and the fountain starts flowing, an arch of water falling from the center into the fountain's pool.
It is beautiful in its simplicity.
You watch the water for a time and then turn to do something else. You look through the basket of tools and find a pair of gloves, a gardening trowel, and a bag of seeds.
You start at one side of the door, clearing away the leaves and debris. As you clear a small patch of ground, you suddenly see a shoot of bright green springing up from the damp earth. You clear around it, revealling a bright yellow crocus, not yet unfurled.
You stop for a moment, admiring it and its resilience. As you start clearing away again you move more carefully so as not to damage other things that may lie beneath the leaves. As you work, you find more early flowers glowing with life.
You admire their beauty.
[pause]
After a time, your knees and back begin to ache slightly. You stretch and look at what you have done. A good patch of ground is cleared, the wheelbarrow piled high with leaves. The ground is rich and pungent, damp from the water can.
You take in its beauty.
It is a good beginning. You can see a difference already. You realize, however, that it will take time and continued effort to finish the job. What you have done is a wonderful start, a good day's work.
You wash off your hands, and dump the leaves you have cleared at the edge of the woods, where they can decompose and feed new life. You put the tools away. When you're ready to do some more work, you'll know where to find everything you need.
As you walk back up the path to the field you started in, you think about other goals in your life that might work the same way as this garden - little steps, taken over time.
[something to bring people back]
As you enter the meadow once again, you feel a warm breeze gently blowing your hair. You close your eyes and let the breeze take you. As I count from 10, it carries you back to your physical form. 10, 9, 8, you feel warm and safe. 7, 6, 5, you remember all the things you saw in the mural and the insites you gained from it. 4, 3, 2, 1, as you come fully back to your physical body, you feel energized and inspired. Breath deeply and when you are ready, open your eyes.
Jenett : jenett@gleewood.org : 2004, 2005
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no subject
Date: 2005-03-19 06:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-03-19 09:05 pm (UTC)one thing I actually like about this one is that it's not terribly hard to run in your own head, once you get the basic touch points (meadow, cottage, mural, garden) in there.
A lot of guided meditations, I have problems with that (I'm ok if I'm hearing them, but I have a hard time doing them without someone reading them/a CD) because there are other people doing things too. But here, it's just you, and a bird, and a garden, and some other places.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-19 07:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-03-19 09:03 pm (UTC)