Shift “What if” to “What is”

Let's start by settling into a comfortable posture. This could be sitting down, lying down or standing. And if it feels comfortable for you, you can invite your eyes to close. We'll, take a deep breath together. Breathing in through the nose.

And slowly out through the mouth. Inviting the jaw to relax. Allow the shoulders to be at ease. And invite the belly to soften. We're really just letting go of any tension that might be in the body.

As the body starts to relax, the breath can fall back into its normal rhythm. We'll take a few moments just to anchor our attention at the breath as a way to stabilize our concentration and rein in some of those thoughts that may be pulling us in a lot of different directions. In today's meditation where talking about shifting our what if to what is. We're all familiar with the tension that can be created from the what if minds? What if this happens? What if that happens? What if it doesn't go well? What if they don't like me? What if, what if, what if. We need to balance that with what is.

Connecting to what is actually here right now rather than just what my mind thinks might happen. And the best way to do this is to drop into our sensory experience because there's no story in our senses, that comes from thoughts. So we'll move through the five senses, just being with what is here at this sense. Starting with the sense of sight. You might have visual images in your mind.

But the actual experience of seeing with your eyes closed right now, what's that like? Chances are, it's just darkness. You're welcome to open your eyes for a moment, if you'd like. Noticing what is it like to see? We might have stories and labels about what we're seeing. Really it's just shape and color and it comes together in a particular formation. So can we just observe seeing.

And close your eyes again. Now let's do that with hearing. What do you hear? What about smelling? Is there anything you can smell in this moment, even if it's subtle? What's the smell of the space you're in? And taste. Is there any taste right now? Maybe lingering taste on your tongue from a previous meal. And then lastly, for now, what is it that you feel? What sensations are in your body? Is it your seat against the chair? The back against the couch? Do you feel air against your skin? When we drop into our senses in this way, we're shifting from what if to what is.

It takes us out of the story of our mind and into the most immediate, direct, fundamental layer of our present moment experience. So let's take one more deep breath together. In through the nose. And out through the mouth. And when you're ready, you can open your eyes again.

Great job. As you go about your day today, see if you can practice shifting your what if to what is. I think you'll be happy with what you see and how helpful it can be for taking us out of the stress of the moment. As always, thank you so much for your practice. And until we talk again, take care.