Extraordinary Silence

In silence, we are at one with the world. We do not stand out. We're not separate from nature. We're no different from one another. In silence, we are extraordinary in our ordinariness. So in a world which seems to celebrate the extraordinary in a different way, and I think there is, there's something so deeply humbling and valuable about celebrating our ordinariness, the shared human condition, when we sit down in silence. Doesn't matter who we are, where we come from, what we do, what we look like, how we dress, none of it matters in that moment where we let go of thinking, when we focus on the breath or whatever the object of meditation might be. In that moment, we're connected in that shared human condition, really no different from one another. And yet it is extraordinary. It's extraordinary because it happens so rarely. We are so typically caught up in our thinking that we just don't take the time to step out from that, and to realize how interconnected we are with the people and the world around us. So as you sit today, just celebrating, being extraordinary in your ordinariness. So once you're sitting comfortably, you're going to begin with the eyes open, and a nice, big, deep breath breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. As you breathe in, noticing as the air enters the body and fills the lungs, chest expanding. And as you breathe out, just noticing as the muscles in the body relax and soften. And close the eyes if you haven't done already. And just feeling the weight of the body. That contact, the body against the seat, the floor beneath you. The weight of the arms, the legs, and in the feet. And just taking a moment to notice all the different sounds around you. Just allowing the sounds to come and go. And then as you bring the attention back to the body, noticing how the body feels right now. Noticing the movement of breath in the body, that rising and falling sensation. Noticing not only the rhythm, but also the area where you feel that movement the most. Just resting the mind on that sensation. And then letting go, and attention just bringing the focus back to feeling of weight and contact in the body. Just starting to notice the different sounds once again around you, and you can open your eyes when you're ready....