Episode Eleven - A Guided Meditation // Rest in Peace While You're Alive

guided meditation, impermanence, self-discovery, mindfulness, breathing techniques, relaxation, mental health, spirituality, personal growth, meditation

In this episode, Anne-Marie leads a guided meditation focused on embracing the present moment and reflecting on the impermanence of life. Through a series of breathing exercises and visualizations, listeners are encouraged to connect with their bodies, acknowledge their mortality, and find peace in the transient nature of existence. The meditation culminates in a journey of self-discovery, inviting participants to explore their inner selves and consider their relationships with life and death.

takeaways

• Guided meditation can serve as a distraction from the political climate.
• Being present in the moment is essential for mental well-being.
• Each breath is a reminder of our existence and vitality.
• Impermanence is a natural part of life that can bring freedom.
• Imagining a red door symbolizes opportunities for self-discovery.
• Meditation helps in connecting with one's higher self.
• Reflecting on mortality can inspire meaningful life changes.
• Living with the awareness of death can enhance appreciation for life.
• The meditation encourages forgiveness and release of burdens.
• Engaging in mindfulness practices can foster personal growth.

You can find me online at www.dearpsychopomp.com

or contact@dearpsychopomp.com

I hope your weekend is gentle and full of opportunities ♡

Transcript

This week, I figured, given the political climate, which, you know, I'm gonna keep politics and most of religion out of this podcast.

I figured we could use a distraction. So I thought we would do a guided meditation. And this is called, rest in peace while you're still alive.

Welcome, living beings. Yes, you. All of you with pulses and expiration dates. I encourage you to find a comfortable position. Maybe lying down, maybe pretending to be dead already, no judgement. And close your eyes. Unless you're driving, in which case don't do that.

Now take a deep breath in. And remember, you'll only get so many of those, so let's savor this one.


So now you have had a week

It's time to unclench your jaw, wiggle it around.

Relax your shoulders. Let me carry the weight of the day for you for a while.

I invite you to be fully present. Inhale deeply and feel the air fill your lungs. That's prime real estate for the worms one day, but today it's yours.


Exhale slowly and let go of the tension in your jaw, your shoulders, your ego.

Each breath is a love letter from your body saying, hey, I'm still trying.


Now as we go along, breathe in through your nose.


Hold for three seconds.

and breathe out through your nose.


Now move through your body with that awareness. Let's start at the crown of your head. Notice the top of your head. And know you don't have to have hair to be spiritually enlightened. I know back in the 80s it was, you know, the higher the hair the closer to Jesus.


scan down through your face.

Let go of that expression that you've been holding since 2007. If Britney can move on, so can you.

Notice your chest rising and falling.

That's your heart doing its nine to five. No benefits, no breaks. Your organs are working tirelessly to keep you alive. And what have you done for them lately? Maybe hydrate, you chaos goblin.

Anyways, feel your body grounded to the earth.


What are your feet touching? What's your butt touching?

Be aware of your butt.

Be aware of your body.

One day it will return to the earth. Not yet. But someday.

and consider this


Reflection on impermanence. Consider that everything you love will change or end.

and feel the weight of that.

and feel the freedom that it brings because let's be honest, immortality sounds exhausting. I don't want to be, okay, well, I do want to be sparkly, but that's a different conversation. But I think if I had...

the opportunity for immortality. I don't think I would take it.


It's having this one shot that makes it so powerful.

And can you imagine filing taxes forever? That would suck.

Now, in through your nose.

and out through your mouth.

and now we're going to picture a door.

a red door. It's ornate.

and it has a tinted window.


The iron handle calls you to open it and it feels like home. It feels like returning to the stars.


And as you go towards it, you feel your body relaxing.

Wiggle your toes. Wiggle your fingers.

You push the handle and the door opens into a forest clearing.


You see grass.

Blowing in the wind you can see the wild lilies of every color and you can smell them.


You can see the leaves of the willow trees dancing in the wind and with your hair or your beard or your man bun. No judgments here.

You see the wild flowers, a culmination of all of your favorite colors, all together.


you hear a lazy creek gently humming over the rocks that have been there since long before you.

and a break in the tree canopy reveals the sun's rays warming and comforting and you feel that sense of love and belonging with yourself.

And then you see it in the forest clearing as you take a deep breath in.


and a deep breath out through your mouth.

You see that red door that you just walked through? Leaning up against the biggest of trees and you wonder...

Have I been here before?

Was I dreaming? Was that here the whole time?


and you discover your higher self.

Thank you.

Deja vu.

that uncanny echo.


that thin place between timelines where the veil wears threadbare and something familiar stares past.


been here before, haven't you? In this moment? In this skin?


and breath caught in your throat like a ghost trying to speak.

Deja vu, a glitch they say, a memory misplaced, or perhaps a ripple from another life brushing past you, a past self waving from the other side of a sealed mirror.


What if it's not just a trick of the mind, but a message from the bones of time itself? Maybe the soul remembers what the brain dares not understand. And so you sit on the soft grass, feet in the creek, staring at this red door.


You sit and you feel your lungs filled with the sweet air absorbing the mystery and sizing it up. And you feel that childlike curiosity and slowly and intentionally exhale as you walk towards it.


You feel the grass on your feet as you get closer and the wind in your man bun.


It doesn't scare you.

It feels familiar. Like home.

Are you ready to reach out and open it?


Are you scared to leave this place?

Are you excited to see the next adventure?


Who are you hoping to see on the other side?

Do you smile when you think about them?


and ask yourself.


Am I living like I'll never die?

or like I actually understand that I will.


And if today were your last, what would you do differently?


Who would you forgive? What would you release?


Don't worry, death isn't lurking behind every corner. Just some of them. Keeps you spicy.


Now breathe in.

the gift of this moment, of this shared moment between you and I.

of being.

connection.


beating hearts and unfinished business.


in through your nose.

and out through your mouth.

and return to your body slowly.

Wiggle your fingers. Wiggle your toes.

Curse the gods for returning you from peaceful void if you must.


Feel your shoulders, nice and relaxed.


Notice how your chest rises when you inhale.

Notice how...

you feel relaxed as you exhale.

And congratulations. You have survived another meditation without dying. The odds were technically in your favour, but still, very well done. And...

you know, may you remember that you are temporary and

That is your power.

Now live gently, love boldly, and recycle. Because the earth is dying too, but let's not rush that.

Now go in peace, you magnificent fleshy time bomb.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode. I hope it brought you some peace and comfort. If this episode resonated with you, please hit the like button, share and subscribe. And if your platform allows, leave a comment and kindly let me know what you think. Your support means the absolute world to me and it keeps this podcast going.

You can find me online at dearpsychopomp.com or contact at dearpsychopomp.com. Death isn't a secret. Let's talk about it.