SDEpisode20 - Mental Health The Ripple Effect & Guided Meditation

In this heartfelt episode, we dive into the powerful theme of the Ripple Effect and how mental health touches not only our own lives, but the lives of everyone around us. Just like a single ripple in water spreads outward, our emotions, healing, struggles, kindness, and support create waves that impact our families, friendships, communities, and even strangers.

We explore the importance of mental health awareness, breaking the stigma around asking for help, and the small but meaningful ways we can support ourselves and others. Through honest conversation, reflection, and compassion, we remind ourselves that healing doesn’t happen in isolation and neither does hope.

Because sometimes the smallest act of kindness, a moment of vulnerability, or simply checking in on someone can create a ripple that changes everything.

Join us as we open the conversation around mental health, connection, and the beautiful reminder that what we do and how we care truly matters.

You are never alone, and your ripple matters.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Welcome back, fellow yogis. We are so excited that uh that you're here today, that you came back. Yes, thank you. Thank you to all our listeners. Um, you're the reason why we're here. Yeah, and we are at the Soul Deep Yoga and Healing Podcast. I'm your host, Brittany. Next er switchbot. Switchpot.

SPEAKER_01 0:23

Okay. I'm Kimmy. I'm Brittany. I'm Brittany. That's Kimmy.

SPEAKER_00 0:32

All right. What's it what's your week been like, Britt? What have you been up to?

SPEAKER_01 0:36

Well, my week is well, it was the last week for school. Yeah, so we're officially summer.

SPEAKER_00 0:44

Summer.

SPEAKER_01 0:45

The last month of school have we've been dragging so hard. Yeah. We're ready. Yeah. We're ready. I feel like everybody's ready. Yeah. I'm ready out. Yeah, it has been a long year, hasn't it? And we've been really busy. And so we finished up the last week of school. And did some work, taught some classes. I went to a wedding on Saturday, which that was super fun. Yay! That was that was an experience all on its own. And it was just it was just fun. And it was a good experience. So I've got I went to a Mennonite wedding.

SPEAKER_02 1:29

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

And um, I just like I every time we bring it up, I just like keep thinking about it. It's like for me, like I'm like, I guess I must be like super into like cultural and stuff like that, and like the way people live. And sometimes it's intimidating because I'll be staring, but it's like, I promise, I'm really not judging.

SPEAKER_00 1:50

I'm not judging, I'm just very curious about you.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

Um that um, so the bride, her mom watches Oliver on Fridays for me so I can go clean residentials, and so that's just like kind of how I ended up there. Um, well, her now husband, the groom, he has Amish family members that came to the wedding. Yeah. And that was so cool. I was trying so hard to keep it together. Oh man. But the wedding itself was very interesting, it's not like a traditional um wedding. Um, I was kind of talking to you about it before class and stuff, but we met up um at the high school auditorium. And as you were you go in, you grab like your little program, and inside the program, um, the the bride and groom had requested complete silence. And so we were not allowed to videotape, take pictures of the ceremony. Um, we were just had to sit there and and be quiet, which was fine, but it was just it was so interesting, and they they asked that we do not cheer or applaud like after the ceremony.

SPEAKER_00 3:16

That was hard. I think I like habitually would have just like immediately been like, and then I would have been like the only one.

SPEAKER_01 3:25

You would have felt like a jerk. Yeah, but I'm like sorry. Um, something else that I felt was different, um, and like I I don't see like a right or wrong to it, is um they do not kiss their bride or groom after like you know how like we're like and no, you can kiss the bride.

SPEAKER_00 3:44

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 3:45

They don't do that.

SPEAKER_00 3:46

What did they do? They're just like, okay, you're married.

SPEAKER_01 3:49

Uh so first what they did stop.

SPEAKER_00 3:54

I'm just no, I'm actually curious.

SPEAKER_01 3:59

Okay, that was like actually, like, how did it end?

SPEAKER_00 4:03

Like, what is the closer then? Like what they do.

SPEAKER_01 4:07

So they okay, so what they do is they go stand like there was like no decorations in the ceremony either. Like, it's just the black curtains in the podium. And um, I'm gonna be honest here, dude. I felt like I was in the 19, like 18 and like 1900s, like earlies, because we we had the Amish community there, and these are not your traditional, traditional Amish, like there are some of those families. Um, these were considered like beachy Amit Amish, but their group started with an L and I just I couldn't remember the name because it's their their English is what was it, what is it called? Um, it's like proper English, and so like all of their names were from like not even from America, like they're from like Europe and Canada, and so interesting. It was just very interesting. So they get up and they're standing there, and they have they have the they have a line, but it's it's yeah, and then um I think they're just like more for witnesses, and then they s they pray over the couple, and so as like a congregation, we we have to stand up for this, and we pray for them twice, and then they tell us when to be seated, and then they um take vows, which are pretty much you know, yeah traditional, traditional, um and then they have like a way that they come out and exit out of the building, but I have to tell you this I didn't tell you this earlier. Okay, I was so impressed with their organization skills when it came to this wedding. Oh yeah, we had to be waited to be seated because there was a flow. Okay, yeah, there was a flow, and then so at the end of the wedding, there were three songs that we've ended the wedding with, the ceremony with. And after every so many like lines on the hymns, they would release one row out at a time, and they started with the bridal party. Oh, and then they started with the um the bride's parents, and then the groom's parents, and then slowly row by row. Listen, we almost had that whole theater packed. Like that's cool. I was the last one to leave. And then we went over to the church around the corner and we did the reception party there, which was really fun. That was so fun. Um yeah, I just I had a cool experience just to see a ceremony like that, to experience it and to eat lunch with the object. I was so excited, and like even when we went to the reception area, the way like same thing. We um when we were at the front door, the bride and groom was standing there, and then like the in-laws, and then when you went in, their helpers, oh my gosh, they were all like the girls, all the youth girls were wearing the same color dress. Um, obviously, like Mennonite standards are um for like men, like you can wear slacks or you can wear your blue jeans, but you you you wear like a solid or a plaid dress shirt, dress shirt that's button up, and um the women wear headdresses on their buns, so they'll pull their hair back and they'll wrap it up in a bun and then they put their headdress on. Um, but it was really cool. Um, they did the release thing by table when it came to because it was buffet style. Dude, it was really well thought out because as soon as like I I can't even like just the organization that was behind that, I was like, my mind was blown. I was like, I have to tell Kimmy about this because like and yeah, and um, so like the Amish, I know I'm going everywhere with this story because it's just so exciting. Um their clothes, I gotta talk about their clothes. It was so cool. Like, I know it's not like this big of a deal, but to me it is, because like here in this town, we don't get to experience things like this. We're a little bit more sheltered, but we're also a little tiny town in the middle of nowhere, and they wear nice tight-fitted trousers with suspenders. I love a suspended look, and like all those boys were looking handsome, even the little boys, like this the little toddler. Uh-huh. Oh my gosh, okay, and most of them, if they had facial hair. Oh my gosh, it was so cool. There was this is gonna sound me, but there was Abe Lincoln's everywhere, all the way down from their facial hair to the cut of the hair, like the bangs, it's almost like that Beetle style, but it's not, but it's like looks like a like Abraham Lincoln, like they didn't wear hats. These Amish didn't wear hats, but the girls did wear their um bonnets, and um their dressing was very like the men wore the black and white, and the girls only wore solid color dressings, and it was it was just a cool experience. I love stuff like that. I love experiencing like different religions and different like communities, and yeah, because they are a community. I actually when we like because my I have some like really good friends also in the Men and a Night community that I um I haven't seen her in a while, but she came down, and um I was just so sad to leave. I was like, I got in the car and I just like cried to Matt, my husband, and I was like, they're just sense of community, it's just so great, and I want that. Like in my own personal life, like I just want that sense of community. Like we have it here at the studio, but like a different level is like you know, like, yeah, like you you have your friends outside of the studio, like you have your group, and um, I'm in a weird transition of life where I haven't developed like that old lady group yet, so working on it, but like just their sense of community. The fact that like Oliver couldn't really go into the gymnasium because there was just a like a lot of people, um, but everybody knew who he was, which was awesome, and so like everybody just like took care of him. I didn't have to like worry about him. I was like, oh, this is just great, and I cried a little bit.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

Aww.

SPEAKER_01 10:59

So, yeah, that was really cool.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

That is cool. Well, I'm glad you got to do that. I when she was at the wedding, I got to sub your hot yoga class, so that was fun for me this week, too.

SPEAKER_01 11:10

And you had a big class. I did, I had a little bit of FOMO, but I knew that if I stayed and took the class, I would have been so late for that wedding. Yeah, you would have been late for sure.

SPEAKER_00 11:18

No, I'm glad I was able to sub for you.

SPEAKER_01 11:22

Yeah. Um, did you have any do you have any shout-outs or like magic moments?

SPEAKER_00 11:28

Ooh, well, I I had a good Friday with my bestie cat. Shout out Kat, because I know you're listening. I love you. Um, we got to spend the day um just like celebrating her birthday. I just love being able to go down and hang out with her. So we went and hung out and laid out by the lake, and I got a little sunburn, and it was good. We got some ice cream and just had lunch. Just a nice little girl's day. Yeah, it was good. What lake did you guys go to? Uh we just went to Daybreak Lake. Okay. And it's just like the it's like in South Jordan ocean, but it's like a private lake, so we went up over there, and it's it's actually really cute. Like you can walk around the lake, so we did like a good walk, and then we walked and got ice cream and just like kept walking around, and they have like really big fish in that lake for some like I don't know what they are, but they're like huge looking like goldfish. They're like oh interesting, yeah. So, anywho, it's just it's cute over there. So we just kind of hung out and did that, and then I've been working in my yard this week, um, which has been fun. I'm like, it's just nice weather, like I'm ready, like it's officially summer, so you know we're yeah, I just did that this week, but it's been nice. Uh, I'm finally starting to look a little bit tan because I'm actually spending time outside, yeah. So it's been good.

SPEAKER_01 12:47

Yeah, and you lose your tan fast, I feel like.

SPEAKER_00 12:50

Oh yeah. I can't hold the tan to save my life. I wish, I wish, but anywho, I do have an F. Mary kill for you though. Okay, can I do my shout-out real quick? Oh, yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 13:03

Um, so I have a shout-out to women who own businesses. Okay, yeah, right on. Absolutely. I love a good women's owned business. Um, I have a client. Oh my gosh. I go see her once every three weeks. And um her name, her name is Amy, Amy Smart, and she totally gave me permission to talk about this because I thought this was so great. So I was cleaning her house. And I have to be careful, some of my clients we get really chatty, so like sometimes they can't, like, we can't be in the same room as each other. Yeah. Um, but she was like leaving and she was like, Do you want to hear something cool? And I was like, Absolutely. It she blew my mind away. She goes, I bought a business, and I was like, What? She was like, Yeah, a dumpster business. And I was like, Heck yeah. We sat there and laughed about it for like five minutes in like a good way. And uh, she goes, I go, um, I asked her, I said, What's your dumpster business name? And it's called Monster Haulers.

SPEAKER_00 14:09

Monster Haulers, shout out monster haulers, yes, owned by a woman.

SPEAKER_01 14:14

She picks the dumpsters up too, and she calls them to the dump and dumps them out all by herself. And I'm like, Heck yeah. Heck yeah, Amy, like, good fucking you. Um, I asked her if by chance they were gonna change the name, and she was like, Well, we thought about calling it like Dumpster Divas. Cute. But like, for I guess there's like a if they change it, then it could like potentially change like how it falls in the businesses. So they think they're gonna keep the monster haulers and just use the dumpster divas as like t-shirt logos. Oh, like, Amy, I love this. This is so cool. She's like, Yeah, it's been an experience. And I was like, I bet like you're hauling dumpsters and you're a female. That's way cool. Yeah, so shout out to any woman, shout out to you, Kimmy. You should have too we're we're in that boat too. Yeah, like your side hustles. Um I feel like sometimes women don't get enough credit. We do a lot for society or community or families, and I think we're I think we're awesome.

SPEAKER_00 15:17

Yeah, we do a lot of people. Yeah, yeah, like if you're a lady listening to this, give yourself a pat on the back.

SPEAKER_01 15:22

Yeah, and you don't have to have kids either.

SPEAKER_00 15:25

Yep, I'll show that. Okay, FMK, FMK, give it to me. Okay, since we were talking about summer, um, mine is like water activities for summer, so you have to decide what you F, Marry, or kill. It could be paddleboarding and kayaking. I'm putting that as one because it's practically the same thing. Um, floating the river or boating.

SPEAKER_01 15:46

Oh, I am killing floating the river.

SPEAKER_00 15:49

Really?

SPEAKER_01 15:50

I don't know that.

SPEAKER_00 15:51

Okay. No way, dude. Okay, okay, all right, good to know.

SPEAKER_01 15:56

I mean, like, I will, but it's like I just don't really prefer it. Yeah. Um, I'm going where were my kayak and what was the other one? Kayaking and boating. I'm gonna F boating. I'll marry kayaking. Okay. Or paddle boarding, because I already have those.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

Yes, yeah. Um, I'm gonna marry boating. F paddle boarding, and also probably kill floating the river. I love floating the river though. Like, I think it's a good time, but like I always come out with battle wounds. Like, I'm saying, like, I get like always like something.

SPEAKER_01 16:32

That what river is it up here that narrows at everybody? Like, dude, man, some bad things happen, and I just and like people be out there, you know, drinking while they're floating, and just we're all just all being unsafe. So I just I'm very cautious when it comes to water. Get nervous, water is very scary. Yeah, actually, one time this was before Fit Factory got bought out. Do we had a gym member die from drowning?

SPEAKER_00 17:02

That was sad.

SPEAKER_01 17:03

That is sad. I don't know why I thought of that, but anywho, sadness. Um, okay, so I really liked one of our the segments that we did last week, The Real or Fake. Yeah. I thought that was really cool. So I went ahead and I've got three here for you. Ready? Yeah, that's okay. People once carried obsidian mirrors to ward off bad dreams.

SPEAKER_00 17:34

I'm gonna say that's true.

SPEAKER_01 17:36

That's real. It is. Okay. Yep, obsidian has a stor historical use in spiritual and protective symbolism.

SPEAKER_00 17:44

Okay. So it's been around forever.

SPEAKER_01 17:46

Yeah. And we just got some. Yeah. Because we got black obsidian here. Come get some.

SPEAKER_00 17:51

Right? It's all over the place.

SPEAKER_01 17:53

Okay. Ancient yogis believed too much talking drained spiritual energy.

SPEAKER_00 18:04

I'm gonna say that's true.

SPEAKER_01 18:06

It is.

SPEAKER_00 18:07

It's real. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 18:08

That is real.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

I feel that all the time, actually, when people are talking to me throughout the week. I'm like, can you not feel that you're drained? Like, I'm drained. Listen, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:19

Okay. Cows form best friends and get stressed when separated. True. Real. It is! Yes. I didn't mean for them to all be real, but they were. That's okay. That's cool. Yeah. Real. Follow it. Alright, pull of the day. Kimmy Harker pulled Lavender. Alright. Lavender is associated with sleep and dream. The message. The lavender card appears to remind you of the importance of rest and renewal. When this card appears, it's time to honor your need for a peaceful sleep and to wish for dreams that nourish the mind and soul. Whether you've been burning the candle at both ends or your mind has been working overtime, you're being reminded to pause and rest. Release your anxieties and embrace stillness. You may also be entering a time of gentle reflection where answers may come through visions and symbols in your dreams. Even the strangest dreams may hold a message that resonate with you. Trust that your subconscious is working in your favor, guiding you toward clarity and healing through the dream realm. When you go to bed, place lavender essential oil on the bottom of your feet to enjoy a peaceful slumber and meaningful dreams. Your prompt is what could my dreams mean? What significant people, places, or experiences are in your dreams? Oh, I love that card. I love that. Yeah, I love lavender. Um, and again, we're reading out of the comfy cozy witch oracle deck by uh Jenny Blonde. And the this deck came from Kat, didn't it? Sure did. Yes, it did. She knows us. If it's one yogi listener, it's that knows us to a T, it's Kat. So thank you, Kat. Yes, thank you. And happy birthday. Should I sing to you? That's funny.

SPEAKER_00 20:28

All right, everybody. Well, today we're going to be talking about something that I feel very passionate about, and that is just kind of like mental health in general, um, and the ripple effect that we have on being human. So you guys have probably heard us say, especially if you come to the studio, be kind today to yourself and to others around you. Um, that is just a reminder that like your actions, your thoughts, the little things that you do throughout the day, like they they have an effect on people. Um, so I wanted to talk about just some of like the culture around mental health and like why I feel like as a society we kind of struggle with it right now. Um well we tend to see like all these things on social media and Instagram, and we think that to like have an impact on people's lives that we need to like win an award or like really do something like big and like a goal, but um becoming someone else and like doing those things, like that's not necessarily the goal, and that's not how we take care of ourselves, how we have an impact on other people's lives is through our little daily actions and through our intentions behind it. Um, with that in mind, life can be very, very beautiful, and there's there's always things that we can be grateful and joyous for. Um, but life can also feel incredibly heavy sometimes. Sometimes we move through seasons where the weight that we carry feels unseen. And sometimes we feel like we're struggling quietly, like we can't voice that opinion out, whether that's from fear of judgment or, you know, just your own insecurity and feeling like seen with other people. But whether you're feeling overwhelmed, whether you're grieving, whether you struggle with anxiety or depression, I just hope that you know that we see you and you guys are not alone.

SPEAKER_01 22:33

We see you, we hear you, and we feel you.

SPEAKER_00 22:36

We feel you and we love you. So let that be your reminder. Um in those moments when we're feeling that way, darkness can convince us that we are alone, that our presence doesn't matter, and that no one truly sees what we're carrying. So again, reminder. We see you, we feel you, and we hear you. Um, darkness tends to narrow our view, um, our actions, our lives, they touch more people than we realize. It could be a simple conversation that you've had with someone, um, whether it's a stranger or a friend, if you're checking in on them. Um, it could be a smile that you shared walking along, it could be a hug that you gave someone, it could be a moment of kindness, it could be a laugh that you shared, it could just be your energy in general, it could just be you showing up in places. Um, we often underestimate how our existence matters because we don't always get to see the ripple effect that that small action leads to. So today is just a simple reminder that even if you've been carrying something heavy, you're you do not have to carry it alone. Even in dark seasons, light still exists, and sometimes that light is found in connection and community and in remembering that your presence in this world matters more than you know. So we tend to often underestimate our impact. So, like I kind of mentioned before, we think that we have to have like these huge goals or like these big actions, is like, oh yeah, well, I raised $5,000 for this struggling family, you know. But it could be a simple, I checked in on this mom today. Like I reached out, or like I gave her a hug when I saw her out in public, you know, like or just it's the small things um that usually have a bigger impact than we ever realize. Like I can think of moments in my day or like just in my life in general. Um, and like I can't even think of like a specific example, but like when I think about it, I think of like all these memories of like when I've been having a bad day, and it's just like I walk past somebody on the street and they like open the door for me, and they're like, here you go, my lady. And it's like, oh my gosh, thank you. Like you were like a little bit of joy in like this really crappy day that I've had, you know. Um, so yeah, this and this can be your friendly reminder too. This could be your inspiration. Maybe you should check in on someone that you haven't talked to or that um maybe is struggling with some things, and maybe it's someone that you don't think you need to check in on. I feel like it's often it's the people that are the most brightest, happiest, loving people that don't feel like they're safe enough to express those because they're usually the ones that are always that bundle of joy for everybody else, right?

SPEAKER_02 25:19

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 25:20

So check in on the people that you don't even think you need to check in on. Like it's always good to feel seen and to be appreciated. Um, so yeah, we think our value comes from what we achieve, but so much of our impact just comes from who we are internally and those small little actions that we do. Um another thing that tends to get in our way with mental health um is just that like when we're in that low vibrational state, our point of view narrows. Like we've talked about this before, our drifty, where we focus our awareness is where we go. And when we're with when we're sitting in anxiety, for example, um, anxiety is whispering in our ear, it's convincing us that we're alone. And so ours like our blinders are on. It's just like all I can see is the things that are stressing me out, and I have no help at all. It's all on me, right? Um, depression is more so like whispering us that we're again, we don't have anybody. We're we're alone. Those blinders are on, it's only me. Um, stress tends to make the world feel smaller or scarier. Um, and emotional pain makes it hard to see hope. Again, so it's just all kind of bringing to the point that like those thoughts, the mental health that you struggle with, it's not giving you the full picture, it's actually narrowing that view for you. Um, and we were never meant to carry any of those emotions alone. And like historically, like it's always been like you've been talking about today, community. Like, community is a very beautiful thing. And um we're in this culture, in this point of our life, where it's like, oh, well, like I'm independent and like we need to like I can be successful, like I can do all of this stuff completely by myself. Um, and that's that's not really what we want. Um, you want to have friends, like life gets hard, and sometimes you don't want to, you know, carry it all alone. Like spread that weight because in community, like you can lean on someone that's feeling a little bit stronger, and vice versa. Um, like I feel like I mean, so typically you ask anybody who's like, How are you? It's like I'm good or I'm fine, and it's just like it's just a straight answer. But really, how are you? You know what I mean? Um, so we're never meant to carry things alone. So if you feel like you are carrying something heavy that maybe you haven't voiced with someone, think of somebody that does bring you hope and comfort and joy, and maybe share that with them because they probably be happy to carry the burden with you. You're not meant to carry it alone. Um, I feel like we also see just like on social media in general, all these things that get hyped up and blown out of proportion, but don't compare yourself to what you're seeing on social media. Where you're at right now is perfectly good. And like you don't need to be going on vacation, you don't need to be going on these yoga.

SPEAKER_01 28:15

The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Sometimes behind those materialistic items comes problems.

SPEAKER_00 28:22

Yes. And specifically talking about females as women, um, we are even in an elite where it's like we're well, the independent era, but also um we have that strong, like what's the word that I'm thinking for? Like people expect us to be perfect all the time. Like they expect us to clean the house and they expect us to have dinner ready and to have all of these things and the full-time job and still pay half the bills and all this stuff. But you also have to take care of the kids. Exactly. You yeah, and so there's there's this strong um like pressure to feel perfect all the time, to have it all, to do it all, but it's like you, it's not healthy. It is non-healthy, not attainable genuinely.

SPEAKER_01 29:09

So lean on the people that you have in your life, and that's why we've been having all those women protesting for our rights, yeah, is because our rights are slowly being taken from us.

SPEAKER_00 29:19

Yeah, and our rights matter. Um the last thing that I want to talk about before we get into um our medic um meditation and our reflection questions, um, is that if none of these resonate with you, um, I just want this to be a reminder that you can be the light for someone else. Um, there's probably been like even if you you don't personally struggle with mental health, I guarantee there is someone in your life, whether you know it or not, that is struggling. Um so this is your reminder. If you feel inspired to check in on someone this week, if you want to text them, if you want to give them a call, check in. Um maybe if you feel inspired to go do an act of kindness for someone, go do something nice. Like just smile at a stranger, bring a little bit more light into the world. Like we know that the world is a scary place as it is. Like there's already so much darkness in the world, and you you might not know that like the hug that you gave someone might have been like the only hug that they've had that month, or like, you know, like just but like for real. It's true. Like that's what they like with my other job, they tell us that too. It's just like you're always nice, like professionalism, you have because it's like that might have been their only phone call that they've had all day. You know what I mean? And so it's like be nice, just be mindful. And like sometimes it's so easy to just get frustrated and run to judgments and criticize that it's like you never know what anybody's dealing with. Um we're all just human beings living this life experience of trying to live this life in 2020. And it's a wild. It is, it's a it's a totally wild ride. So um just know that you you matter. Um you're not alone. You're not alone. I feel like a lot of people struggle with this, whether they voice it or not. So like I I've personally struggled with a lot of this, and so that's that's kind of why we're the studio. Like we want to we want this to be a place um where people do feel connected and inspired um and hopeful, you know, like there's there's always hope for a better tomorrow. So hope that you guys know that you are very, very well loved. Um, please reach out to us if you guys want to chat or anything, like, or if you do like your active kindness or you do a check-in, let us know. Yeah, please let us know. And and with that said, like a lot of our like these coming back to our metaphor, the ripple effect, like we might not always know like what our impact is on the world. Like, we'll never truly know. Um, but we can certainly hope and try for it to be a little bit brighter than when we left it, right?

SPEAKER_01 32:05

So and when we I think one of the things that we struggle with the most when it comes to that is it's a it's a progress. We we can't see that ripple, so we can't see the progress.

SPEAKER_00 32:16

Oh yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 32:17

It's like it's also a mental game. It's like, am I even helping anybody?

SPEAKER_00 32:21

Am I like like I'm just I feel like I'm dragging everybody down, and I've been in that place too, but the like and that's what that's what's hard. It's because I've definitely been like I think everybody gets to that point, you know, where it's you're just beaten up on yourself. And it's I mean, that that point of view, it really does narrow to where it's like you can't see any light on the other side, you know. You're just like, wow, you can't do it. It's just something that you've got to trust. Uh-huh. But you're not alone. We love you, we appreciate you, and we're here for you. Lean on the people in your life that that care about you. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 32:54

All right, guys. So you're gonna go ahead and pull out your journal, a card, piece of paper, whatever feels good. And we have three questions here that you are going to answer. The first question is what has been weighing on my heart lately that I may be carrying quietly? What are you carrying quietly on your shoulders? Write it down. Take as much time as you need, and if you need to pause, you're more than welcome to. The second question that you're gonna ask yourself is who or what has been a source of light for me during difficult seasons? Who's been there for you? Mom, dad, friends? Do you have a sense of community? Church people, whatever. Uh, the third question is what are some ways my life, my presence, or my energy may positively impact others, even if I don't always see it. So, what kind of impact do you think that you're leaving even if you don't see it? Trick question, I know. And again, go ahead and take as much time as you need here. Um, you can pause. Um, other than that, we are gonna go ahead and go right into our meditation.

SPEAKER_00 34:11

Go ahead and get settled in. Settling into your space, you're welcome to sit with a softened gaze or closed eyes, or if you're in the space to lie down, I recommend that you do so. Start to allow your body to settle into stillness and feel the earth supporting you. Let your shoulders soften. Relax your jaw. Release your tongue from the roof of your mouth. And allow your breath to return to a natural rhythm. Feel the gentle rise and fall as you breathe. Start to bring your awareness to your heart. Maybe you can feel or even hear your heart beating there. Start to imagine a small light glowing in your heart's face. Feeling its warmth and its presence. This light represents you, your heart, your energy, and your presence within this world. So often we move through life without realizing the impact that we have on others. We think our ordinary moments are just ordinary, but maybe they aren't. Maybe it was the text message you sent to someone, maybe it was a smile that you gave a stranger, a hug that you offered, or a kindness that you showed. Maybe it was a moment when you listened to someone who needed to be heard. Imagine a still lake out in front of you. Imagine picking up a small stone and skipping or dropping it into the still water, and watch the ripples spread outward. One circle, reaching another, and another, and another. This is what our lives do, even when we cannot see it, even when we don't realize it. Every act of love, every moment of compassion, every time you show up as yourself creates ripples that continue beyond what we may ever know. Your life touches other lives. Your presence matters. Your existence leaves an imprint on the people around you. I want you to imagine those ripples now moving outward from your heart, reaching family, friends, people you love, maybe even people you never realized that you impacted. Feel yourself connected, connected to one another, connected to community, connected to something greater. If it feels good, I invite you to place both of your hands on your heart. And repeat silently after me. My presence matters. I create light in this world. I am connected. Take a slow breath in. Go ahead and release your hands from your heart. You can slowly open your eyes coming back into your space. Bring your palms together at heart center. Bring your awareness back. Back to your presence, to your own rubble effect. To the kindness, the joy, and the love that you have to share with the world. Setting the intention here to share this joy, your impact with the world in a positive way. With your inhale, bring your hands up to your third eye, connecting your heart and mind. And as you exhale, bring your hands back to your heart. Be kind today to yourself and to others around you. Thank you. Not a stay.