Where do you Need to Focus on a Retreat? - jessicacrossasmr.com

Sometimes you just need to take a break from life and get some perspective.  When ensconced in our daily routine we have a hard time seeing the root of the issues we are struggling with and how to change them.  When we take a break from the ways we distract ourselves (television, books, radio and other people, etc.) we get a chance to gain a new perspective on everything.  This can be as easy as taking the 2-3 hours of TV most people watch in an evening, and instead sitting down with a journal or meditating.  

If it is that easy why don't we do this?  Because it is Hard!  We are tired and stressed and the last thing we want to do is try to problem solve.  That is why most of us think the only way to Retreat is to go on vacation.  It is often only after we have taken a few days to relax that we are able to look at what needs to change.  This is not the only way though.  

One of the reasons I love Question Centered Guided Meditation is that it allows you to relax and feel refreshed first before starting to problem solve.  I always look forward to these types of meditations even if I know I have a difficult problem to examine.  I feel relaxed and rejuvenated as I consider what changes need to me made.  Try this simple meditation below and make sure to have a journal nearby to write down what you learn.  Continuing to examine what you learn through journaling is a good way to extend your Retreat time while you are still relaxed.  

If you have additional time or want to delve deeper into the issue, move on to the next blog post with more meditation prompts.  Add these mini retreats in regularly to help you relieve stress and grow.  Read the following meditation and then close your eye and remember what you can.  Let your meditation unfold the way you need it to and don't worry if it differs from this prompt.

A Personal Journey

Take a deep breath, get comfortable and close your eyes.   You see a stone door in front of you.  Is it ornate or plain?  The door will not be easy to move but you have prepared well for this transition. 

One of your guides is here waiting for you.  If this is a new guide you may ask their name.  Before moving forward, is there anything you are ready to leave behind before crossing over this threshold?  Thoughts, beliefs, and burdens may appear as spheres of light that you can hand over to your guide or place down on the ground outside of the doorway.

Now reach for the door.  It will be difficult to open but you have the strength to move forward.  Use all of your might to open the door wide open.  Walk through the doorway and head down a cobble stone path through a darkened garden.  The moon is lighting your way, but much is in darkness; there is much to learn here and many mysteries.  

Explore this garden, although all is not clear, you are not afraid.  What is there to learn in this place? 

When you have explored as much as you would like, find a comfortable place to sit down.  You will not go back to the doorway where you began, as you have moved on from that place.  

As you sit, you being to hear the sounds around your physical body.  Wiggle your fingers and toes, and when you feel ready, open your eyes.

Now write down what you learned in a journal or drawing.  If you are done with your retreat, eat or drink something to return to your body.  

I hope to Journey with you again soon.

Learn to Make Room for Abundance in your life, Get over 5 hours of Video Guidance: HERE

Take care,

Jessica Cross
www.jessicacrossasmr.com

Meet your Needs to Relax - www.jessicacrossasmr.com

When we are stressed we often lack the energy to figure out how to really refuel our body and mind.  At these times I try to use meditation to bypass my thinking mind, which is too stressed to focus.  My conscious mind is thinking, "Tired, Stressed, Need Cookies."  It is often this exhaustion that causes us to flop in front of the TV rather than find something that would really nourish us.  

Meditation help us to access our unconscious and ask what we really need.  My unconscious mind is able to direct me to a more fulfilling stress reduction method, like a cup of tea, quiet, and staring into space with a journal in my lap.  

It is vitally important to learn what you need.  We often expect the ones we love to be able to read our minds and take care of us, but often we don't even know what we need or want.  Now is the time to look at what your body and mind need to be able to care for yourself.  

Use this meditation to figure out how to care for yourself right now. Read through the meditation and then close your eyes and visualize what you remember. If your meditation veers off from the one below, that is the path you were meant to take.  
  
Room of Requirement Meditation

Take a few deep breaths.  Find yourself in front of a familiar house.  Walk up to the door and with a relaxed breath open the door.  You are so happy to return to this place.  It is exactly where you need to be.  Look around the entry way.  While looking around you see a painting that you have missed in the past.  Stand in front of the painting and really look closely at it.  How does it make you feel?  What are the colors in the painting?  Is it a landscape or are there people and/or animals? Is it realistic or abstract?  Why do you think this painting is here?  Does it remind you of something or teach you something new?  It is ok if you have more questions than answers, you can visit this painting often until the meaning becomes clear.  

Next to this painting you notice a small door that seems a bit hidden in the shadows.  You might not have noticed it if you had not been drawn to the painting.  You have high hopes for this room as it seems to have been waiting for you.  As you grab the knob for the door you feel a bit of a jolt.  You immediately think of exactly what you need right now.  Is it a feeling, an item, or an experience?  

Surprised by this feeling you slowly open the door.  On the other side is exactly the room you need this evening.  What are you standing on?  What is on the walls?  What is the furniture?  Is there a bed or sitting area that seems to be made just for you?  Go rest there.  If there is a table next to this sitting area look closely to any items on that table.  These items may be the things that you need to have, rather than the room itself.  

Take a deep breath and revel in the fact that this room can become anything you need it to be at that moment.  It will show you what you need in your life even if you don’t know.  Enjoy the feelings that this room creates for you.  If there are items on the table feel free to take them with you as a reminder of what you currently need.  When you feel ready you can leave this room knowing that you can return here at any time. 

 Leave this room and take one final look at the painting.  Feel gratitude that it led you to this room.   On second glance has the meaning of the painting become any clearer?  Look once more around the entry way.  Has anything changed?  

You can now leave, smiling as you shut the door to a place that is becoming so comfortable.  Walk down the path with a smile still on your lips as you begin to return to your physical body and open your eyes.

Now return to your physical body with gentle movement and eating or drinking.  Write down any notes you want to remember from this Journey.

If you enjoy this and want more check you my Free Soul Path Ebook HERE.  It says "Name Your Price" but I promise Free is fine, it is just the most professional way for me to send you the book.

Take very good care of yourself this week,

Jessica Cross
www.jessicacrossasmr.com