← Moving Meditations with Ompractice
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Peace be with you. Blessing be upon you. Welcome to own practice walking meditation. My name is Reggie Hubbard, and it's my honor to lead you in something that I hope gives you not only peace of mind, but a chance to consider the miracle that happens when we do something as basic as walking. So let us begin. Over 10 months ago, now almost 11, I had a stroke that left me partially paralyzed from the knee down in my left leg. So I don't take walking for granted. And in the course of me learning how to walk again, I just became aware of so many things that I once taken for granted. So, for instance, muscular engagement is required in the foot, in the ankle and the shin, the calf, the quadricep, the hamstring, the glutes, all in order to do this thing called walking. And even beyond that, something else that's required is healthy nerves. One of the things that I learned in my stroke, recovery from paralysis of my motor nerve function, is that without nerves, it doesn't matter how big your muscles are. So as you're walking, you've probably got a pretty good pace going. Now just take a deep breath, in through the nose, out through the mouth. To calm your nerves and give you a little bit more ease, you place one foot in front of the other. So continuing that inhale through the nose, exhale out nose or mouth, just to give the nerves a bit of a break so that walking can be a bit more easeful and less labored. So focus your mind on the breath, and it may not need to be as long as what I just instructed you to do, but just focus on the air coming in through the nose and out through nose or mouth, and begin to settle into an appreciation of breathing. Thinking of the breath as the thing that powers the cardiovascular system. The breath brings in oxygen, which gets into the blood system, which is circulated through the heart, which goes throughout all the body and infuses the cells with oxygen and the cells release their waste into the blood. And all of this happens through the inhale and the exhale. So focusing on this simple thing, in through the nose, out through nose or mouth, as the catalyst and the sustainer for walking another moment or two here, simply aware of the breath, not the to do list, not where you're headed, but where you are. Now, if it's safe for you, I want you to set your gaze on something and give gratitude for functioning sight. And as you set your gaze on whatever it is that you're walking towards or in the direction of, notice the power of focus. So in the same way you focused your attention, the breath, prior to. In this moment, with your attentive gaze, focus the eyes on something in the distance. One, because our culture, rooted in its dependence upon technology, we, our eyes are overwhelmed and inundated with images that are close. So giving the musculature of the eyes that focus on distance a chance to work, creating balance in the eyes by allowing them to focus on something off in the distance, relieving the pressure that, that we aren't necessarily even aware of, that we place on the eyes. But staring into computer screens, staring into the phone, and the last thing with respect to your vision, notice the neck. So if the neck is bent down, take the head back, take the chin back, and imagine from the crown of your head down through your entire spinal column, a straight line of energy as you hold good posture while looking off in the distance. Another moment or two here, focusing on looking in the distance and placing one foot in front of the other. And as if that were a bit of foreshadowing, we've focused on the breath, we focused on eyesight in the distance. Now, as you walk, whatever pace you have, focus on placing one foot in front of the other and give gratitude for all that is going right in order for that to happen. So the nerves are firing and the muscles are responding. You're able to keep your balance as you propel yourself forward through space. And perhaps most importantly, and this is what I learned as I learned how to walk again. The ground is not something we walk on. The ground is there to support us as we walk with it. You know, so often in the human condition, it's all about us. Ego, ego, ego, Me, me, me. The ground doesn't have to carry us. If you've ever been in an earthquake, you understand that. So as you place one foot in front of the other, give gratitude not just for the functioning motor neurology that has to take place in order for that to happen. Give gratitude that your steps are met with the support of the ground. And give gratitude for everything that is going right in order for you to place one foot in front of the other. Because especially in hard times, the cliche take a deep breath, keep your focus, and just place one foot in front of the other. There's tremendous power there. So for the next moment, giving gratitude for functioning legs and feet and ankles and nerves, being thankful for the ground which meets your strides with support, not ridicule, for the breath that powers the body in order for you to take the step. So hold space for all that is going on in this moment that we call walking, but all the miracles that are manifest in this simple, yet not so simple experience. Now, in honor of this meditative experience, I'm going to end our time together with a sound bowl. I'll just play it twice. It is a G. Thank you for your kind attention and blessing upon your day.