Cabin Porch

Welcome to Robin's Nest Cabin, your home away from home for the night. As you settle into your seat on the front porch, you sink effortlessly into the old rocking chair beneath you. You feel your shoulders loosen and your jaw untighten as any stress you brought into Robin's Nest begins to melt away and evaporate. You have nowhere to go, nothing to do, no one to report to. Just you and the gentle creaking of the rocking chair beneath you. Let's deepen this state of relaxation with a wind down exercise. Tonight's exercise is a really simple breathing exercise. So, when you're ready, let's begin. So first, get yourself comfortable. Now, just bringing the attention to the breath. Just noticing where you feel it. In the nose, the throat, the chest, the diaphragm. You're nice and relaxed. We're going to be taking a deep breath, in for four, holding it for four, then breathing out for six. So, are you ready? Let's begin. In for four. Two, three, four. Hold it for four. Two, three, four. Now breathing out for six. Two, three, four, five, six. In for four. Two, three, four. Holding for four. Two, three, four. Out for six. Two, three, four, five, six. In for four. Two, three, four. Holding for four. Two, three, four. Out for six. Two, three, four, five, six. In for four. Two, three, four. Holding for four. Two, three, four. Out for six. Two, three, four, five, six. Great. Now returning the breath to normal. From your comfy spot in the rocking chair, as you rock back and forth, forward and backward, you can't help noticing the many sounds that surround Robin's nest. Naturally, there are the soothing noises of the forest, birds who chirp joyfully up in the trees overhead, a pair of dove who coo-oo softly and nuzzled together. The brook beside you, that meanders over smooth the river stones are the soft whispering hush. The sorts of sounds you would expect to hear at a place like Robin's nest. But the longer you sit in the rocking chair the more you let yourself go, sinking into the chair's plump cushion the more you notice other interesting unique noises around you. Nearby, no doubt and the cabin across the meadow where Rose, the caretaker stays. A kettle whistles, faintly and quiet. Rose must be brewing a warm cup of tea chamomile, her favorite. Or perhaps she's fixing a hot cocoa before bed with a spoon full of extra marshmallows that dissolve into a creamy swirl of goodness, just the way Rose likes it. Once the kettle has pipe down, you notice the fire crackling away and the hearth inside Rose's cabin. You can see shadows sway and dance and the window panes side to side, back and forth. And a thin ribbon of gray smoke rises from the chimney just there across the meadow. What a peaceful clearing? what a lovely place for Rose to make her home. You...