Raindrop Soaps

Hi there, and welcome to Raindrop Soaps. A perfect place at this time of night to escape the rain and dry off. The aroma of vetiver, lavender, and eucalyptus are the first fragrances to greet you. As the first few display tables are dedicated to each one of the scents. A shopkeeper quietly moves between the three tables, sorting a new batch of shaped hand soaps. Some molded into the shape of sailboats, while others into hearts, roses, and lily pads with small amphibious foot tracks, as if a frog had just lept from it. Near the back of the store the shop's owner fills miniature bottles with different essential oils, working by the soft glow of a small desk lamp. The oils take on the color of the light, running from a deep amber to a bright canary yellow. The shopkeeper is careful to not spill a drop. Each pour measured out perfectly by hand. She finishes one last bottle for the night, as the smell of citrus, lilac, and pine emanates from the bottle. The vial is placed in front of you. Its color a pale champagne, as the oils swirl together before settling. Before we begin this journey for the senses let's begin the evening with a short wind down exercise. Tonight's wind down is an exercise we call noting. It helps to sooth the mind. And once you've learned it, you can even use it if you wake up in the night. We're going to be counting our breaths and then just gently noting thoughts and feelings as they arise. We're not trying to change them. We're simply labeling thinking as thinking, feeling as feeling. It may sound incredibly simple, but it can help to create distance between ourselves and the thought, and ourselves and the feeling, so we don't get so involved in it. That, in turn, creates a more restful state of mind. In other words, the perfect conditions for gentle, restful sleep. So to begin, just take a moment or two to get comfortable. Make sure you're nice and cool. Just starting with some big deep breaths. Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. And with the next out breath, allow the breath to return to its normal rhythm, in and out through the nose. And feeling the weight of the body pressing you down into your bed. And in your own time, starting to count the breaths as they pass. One with the rise, two with the fall. Just up to a count of 10. When you get to 10, you can stop and start again at one. And remember, anytime you get distracted, the moment you realize you're distracted by thought, simply note it thinking, and return to the breath. Or if a feeling arises, note it as feeling, and return to the breath. Noting is very gentle, not harsh at all. Think of it like a feather just gently touching the surface of a crystal glass. I'm...