Relax, unwind and envision yourself in the New Year through this guided meditation led by Julie Potiker. She completes the meditation with her poem, "Clear a Path".

Clear a Path by Julie Potiker

Clear a path

Settle

Allow your thoughts to drift down

Gently sweep them aside with a soft broom, the kind that looks hand made from natural grasses

Some of the little notes now in piles on the perimeter of your awareness are things to return to later, not now, but later so you keep them safe

Other notes are best to release - the worry, the rumination that woke you at 4am

Go ahead and toss that sticky stack into the small round fire bowl

The smoke swirling as that which does not serve you de-materializes

Settle your mind to clear a path to your heart where joy and suffering slosh 

Your heart – which when broken miraculously goes on beating

Your heart safety valves, allowing your mind to crank the hatches shut, when too much suffering threatens to drop you to the inky bottom of the sea

You can open the hatch a peep

Feeling into whether it’s OK right now to let tears move through you

Too much? Crank it down to steer your mind to translucent waters

That’s skillful maneuvering

Turning your attention towards joy in that moment

Noticing beauty out the window

Letting a song stir your soul

Enjoying the perfect cup of tea

Relishing the sound of your friend’s voice on the phone

Or my favorite, the sound of my voice in my head, calling myself sweetheart and letting me know that this too shall pass, both the good and the bad, in waves of beginnings and endings.

Get the latest on mindfulness and meditation by subscribing to Julie Potiker's YouTube channel and Facebook page at Mindful Methods for Life.

You can learn about mindfulness at www.MindfulMethodsForLife.com and also in Julie's newly released book, "Life Falls Apart, But You Don't Have To: Mindful Methods For Staying Calm In The Midst Of Chaos", available on Amazon.com. Her podcast is "Balanced Mind with Julie Potiker", available on iTunes, iHeart, and everywhere you listen to podcasts.