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The following meditation is led by

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Tara Brakh. To

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access more of my meditations or

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join my email list, please visit

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tarabrakh.com. We

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begin each week with a meditation and

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you might take this as a moment

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to pause as

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the poet Martha Postel-Wait says,

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Create a clearing in the

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dense forest of your life.

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So we pause, let the attention

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go inward, and

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gently arrive right here, right

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now. The

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basic guidelines for

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the sitting posture are to

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sit in a way that allows

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you to be alert, to sit

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in a way that's relaxed. You might explore

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the posture a little, lean forward a bit

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and lean back,

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lean to the left, to

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the right, and then sense

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what really feels right, balanced,

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and aligned in the center. Let

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the breath deepen so

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you're breathing a nice, full, deep breath and see

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if you can bring the breath and your attention

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to the area of the heart. So

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you're listening to and feeling that

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region. It's

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noticing whatever mood or emotions might

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be here right now. The

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state of your heart, whatever you

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might have brought in with you, the kind

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of atmosphere you're in right now, emotionally.

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And as you listen to and feel your heart,

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to inquire, what

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is my most sincere intention

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for practicing right now, for

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meditating? What

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really matters to me? Just

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to ask and listen. Listening

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to sounds. Feeling

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the aliveness inside the body. Feelings

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or emotions, the

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weather systems that move through us. Deepening

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this presence by gently

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scanning through the body to feel

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the full aliveness

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of our inner body, the

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energy that's here. scalp

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and skull. Just

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feel it tingling and vibrating.

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Letting the brow be smooth and the

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eyes soft. Again,

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feeling the aliveness there. Sense

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how everything is moving and dancing.

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Letting the jaw be unhinged,

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relaxing the tongue right down

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to the root. See

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if you can feel the movement

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of energy inside the mouth, the

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tongue, gums, teeth, lips.

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You might imagine that the throat is completely

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filling your neck. See

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if you can sense movement and

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energy and aliveness and

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the space inside the neck. Very

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receptive presence. Just

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noticing how life is. Not

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trying to change anything. Letting

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the awareness fill the shoulders. Feel

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the shoulders from the inside out. Again

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that very receptive inner

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stillness that can perceive

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movement, aliveness, energy. If

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you can feel the

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length and the volume of your arms.

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Let the hands rest in a very

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easy way and

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you might soften the hands. Soften

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again and bring

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the awareness inside the hands. I

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think you can feel the life that's there.

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From the inside out. You

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might bring the awareness inside the thumbs. Can

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you feel the tingling and vibrating there? The

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index fingers, middle

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finger, ring

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finger. And

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pinky, the small fingers. the

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aliveness. Again

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letting the awareness fill the whole

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hands, pulsing,

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warm, cool. In

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a similar way, see if you can let the

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awareness fill the area of the chest. In

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the front of the chest, through the backbone, in

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the back, the whole

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chest cavity, just sensing the aliveness

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that's there. Right

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inside the heart area. You

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feel pressure, low

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density, light,

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heavy, warm,

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cool. Scanning

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down to the belly. Again

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letting the awareness fill the belly.

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In the front, the navel, to

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the backbone, the

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sides of

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the waist.

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Until the space that's

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there, the aliveness that builds it. With

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the awareness fill the pelvis. through

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the hips, the buttocks, the

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genitals. And

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sense if you can feel the length

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and the volume of your legs. And

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you sense energy or movement, sensation

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there. Placing

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the attention and awareness inside the

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feet. Receptive

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to the movement of sensation. Places

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of pressure, warmth, vibration.

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Feeling the aliveness of the feet. Softening

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the hands again, feeling the aliveness

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there. And

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sense how this awareness and aliveness

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fills the whole body simultaneously.

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You can sense this inner

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body as a field of sensation.

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Just let everything happen. Relaxed,

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open presence. Allowing

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this whole dance a sensation to

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live through you. The

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inner body is this ever-changing

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play of sensation, energy,

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aliveness. There

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is no boundary, no inside,

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no outside, no

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center. Widening

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the field to listen to the sound,

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disappearing, disappearing, in

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awareness. I

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think sounds just wash through you, a

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global kind of listening. Sensing

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how this aliveness of the

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inner body, this energy and

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sound, is

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all appearing in awareness, arising,

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dissolving in

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a vast and receptive presence. You

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might notice in a bit that the conditioning

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of the mind is to leave this

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open presence and

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narrow into thought forms,

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the past, the future. And

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so meditation practice is to notice

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when we do that

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leaving of presence and

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gently re-arrive. You

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realize you've been on and on. to

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relax, open the attention again, aware

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of the sounds that are right here, listening

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to and feeling the

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inner body, this play of awareness

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and energy right here. If

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it helps to collect

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your attention a bit with the breath,

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aware of the inflow and the outflow

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of the breath moment

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to moment. Noticing

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the difference between any thought,

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that virtual reality inside the

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thought clouds and

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this living, moving, vibrant

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mystery of presence right

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here. You

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You might check and see where your attention

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is. And

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if the mind has been drifting, let

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this be an opportunity

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for coming

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home to presence again, to

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deepen that pathway home. Just

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gently widen and open the attention

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to include sound. Open

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in the body a bit, perhaps

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softening places that

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get tense, like softening the

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shoulders. Letting

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the hands be soft, loosening

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around the belly, relaxing

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your heart, and

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reopening, sensing

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this inner body of aliveness,

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energy. Letting

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this life live through you. Letting

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in the awareness that includes this

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whole play of

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sound and sensation, Feelings.

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These last few moments and

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saying how deeply you can

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relax with what's right here.

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Relax your heart. And

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been with the life. That's right

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here. We

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close his last moments of

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silence. The Chalet

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a blessing inwardly to our

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own heart or own humanness.

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Men widening that heart space.

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To include all beings sending

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our prayers to All Daves.

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Everywhere.