Visualizations often work best as as an audio file. My reccomendation is that you listen to the following:
If you prefer to read, you can view the transcript of the audio below. One way to approach this is to read a paragraph at a time, and then envision what is described.
The aim of today’s visualization is to explore all the gifts that have been given to you. We will build a sense of gratitude by exploring the many amazing things we have recieved and given to and from others.
Imagine you are sitting in a warm room. There is a window behind you. It is frosted with cold and snow is falling gently onto a white landscape. You have nowhere to go. On an end table next to you is a mug of something warm and sweet. Imagine your favorite drink in there. Pick it up. Take a sip. It warms, on the way down.
Now, turn your attention to your surroundings. On your lap is a stereotypical Christmas stocking. It is filled with small, wrapped boxes. There is a stack of gifts on thje floor next to you. These are also nicely wrapped in bright colors. they are decked out with ribbons and gift tags, too.
Begin, as you should, with the stocking. Notice how garishly your name is written down it’s length. The stocking is filled with some of your favorite things. The mere fact that these favorites exist, is of course, a gift. Opening these little packages will be the first step in becoming aware of how much we have to be thankful for.
The first little box you pull out of the stocking is about the size of a lip balm container. When you tear through the paper and open the box, this scent gently wafts out of it. This gift is your favorite smell. It fills the room, just strong enough to bolster you up. Take a slow and deep breath, and breathe in your favorite smell.
Take the next small box out. Unwrap the bright paper. See that inside is a bite of your favorite food. Impossibly, it is just the temperature it should be, even though it has been sitting there in the stocking. Take a bite, now. Relish how the thing tastes. Feel the texture between your tongue and teeth. Put this box aside: it is magical. If you would like, you could return to it in a few minutes. You will find that the box has replenished itself. Another bite will be here, waiting for you.
The next small box brings you about half way into the stocking. It is a disk-shaped box. When you open it, your favorite sound comes out of it. Perhaps it is a song you forgot you loved. Maybe it is a type of music or a just a few perfect notes, platyed softly. Perhaps it is the laughter of someone you love very much. Whenever you close the box, the sound goes away. Put the box off to the side. Put the cover on, if you wish. You can fill the room with this sound, at just the right volume, whenever you wanting it.
In the toe of the stocking is an envelope. Pull it out. See that it has been sealed with wax. You can break that seal, if you want. This is a letter inside from someone you love very much. Perhaps you have not seen them in some time. Maybe it has some words that you would really like to hear from them. In a moment, it will be time to dig into the larger gifts. But now, you can spend a moment with the things you pulled out of the stocking. Will you read the letter? Unleash the sound again? Perhaps take another bite of your favorite food? Spend a few minutes now with these wonderful gifts.
If you want some more time with those gifts, pause this recording.
There is a stirring in the house now. And there are some chairs, in front of you: There might be 3. I am not really sure. In a few minutes you will have some company. But for now, it is time to take a look at the first gift.
This rectangle is wrapped in a forest green. As you peel away the paper you see it is the kind of box sized for a folded shirt. When you take the top off the box you see that this gift is the gift of the friends and coworkers who have stood beside you. Let the memories wash over you, of the people in your life now, and from years past. Consider the ways that they have helped you grow, the things they have taught you, the good times you have had. As you recieve this gift you might bring to mind a friend from the past, and a colleauge from the present.
The next box is bright red. It is a cube. Wrapped in tissue paper. Untie the giant bow, and rip into the paper. Open the top of the box, and know that inside are your gifts and talents. The things you are good at are in here. The natural talent you were born with. The discipline you harnessed to leverage this into something bigger. As you recieve this gift, name a thing that you are good at.
There is laughter coming with footsteps down the stairs. There are people who are coming for presents in a few minutes. But right now is still your time.
The next gift is wrapped in Newspaper. It is, I think, the comic strips from a Sunday paper, filled with bright colors. Rip away the newspaper and get into the box beneath. This is the gifts of those that have looked up to you. Children, nephews, nieces, students of every sort. People who looked up to you. People who learned from you. There are people who knew you for years, and there are people who watched you for just a few minutes. Being their inspiration brought you gifts. As you recieve this gift, think about someone who has learned from you.
Your visitors are just outside the door. It sounds like about 3 people. You are starting to develop a feeling about who it is.
The last of the gifts on the left of your chair is wrapped in irridiscent paper. The shine dances on the present.. It seems a shame to rip this paper; you open it gently along the seems where it was taped.
The rectangle box might have once held shoes. Ease the lid off the box. And find, inside, the gift of those who you learned from. Parent-figures and literal parents, models of who to be and how to be;grandparents, uncles, aunts, mentors, people who taught you to think, and to feel, people who taught you practical things, people who taught you theoretical things. This box bears the gift of the people who poured their lives into you. Spend a moment, now, and drink this in.
The dear friends smile as they walk into the room. It is perhaps 3 people. Their is a comofrtable seat for each of them. These are the most important people in your life.
Perhaps they were there all along. Maybe they just appeared. Whatever it is, their is now a stack of gifts to the right of your chair. These are not gifts for you.
Bring the first gift to your first friend. See them in your mind’s eye. Hand them the gift. Enjoy them enjoying this present, which is all the things this friend has recieved from you.
When you are ready, turn your attention to your next friend. See the clothes they would be wearing on a day like this. Grab the next present from the stack. Hug them, if you would like. As they open up this present, appreciate all the things you have been able to share with them.
Though the recording is going to stop here, you can continue this for as long as you wish. Deliver these gifts to all of the people who arrived. Then Feel free to extend this visualization, enjoying the night with these friends.
The Faith-ing Project 