0:00 A Harvard study from 2011 found that eight weeks of mindfulness practice can physically change the gray matter in your brain.0:09 In episode one forty-nine, we talked about grounded affirmations, and this is the science of why they work.0:18 They aren't just words you say, Admin.0:21 They are tools you use to actively rewire the foundation you stand on.0:27 This isn't about wishing for a good day.0:30 It's about building one, starting with what is undeniably true, right now.0:36 So let’s begin.0:37 Five truths for this morning.0:39 Find a place to sit or stand.0:42 You don’t need to close your eyes unless you want to.0:46 Just be where you are.0:48 Okay.0:48 The first truth is this: This ground, this floor, is holding you up.0:53 Feel it.0:54 Feel the points of contact.0:56 The soles of your feet on the floorboards, or the weight of your body in the chair.1:03 Press down slightly.1:04 The chair presses back.1:06 The floor holds.1:07 It isn't trying to.1:09 It isn't thinking about it.1:11 It is simply doing it.1:13 This support is a physical fact.1:15 It was true a second ago, it is true now, and it will be true a second from now.1:22 It is reliable.1:23 Let the full weight of your body settle into that fact.1:27 You are supported.1:29 That is not a hope.1:30 It is a physical reality.1:32 Breathe into that certainty.1:35 The second truth: My breath is moving without my help.1:39 Don’t try to change it.1:41 Just notice it.1:42 Air enters, your chest or your belly expands.1:45 Air leaves, it contracts.1:47 A rhythm.1:48 A constant, quiet engine running in the background of your life.1:53 You can feel the slight coolness of the air as it comes in through your nose, and the warmth as it leaves.2:02 This is the rhythm of being alive, and it is happening right NOW.2:07 You don't have to earn it or manage it.2:10 It is simply given.2:12 For this moment, just witness it.2:14 This is your anchor to the present.2:17 The tide is coming in, the tide is going out.2:21 Steady.2:21 Real.2:22 Here's the third one: I am choosing to be here for this.2:26 You made a decision to listen.2:28 Out of all the things you could be doing, you chose this.2:33 This is your agency.2:35 This is your power.2:36 It’s not a grand, dramatic act.2:39 It’s a small, quiet, deliberate choice.2:42 You are directing your attention.2:44 That is a fundamental strength.2:47 The world pulls you in a thousand directions, but for this minute, you are the one steering.2:54 You are the one who chose to show up for yourself.2:58 Acknowledge that.2:59 It’s a real action you have taken.3:02 It is proof that you are in the driver's seat, even if it’s just for this short drive.3:09 That choice is YOURS.3:11 The fourth truth is inside you: I can feel the life in my hands.3:16 Bring your attention to your hands.3:19 Let them rest in your lap or at your sides.3:22 Without moving them, just feel them.3:25 You might notice a warmth, a tingling, a subtle vibration.3:29 That is the feeling of your own energy.3:33 It's blood moving, nerves firing.3:35 It is the quiet hum of your own physical presence.3:39 It’s not an idea.3:41 It’s a sensation.3:42 Your hands have held things, built things, felt things.3:46 Right now, they are simply here, filled with the undeniable proof that you are a living, breathing being.3:55 This feeling is a direct connection to your own vitality.3:59 It's always available.4:01 You just have to remember to check.4:04 And the fifth, final truth for this morning: This moment is new.4:09 This exact second has never existed before in the history of the universe.4:15 And it will never come again.4:17 It is completely unique.4:19 The light is hitting the room in a way it never has before.4:24 The specific combination of sounds you hear is a one-time event.4:29 You are not the same person you were yesterday.4:33 You are not even the same person you were five minutes ago.4:37 You are here, at the absolute cutting edge of time.4:41 You are experiencing something pristine.4:45 This isn't about what happened before or what might happen later.4:50 It is about the reality of THIS.4:52 This new, unrepeatable moment.4:55 You are in it.4:56 You are part of it.4:57 Here’s the thing.4:59 Your thoughts will wander.5:01 Your feelings will shift all day long.5:04 Doubts will come.5:05 Worries will arrive.5:07 That’s all part of it.5:08 But these five things… they remain true.5:12 The ground beneath you.5:13 The breath in your lungs.5:15 The power of your choice.5:17 The life in your body.5:19 The newness of right now.5:21 They aren't positive thinking.5:24 They are reality.5:25 And building your day on what is REAL is the strongest foundation there is.5:31 You don't have to hope for solid ground.5:34 You're already standing on it.
