Meditation

A Guided Meditation to Embrace Summertime

A Guided Meditation to Embrace Summertime
With summer rapidly approaching, you may be gearing up for the fun, excitement, and spontaneity that are just around the corner. Out comes the camping gear, hot dogs, bathing suits, and beach towels as you prepare for family vacations, hot weather, and fun get-togethers.

Whether summer equals downtime or a jam-packed list of outdoor activities, you can agree there is a different energy in the air. Summertime is marked by the light and heat of the sun. The days are longer and the temperatures are warmer, which means you may tend to be more active and spend more time outdoors. During this fiery and active season, you can trade in your previous daily routines in favor of spontaneity, social activities, and fun.

Sync Up with Summer

As spring transitions to summer, the seeds you planted—literally and metaphorically—during the winter have begun to blossom. And with the arrival of summer, everything comes fully awake and alive. In many ways, the energy of summer invites you to wake up and come alive as well.
In ancient cultures, people were closely connected to the seasonal cycles and rhythms, and they had specific ways of synchronizing themselves with the various rhythms of nature. Understanding and preparing for the different energies as you transition from one season into the next, enables you to flow with nature and maintain a harmony—spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically.

With the changing of seasons comes a shift in your own daily routines. During the busy summer months, your days and nights will inevitably get thrown off with unexpected plans so this is a good time to consider how you will stay connected with your daily practices while still allowing for spontaneity. Take some time to create a new summer schedule and be sure to leave some time for variables.

Shine Your Light

Summertime has a special way of waking you up again and igniting a fire inside to get up, get out, and have fun! The summer season is flavored by the element of fire, which influences passion, motivation, and transformation. While you’re out and about having lots of fun during summer months, you can also think of this season as a time to tap into your creativity and things that inspire you. Stepping into your own summer light and harnessing the heat of the sun, how can you get out there and shine? What makes you come alive? What sparks your creativity—and how do you inspire others? What are you needing to transform and what are you wanting to create this summer?

Life is meant to be lived with purpose and passion—filling your days with things that both nurture and invigorate you while finding a harmony in how you are living. Of course, you have responsibilities that require your time and attention. Yet, you may easily lose sight of staying connected to the things that you love most (e.g., family, friends, hobbies, fun, downtime) and checking off those things on your bucket list.

Guided Meditation for Embracing Summertime

As you prepare to embrace the energy of the summer season, think about the things you love to do and how you like to shine. Maybe you have a unique talent or special gift you already enjoy sharing with those around you—like playing your acoustic guitar around the campfire or being the family grill master—or, perhaps you’re feeling inspired to explore something new this summer.

Try this guided meditation to tune in and connect with the aspects of summer that are awake and alive within you.

  1. Find a comfortable seat on your couch, chair, or in your favorite place in nature.
  2. Settle into your body by connecting with your breath—slowly inhaling through your nose, slowly exhaling through your mouth. Notice how your body and mind begin to soften and relax.
  3. Visualize yourself someplace in nature during the early summer. You might be walking along a river bank, sitting in the shade beneath your favorite tree, or standing barefoot in the grass.
  4. Allow the light and warmth of the sun to permeate you. Maybe you feel a light breeze across your face and the sound of trickling water or birds chirping from the trees in the distance. You might pick up the scent of jasmine coming from your garden, or wildflowers along the river’s edge. Breathe in the balmy warmth of the summer air and settle more deeply into a relaxed state.
  5. Begin now to open your heart and mind to what is possible this summer. Imagine the light of the sun illuminating the corners in your mind where you haven’t ventured in a while. Invite yourself to dream of:
    • What lights you up, or makes you come alive?
    • What ignites your creativity?
    • What environment do you thrive in most and what do you love doing?
    • What would you like to create or transform this summer?
  6. Imagine doing something so wildly spontaneous that it breaks you free from your current routine and catapults you toward something new, exciting, and fun. If you could create anything in your life, what would that be? Would you dare to do?
    • Travel someplace new (even if it’s just a day trip or a weekend getaway)?
    • Take up a new hobby like surfing, gardening, painting, or horseback riding?
    • Make new connections through social groups and activities?
    • Try new things by saying “Yes” to every invite you get this summer?
  7. Bring it all together in a picture or movie clip and watch yourself embracing the fun of summer. See yourself interacting with others, having new adventures, and allowing your playful, childlike nature to come alive. Now, ask yourself what you need to do to make it all a reality. What action do you need to take that is different from how you are living now?
  8. Now, as you embrace summer and feel into the excitement of what you can create for yourself, make a commitment to doing one new thing each day or each week that lights you up and makes you happy.
  9. When you feel ready, take a few slow, deep breaths and slowly open your eyes. Take out your journal and a pen and write down the things you are committed to doing this summer that will ignite your passion, fuel your creativity, and lead to loads of spontaneity and fun.
Summer is more than the fun things you do—it’s how you go about the things you do and the intention behind them. Are you doing things that fulfill you, bring you more joy, and connect you more deeply to others? Are you saying yes to adventure and taking in every moment of every experience and savoring life every day?

Summer is about expansion—getting out there—and really going for it. It’s about living life with fervor, allowing yourself to be wild and free and to do those things that, until now, you’ve filed away in your ‘someday’ list. Embrace your summer season in a way that supports you in having a harmony between relaxing downtime and having meaningful, amazing experiences.