New Year's Live Imagery on Letting Go and Creating A New Vision [Episode 24]

The show you're about to hear is a recording from Dr. Miller's webinar series titled Life Meditations. He began this series in response to the pandemic, and his goal has been to provide wisdom, practical tools, and comfort to people during these stressful times. Watch the entire series at drmiller.com/lifemeditations. That's drmiller.com/lifemeditations.

Hello everyone, this is Dr. Emmett Miller, whose disembodied voice is coming to you for our webinar of today. Um, I'd like to thank you for your donations. That is what we hope will— we'll be able to get our donations up to the point where we can actually afford to, to do these, to do these programs. Uh, for information on, on how to do that, uh, I will put that on the screen briefly for those who don't already know, but for those who do And really, you know, thank you very much for, for what you've, you've been sharing. Let's see, there you go. There's, there's the information, and which is for those who are listening audio only, you can send a check to me, Dr. Miller, at Post Office Box 803 Nevada City, California 95959. Or if you like PayPal, you can send it to accounting@drmiller.com. That's my main site, drmiller.com. And it can also go to shop.drmiller.com/donate. That's shop.drmiller.com/donate. And shop. Drmiller.com is where my 100 or 150 products, however many they are now, are available to you. Uh, and if you just go to shop.drmiller.com, you can see them. If you do that slash donate, then you can help support what we're doing. Our free audio to prevent and heal from The coronavirus, COVID-19, they're still available free, uh, as you— and that, um, will be available at— well, let me put it in the— yeah, I'll put that up in the chat box so you can see where, where that's available. So I'd like to, um, really invite you to Sit back now and then let's enjoy our experience together. And today we're presenting a live meditation on letting go and creating a new vision for 2021. And 2020 has been a difficult time, particularly for those who haven't learned to relax and meditate and go with the flow, as Fido is demonstrating here. And we do have some positive news about the future. Of course, things have been a little bit tricky for us, and, you know, particularly those of us who are, um, forced to be operating by Zoom, and especially for all you teachers. And we have a lot of teachers and nurses that tune in, and This one teacher has found a wonderful solution. I'd like to share that with you. She's a music teacher. She teaches music. So as some of you guys might know, I'm a music teacher, and I found that one of the best ways that I can process the whole transition to online learning and teaching is to write a song. So I wrote a song. I'd like to share that with you guys now. Here we go. Little creativity is always welcome. Okay. Now, let's get down to business. Little bit about what we're going to be exploring today. We'll begin as usual by coming into the present moment, experiencing and assessing our inner experience. We're going to work with releasing the past, making a connection with that oneness that we're all a part of, even though we sometimes forget it. Then we'll strengthen the heart connection, that is, with our wisdom or spirit, whatever you might call it, and seek guidance from those higher levels, because Today is a special day. We'll then look to reaffirm our basic purpose and mission in life individually. Everybody has their own purpose and mission. We'll then project into the future, guided by that inner wisdom. So that's an overview of what we're doing today. You know, we've just passed the— well, still pretty much the holiday season out there as we're recording this session right now. Someone had been down to Texas, and near the town square they had a nativity scene, except that everybody in the nativity scene was dressed in fireman's costumes. They had on the, you know, the fireman raincoat, big fire hat, you know. One of them had an axe, another one had a hose, standing around the baby Jesus there. But they're all— so we— he— I I asked one of the people there, I said, why is everybody dressed in fireman clothes? He said, well, says so right in the Bible. Three wise men came from afar. Just thought I would put that one out there. I know, dad joke. Thank you. Sometimes I just can't. Can't resist it. Love to laugh. I really love laughing. It's an old Norwegian proverb: "He who laughs lasts." I like that one. And it was Abraham Lincoln who said, "A smile is the shortest distance between two people." Yeah, smiling and laughing. We can use lots more of that, and I, I would wish that to you for this new year that we're moving into. So let's go ahead and experience some inner relaxation, experience some meditation. So allow your body to be in a comfortable position. Be aware that at this moment in time, there's no other place you need to go. That there's nothing else that you need to do, and therefore you can give yourself permission to relax deeply and thoroughly. Good. Our goal now is to come into the present moment, or what I call the state of presence. Just remember that yesterday, today was tomorrow, just as now was yesterday. In the same way that tomorrow, today will be yesterday, and now will be tomorrow. Just as today, now is now. And now, as you take a deep breath in and let it go, release and let your body rest into your comfortable position and become consciously aware of the fact that at this moment in time, you're in a safe place. There's no other place that you have to go, nothing else that you have to do at this moment in time, and there's no problem that you have to solve. Good. And become aware that you have within the power to choose to become fully present. Begin by becoming aware of how your physical body feels at this moment in time. Now, not yesterday, not tomorrow, but now. Begin with your head. Notice how your head feels, your face, your neck, your shoulders. Systematically travel through your body. Notice which parts feel warm Which parts feel cool? Which feel tense? Which feel peacefully relaxed? You don't need to do anything, just be. Experience being. In this bizarre world we live in where everything is do, do, do, go, go, go, get, get, get, have, have, have, win, win, win, run, run, run, attack, attack, attack, build, Stop and just be, and let your body be aware of the fact that there's nothing that it has to respond to at this moment, and therefore your body can relax and let go. That's your body's way of being in the moment. Take another deep breath in, and as you let it out, imagine you're emptying yourself of all stress and tension, emptying completely, relaxing, sinking down into a deep state of comfort and tranquility. Good. With each breath, more and more relaxed. Now become aware of any emotional tension you may notice inside, positive or negative, and realize that at this moment in time there's no conflict that you need to respond to emotionally or mentally. Right now you are free. And with your next breath out, imagine emptying your body and your mind of all unnecessary emotional reactions, allowing the air to breathe you. With each breath out, think the words, 'It breathes me.' With each breath out, emptying your mind. And as your heart begins to feel more and more relaxed and more and more at peace, You feel yourself becoming more open as you let the air breathe you, aware of that letting go with each breath out. Feel yourself sinking into that little pause after you breathe out and before the next breath enters. And feel yourself sinking deeply into that little pause, for it is the quietest time of all for all your mind and body. It is during this pause that you are most completely in the present moment, when you are closest to the spirit of your being. That's it. Take one more deep breath in and hold your breath for just a moment as you prepare to completely release all remaining tension and stress from your body your emotions, and your mind. Now let that breath go and feel yourself sinking as if you're floating down through the darkness in a most gentle and pleasant way, and landing on a pleasantly soft and comfortable, gentle, cloud-like bed of receptive Peaceful. Serenity. Letting your eyes gently roll upward behind your closed eyelids and picture the word relax there on the back of your forehead. And within your chest, feel that little spark that starts each new breath as you allow the air to breathe you. And imagine that little burst of energy is the spark of life, a deep desire within your being to truly live. Within it is a source of deep wisdom that can guide you to becoming the person you really want to be, the person you came here to be. You have a purpose in being here. Do not believe those who would have you believe that your life has no value, that your life has no purpose, that you have no power. Empty your mind and your being of all those false messages, fake news, disinformation. You have power. And you have purpose. Open to that deep wisdom within and allow it to guide you. And anytime any unnecessary thoughts come on, just let them pass by. Sink into that space between your thoughts. As they float away. And allow yourself to become aware that at this moment, this moment is the only moment that actually exists. The past does not exist. Not even one second of the past can ever exist again. And so your mind can be free of any thoughts about it at this moment. Now. Know that the future has never even happened and is unknowable, and there's no need to think about it at this moment of peace. And as you feel ever more peaceful and silent in this pause, think the word now as if you can see it there on the back of your forehead. And realize that at this moment, now, you realize that you possess a most powerful tool, a special mental muscle that can enable you to release yourself, your deepest self, release yourself from distractions. Discover peace within and let yourself float upward, upward along the spectrum of gentle, pleasant emotions, floating away from anxiety, stress, or depression, floating now toward an experience of the realization of the pure happiness you are spiritually capable of that you were born to feel happy and fulfilled. Simply know that. And as you picture the word now on the back of your forehead, or imagine that you can see it there on the darkness, feeling your eyelid muscles relax down to the point that won't open at all. And when you feel that heaviness in your eyelids, test them. And as you test them, feel that deep feeling of relaxation flow throughout all the rest of your body. Feel little ripples of relaxation flowing outward from your eyelids throughout all the rest of your body. Ripples of relaxation relaxing all the muscles around your mouth, flowing through your shoulders and arms and hands, down through your fingertips. Feel the relaxation in your fingertips. And with your next breath in, breathe that relaxation from your fingertips up through your arms into the center of your chest. And releasing as the air leaves, your chest and back relax. And feel the rising and falling of your abdomen as the air breathes you relaxation. Flowing through your abdomen and your pelvis, through your thighs and knees, your legs and ankles and feet, all the way down to the very tips of your toes. Good. And now notice that feeling of presence within you, not comparing it with anything, simply being your mind open, your heart open. Give yourself a signal to anchor this pleasant feeling within your physical body. Perhaps place a hand or both hands on your heart, or allow your hands to touch each other or another part of your body. Some signal in your body to remind you that anytime that you want to stop and enter the present moment, you can pause. Remember the sound of my voice. Let your eyelids relax. Take a deep breath in and think the word now as you release that breath. And know that you are exactly who you're supposed to be. And you are in exactly the place you're supposed to be in at this moment. There's nothing missing and nothing extra. And think to yourself the words, right now I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. No, everything is happening exactly the way it's supposed to. I am willing and able to see past the superficial and to sense the essential in everything. I can look past illusion and see the truth in every activity. With every person. I give myself permission to see the love, the beauty, and the potential in every moment. When I am centered and calm, I see stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks. I see meadows instead of minefields. I see possibilities instead of problems. Now take one more deep breath in, and as you let it out, empty your mind. And just floating in this moment, just being. Good. [FOREIGN] And when you're ready, begin to allow your mind and body to return to an awareness of the surface beneath you. The physical space around you. When you're ready, bringing this wonderful, pleasant feeling with you, allow your eyelids to gently open with a soft focus As you gently and pleasantly return to this place where your body is resting comfortably, feeling alert and present and whole. Good. Okay, take a moment. Notice how comfortable you feel. Notice how comfortable and present you've allowed yourself to feel. This is the key. Every meditation, every deep relaxation, every prayer, every hypnotic induction— the ultimate purpose is to simply bring you into the present moment. For my part, what I'm doing, what I'm sharing with you, is I allow myself to go to that place within me, and then I speak from that place and allow the images to reflect that space that's within me. And what you experience, if you're willing to allow yourself is to allow that experience to be induced within you. Sometimes this is called an induction— the induction of relaxation, the induction of the healing place, the induction of presence. The wonderful Zen story that I love, that most of you probably know— those who've been around for a while have probably heard me tell it a few times— but the story is of a fellow who's hiking up in the hills, and I guess he's a Zen practitioner, but doesn't make any difference because a tiger spots him and decides, "Hmm, lunch," and takes off after him. So this fellow runs, he runs, he runs across this ridge of mountain, he comes to a cliff, it's like 1,000 feet down over this cliff, and the lion's just about to leap on him. There's a bush growing on the edge of the cliff. So he reaches up and he grabs the, grabs the bush and lowers himself over the edge of the cliff. And so he's hanging there, but the tiger begins to scratch away at the roots of the bush, and he feels himself slowly become, boom, as the roots are pulled away. He's slipping and looks down. There's no one for a gazillion miles around. And as he's hanging there, he looks at the wall of the cliff, and growing there in a crevice of the wall is a wild strawberry bush. And on the bush is one ripe strawberry. So he reaches over and he plucks that strawberry, puts in his mouth, tastes it. Oh my. Oh, that's the most delicious strawberry I've ever tasted. Presence, presence of mind, mindfulness. The past is gone. Forget it. Drop the shame. Drop the guilt, drop the resentment, drop all those ways of hanging on to the past. Envy, jealousy, concerns about the future, making it successful or whatever. You don't have to hold on to it at this moment. You can be present, and there's magic in every moment. There is a ripe strawberry for you. In the West Indies, they had a way of catching monkeys. They would nail a wooden box onto a tree. The box had a door on it, and the door could be locked closed. They cut a small hole in the door just big enough for a monkey's hand to fit through. They then put some peanuts or bananas in the box and close the box and hide behind a tree. Monkey comes along, smells the booty in the box, and slips his hand in, gets a big handful, and then, what? He can't get his hand out. He can't get his hand out. He's trying to pull his hand out and get away with his booty. And meanwhile, the hunter steps from behind the tree, and remarkably, he can walk over to the monkey, snap a leash around his neck, and he's got himself a monkey. Then he opens the door to the box, uncoils the monkey's hand, still gripping on what he's holding on to, and then slips the monkey's hand out of the box, and the monkey's trapped. He's caught. It's over. No more freedom. That's us when we're being controlled by our monkey mind. We don't want to be controlled by our monkey mind. We don't want to keep doing those habits we've done before. We don't want to run away from important situations. We don't want to hold on to the things that we hold on to, but we do. Why? Because we have a part of the brain that is out of our conscious control. It's a monkey brain. It's basically the same thing that a monkey has. We have something different called neocortex, and in particular our wonderful prefrontal cortex, which allows us to be alert and aware, to understand to understand that there is such a thing as a past and such a thing as a future. And that they're not here now, but now is here. And everything in the world that is happening is happening right now. Not yesterday and not tomorrow. Well, for the monkey, the monkey mind can't tell the difference between past and present and future. So it's still struggling with stuff from your childhood and the people you're struggling with have been dead. You know, the monkey doesn't understand that, and it's grasping onto the past. Let go. Let go. Release the past. Then you can be free, and then you can eat that strawberry. And so here we are as we stand on the edge of a new year. We're also looking at what's passed. There has been a year past. 2020 has been— hmm, I don't know, what would you, what would you call 2020? Think about it. It's in the past now. You can think about it calmly. But if you had a word for it, what would you call it? Unique. Very good, Joe. That's a good one. Challenging. I guess you could say it's challenging. Quite challenging. Yes. Yeah, very good. Very good. Nightmare. Yeah, well, it certainly has been an incredible nightmare for many, many people. In, in many, in many different ways like no other. Soul searching, whoo, almost over. Yes, yeah. In fact, maybe we'll decide to let it go completely today in this moment that we're experiencing together. As we sit in this moment, then give yourself permission to think of something positive. I want you to think of some things that you feel happy about. There's an old saying that the young monkey complains about the length of his ears, the old horse thanks God for grass. What do you feel gratitude for? Yes, tranquil confidence in yourself, in the future, challenges that you will meet with grace and ease, gratitude for life itself, gratitude for those who love you, gratitude that you have someone to love, or an animal, or a piece of music, or a hobby, the health that you possess, the ability to see, walking, your yoga, your meditation, that you are well provided for. Wonderful-bolide. Picture in your mind that which you feel actively grateful for. Think it. Clear your mind of all distraction and just feel the love, the gratitude, the gratefulness. What a gift. So many strawberries. And breathe into that feeling of fullness, of love, of wholeness. When you relax in the way you have this day, then you can open your heart to feel what is beautiful and good and loving and inspiring positive emotions, enthusiasm. And you were born with those. If you've ever been around really young children, you'll see that until we've beaten it out of them, they feel thrilled. You know, oh boy, a mud puddle! Oh boy, plastic bubbles that I can step on and pop! Life is good. Another breath. It's another Zen story that kind of talks about that, and that being of a, of a student of Zen who was there with, with his master and went to his master and says, I've been meditating for 3 months, but I don't feel I quite made it. What do I need to do? And the master says, go and just observe your breathing. He says, yes, master. He goes and does. He comes back a month later, says, I've done it, I'm ready. What do I do next? And he says, go and observe your breathing. Well, this happens 2 or 3 more times. Finally, the guy's really, really frustrated. So he comes back, he says, master, I keep doing it, but it's Boring! Breathing is boring! I don't want to just sit and look at my breathing. And they happen to be sitting at the edge of a, of a pond, a fountain. The master reaches over and grabs the student's head and his neck and pushes his head down underneath the water. And of course the guy's body is kind of struggling, and the master holds his head under the water for about 30 seconds or so. Then takes his hand away and the guy comes up and the master says, how boring is that? I mean, sometimes it's worthwhile just— thank you for this breath. What a gift is this breath. Feel the gift in any way that you can. It's the excitement that you want to feel, the delight of that of that strawberry. And not be like, you know, the other story of the fellow who's being chased off the edge of the cliff by the tiger. And this one, he's hanging there and the tiger's scratching away at the roots. And the fellow realizes it's almost going to be over. He's going to fall. There's no strawberry there for him to eat. And he looks up at the sky and he says, Is anybody there? There's a little bit of thunder and the clouds part and a light shines through and a voice says, I'm here. He says, oh, will you save me? And the voice says, yes, I will save you. Let go of the branch. Let go of the branch. The guy looks up. He looks down, looks up, he says, "Is anybody else up there?" No. Listen and let go. As we look back into this past year, I think one of the things that's important for us to do is to be able to forgive. There's been so much bitterness from the last year, from the last several years even. So much fighting, so much unkindness, mockery, attack, no respect, no empathy, and no compassion. Selfishness, megalomania. Narcissism, manipulation, people willing to lie. But we need to be able to forgive. Why? Why not hold a grudge? Not— why not continue to resent and to hate? Unfortunately those people and things that we hate and that we're resenting and bitter, they're not inside of our head, but the idea of them is inside of our head, represented by a certain portion of our nervous system. And to the degree that we hate or are resentful for, quotes, "that thing out there," we're actually attacking a part of our own psyche, our own nervous system, which means we're injuring ourselves. In 12-step programs, they say that resentment is like drinking poison in the hopes that you're going to hurt the person that you resent. Forgiveness gets rid of bitterness and resentment. Forgiving those that need to be forgiven or that you can forgive is freeing. It allows us to break the chains of thought that have been weighing us down. If you cannot forgive someone, it is a load that you must carry forever. Now, is all— everyone deserving forgiveness? Should you forgive everyone all the time? And sometimes, in the case of an acute, severe betrayal, severe hurt, abuse, severe tragedy, severe trauma, it's harmful to try to push someone to forgive prematurely. Sometimes you need to deal with those feelings. We'll say a little more about that. It can be harmful to try to forgive when it's not time. But when the time comes, when you don't need the anger and resentment in order to process what you're feeling, your forgiveness can lead to feelings of understanding. And remember, forgiving doesn't mean forgetting or excusing the harm done. It doesn't mean that you have to make up with a person who caused the harm. You may never speak to them or be around them again. Forgiveness, however, brings a kind of peace that allows you to move on with life. Hmm, as in the Bible. In Ephesians 4:32, be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as Christ God forgave you. Or in Luke 6:37, do not judge and you will not be judged. Do not condemn and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Or as the Buddha said, to understand everything is to forgive everything. Forgive others not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace. Forgiveness, if there's still pain and hurt If you haven't vented, you need to vent. Find someone you can trust— therapist, a coach, a good friend, a relative, someone who loves you. Open up about how hurt you felt, how sad or angry you may be feeling. It's okay. Feel your feelings. Don't resist them. Don't crush them into some part of your body. Don't try to drown them out with alcohol or drugs or shopping or sex or gambling or whatever. But let your emotions out and don't apologize for them. Use all the four-letter words that you want to. Man, it just— ugh! And that allows the animal part of you to complete. You're feeling anger inside, frustration. You're feeling power. And that's good. That power is what you want. You don't want to crush it, but you want to repurpose it. You don't want to withdraw or isolate yourself. So you feel the power, let it out, and feel, oh, feel it strengthen your body. Feel that feeling. Okay, but you can let the subject go away now. The feeling is yours. Clear your mind. Be with yourself. So be with your rational self. Be with your higher mind. Tap into your wisdom. What do you want to turn this power into? What do you want to transform that pain into? Are there any hooks holding you back from doing that? Let them go. Remember that forgiveness is not the service of condoning, it's a service to yourself. The anger and resentment that you've held on is a result of learned helplessness. You've been trained to feel helpless. We've talked about that, then we'll continue in future webinars. The anger that you feel, it controls you. If it doesn't control you, okay, demonstrate that you control it. Let it go. If you're holding a ball in your hand, if you're in control, you can throw that ball away. But if that ball is glued to your hand, you can't throw it away. You're helpless. You're not helpless. Let go. That's what the relaxation is about. Then be in touch with all the things that you do have. Think of that power that you've set free in your body and begin to focus toward the future. Good. And as you look back at people who have behaved in bizarre ways in the past, you know, if you happen to be a liberal progressive kind of person, just think of that far right wing over there. And how disturbing their behavior has been. And if you're a person who's on the, in, who's on the right side of the aisle, if you could be called a right-winger, a conservative, look at what some of those out on that left wing have been doing, the craziness. Either way you look at it, Whoever you are, you can just see this is, this been craziness. They're really stupid and evil, aren't they? No, they're intelligent like you and me. They're not evil. A lot of them are misguided. A lot of them haven't matured. A lot of them haven't had the education that you've had. They don't have the ability to be in touch with the deeper levels of themselves and the higher levels of their mind. Maybe you know what that's like, or maybe you know some people who haven't matured enough. You can have empathy for them. That's a gift to you. Empathy. As Carl Rogers said, empathy is a process, and it means entering the private perceptual world of the other. And being thoroughly at home in that world. That's what I do when I work with my coaching clients or my patients. I enter their world. You know, me, I— if I'm— if I'm working with a gay person, I enter that person's world emotionally and mentally and perceptually. That's not how I live my life out in the world. You know, I'm committedly heterosexual, but at that moment I have that empathy with them, and I'm at home. If I'm with an angry person, I let myself into that, and that empathy is what begins to bind us together. Empathy means being sensitive moment to moment to the changing felt feelings that are flowing in the other person, to be in touch with a fear, rage or the tenderness or the confusion, whatever they're feeling, temporarily living in their life without making judgments. And then if you want to connect with that person, you can communicate your sensings of their world. Geez, it looks like you're feeling, hmm, I think I understand why you're angry about that. I No wonder you feel deprived. No wonder you feel betrayed. And so you can become a confident companion to that person in their inner world by pointing to the possible meaning in the flow of their experiencing. You can help that person to experience their meanings more fully, and in the process be more fully aware of your own meanings in your life. And then beyond caring is the compassion. Not only can I feel what you're feeling in this magical use of my mirror neurons, but I care about you. I want you to feel love. I want you to heal. I want the pain within you to be relieved. I want you to recover. I want you to be able to open to the splendid world that we share. I want you to join together with all of us, and let's transform this Eden back to where it's supposed to be. And a few moments ago, someone mentioned that the derogatory comments that I was basically pretending to be someone on the left, and then I was pretending to be someone on the right, because I hear people on the left say, "Boy, those people over there are really idiots." And I've heard, you know, people on the right say, "Ah, those lefties are—" And the people on the left say, So I'm, yeah, I'm just saying that's how people see it. And what I'm saying is that there is a better way to do it, or let's say a way that is far more likely to bring us to the wholeness and the completeness that is possible for us. You know, in many of the webinars I talk about the old paradigm and the new paradigm. The old paradigm The old paradigm is where you see people and things as opposites. You see enemies. The new paradigm is to go beyond that. For me, Mahatma Gandhi's words are very significant. The ally that you must always seek is the part of your adversary that knows what is right. Takes a while to get that, doesn't it? The ally you must always seek is the part of your adversary that knows what is right. That's what can bring us together. But if you assume that that person doesn't have any part of them that knows what's right, they're a complete idiot, they're a fool, they're a loser, you know, you're not going to create peace. And as long as we fight with each other, we're going to continue to go downhill, polluting our world and setting it on fire. So take a moment, take a deep breath in, and as you let it out, allow yourself to be aware that there are many things that you can release from the past and begin to guide yourself into the future. And once again, let's close with a meditation for very specifically doing exactly that, finding that comfortable place to be in. And locate your body and your being right here in the present, allowing yourself to be aware of the thoughts passing through your mind at this moment. Feel the surface beneath you. Feel the rising and falling of your chest with each breath in and down. Notice the colors that your eyes may see while they're open and the darkness that you may see as you allow your eyes to close. Letting go of thoughts of anything outside of this room. Feel the clothes where they touch your body. Bring your awareness to the interior of your body and think to yourself, there's no place I have to go at this moment, there's nothing else I have to do, and there's no problem I have to solve. Therefore, I give myself permission to relax. Allow the deeper levels of your mind to be at peace, and whenever any unnecessary thoughts come along Breathe the unnecessary thought out with your next breath out. Allow yourself to float again on that magic carpet to your special place, floating through time and space to that special place of deep relaxation. Beautiful place, far, far away from anything that could ever disturb you. To that place where you feel most connected to the life within, to the wisdom within, to the power within, to that little spark that starts each new breath, to the potential within you. And let everything be just as it is. Just as you sink into each pause after breathing out, feel the spark of life that starts each new breath in. And imagine that in front of you is a hedge, a high hedge that you can't see through. But as you walk along this hedge, you notice there's an archway that you can walk through. Walk through that archway, open the gate, walk through it, close the gate. And here on the other side, you see a road that stretches off into the distance, the distance that sometimes we call the future. And imagine that you have the ability, without even having to take a step, to let your imagination travel down that road through many miles and much time into the future. And imagine that you begin to see a picture of yourself in the future, in the future the way you want it to be. A green planet. With clear, fresh air, sparkling, nourishing water, beautiful flowers, whatever is most attractive to you. Perhaps a jogging trail, or maybe you're skiing, or maybe you're surfing, maybe you're making love, maybe you're meditating, or enjoying a sunset, or beautiful music. Art, the painting, holding a child in your arms, whatever you can imagine would bring you deep, deep, deep joy and happiness and an opportunity to do those special things that you came here to do. Imagine yourself there in that image. Be in it. Step into it and feel it, not like a movie, but as a scene that you're living right now in this moment. Your body healthy and strong, you dressed the way you'd like to be dressed, with who or whatever you want to be with, feeling a sense of reward within, a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction. Good. Really feel it and let that feeling flow out, flow throughout every cell of your body, every atom of your being, feeling free and strong and powerful. And once again, give yourself that little anchor. The hand on your heart, or your hands touching, or squeezing two fingers together, touching some other part of your body, maybe your belly. And once again, feel that sense of presence and feel yourself present in this scene, just to be there. And now imagine you can turn around and look back along that road that you've traveled. Imagine you can look back at that year you chose to let go of, all those things that you chose to not take with you. The anxieties. Imagine you can see yourself letting them go, as if you're emptying the garbage, or letting go of a helium balloon, or burying something in the ground. Letting go of all that you need to let go of, so that you can be very unlike that monkey holding on to the food inside the box. Become aware of each of those things that you let go of back then, and that you did it with love, and that you did it with peace, and the forgiveness that you allowed yourself to forgive the past, forgive the foolish things that others did. Forgive the foolish things that you did, letting go of any guilt, letting go of any shame. You don't need those now, because now you're in touch with your wisdom, with that spiritual part of you, with the spirit that moves through all things. And touch again that feeling of gratitude and love that you have, and that inspiration, and breathe into it, and feel yourself committed to becoming the person you really choose to be. And anytime you wish, you can pause And picture that hedge, picture that archway in the hedge, and step through it. And once again, visualize the future that you choose. And then, just as now, here, as your body relaxes comfortably, breathing in and out, and you bring yourself gently back to being fully aware of the space around you. Anytime you wish, give yourself that little physical signal, putting your hand over your heart or whatever other signal that you've chosen, and be in touch with the future that you want to change. Remember, the future is not someplace you're going. The future is a place that you're creating, and you are creating it with every thought and word and action. Good. Allowing yourself to once again connect with the space around you, the freedom of being in this place. The joy of being in this place. Wonderful-bolide. And if you'd like to share any comments, I'm always, of course, very much open to that. Let your body stretch and move. Ready to go and do whatever you have to do next in the way that you really want to do it. In charge of your life. Great. So you've been Spending time with me. This is Dr. Emmett Miller. Reminder to those who've just come aboard that this program is completely supported by you and me. Then you can give your support by donating whatever feels right to you, whatever is comfortable, whatever it's worth to you, and You can do that by sending a check to me. Right on your check, write the word donations and send it to Post Office Box 803, Nevada City, California 95959. For those who have a screen to look at, the numbers on the screen, uh, even simpler is to send it to accounting @drmiller.com on PayPal. Accounting@drmiller.com on PayPal. And I'd also like to remind you our next webinar is on January 14th. That's Thursday at 11 o'clock, and that's going to be the next 4 years that we have the opportunity to make the next 4 years very, very different from the last 4 years. And we're going to focus on how we might do that. So you can think of it as a continuation of what we're doing here. You can watch past webinars by registering at drmiller.com/life— life meditations. That's drmiller.com www.dougwilliams.com/lifemeditations. It'll take a day or two for this one to be up there, but you can go there and watch it. If you've been listening to it, you can go there and watch it and see the beautiful images that you've missed. But all my webinar are still up there, and they're still there for free. For those who want coaching sessions, just call my helper, and assistant Lisa at 530-478-1807 extension 1. 530-478-1807 extension 1. And for those who are in California, uh, we can actually do medical sessions, and you can also initiate those by calling Lisa at that number, 530-478-1807. And programs that would be useful for you to work with to follow up on what we're doing today would include— one thing I think that would be really valuable is a rainbow butterfly. And again, you can see these over at shop.drmiller.com. It's been wonderful to have you here with me. Another program that would really be of value is called Writing Your Own Script, or Writing Your Own Life Script. It gives you the opportunity of letting go of the past and then tuning in to the future. So Writing Your Own Script Or Writing Your Own Life's Script. And we'll also, you know, for those who are registered, be able to send you some further information. And we have A New Year's Imagery on Letting Go, which you can find at shop.drmiller.com. So, uh, and of course, anything you purchase there also goes to support this program. So it's been wonderful being here with you, and I look forward to seeing you every 2 weeks, Thursday at 11 AM. So namaste, and by all means, eat that strawberry.

If you enjoyed this video and found its information helpful, please like, comment, and subscribe to Dr. Miller's YouTube channel. Doing this will help to get Dr. Miller's content to more and more people. If you'd like to watch the entire webinar series, you can do so at drmiller.com/webinars. Com/lifemeditations. That's drmiller.com/lifemeditations. Be present, be kind, and be well.