Welcome to the Daily Meditation Podcast. I'm Mary Mechley and here you are getting ready to do one of the most important things you could do for yourself all day as you tune into your inner stillness.

And in today's episode you're going to be guided using a breathing technique to calm your mind and body.

Mostly this entire week and each episode as you close out this year you're going to be guided using meditation techniques to help you tune into your inner joy.

I encourage you to begin this new year with closure on this year and with a sense of joy and expectation for the brand new year.

And as you're guided in today's meditation I encourage you to think about what helps you to feel more joy.

You have a challenge this week as you do in every single episode your challenge is to reflect on the past year and notice the times when you experienced joy.

Today you might consider joy as being happy feeling content but there's a big difference between happiness and joy.

Happiness is where you feel more of a fleeting sensation.

Something might make you happy you might pass someone and they make you happy they might make you smile.

Happiness is often fleeting.

Joy on the other hand is deep seated within your soul you feel a sense of inner contentment.

You feel as though you're grounded and that regardless of whether someone you pass on the street smiles at you or scales at you you feel inner joy.

This is the state I encourage you to begin to tune into it is there we all have inner joy you simply need to tune into what helps you to feel happy about life and about yourself eternally no matter what's going on in the world.

So this is a great state to put yourself in as we get ready to launch into a brand new year.

Now you hear about all the uncertainty going on in the world in fact you may have heard of the term permacrisis which was Collins dictionaries 2022 word of the year.

Why not put yourself in a state of permacry why not feel joy regardless of whatever is happening in the world.

This is possible and every time you show up for yourself as you sit down to meditate you take the first step.

It is the consistency of meditating for even five to ten minutes a day that's going to give you the beautiful qualities that meditation is known for.

This is a five thousand year old technique that has stood the test of time.

So I invite you to settle yourself down and get ready as you meditate as you sit up straight gently elevate your eyes upwards and begin to relax your whole body.

You may notice that you hold tension in a particular area take note of this and know that you're doing the best you can.

You may not be able to completely release tension or tightness simply allow yourself to release whatever you're feeling to the best of your ability today.

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