When you feel in need of return…

Place your candle before you,
perhaps surrounded by things that hold meaning,
or offerings gathered from the earth.

Take a moment to arrive.

Strike the match slowly.
Watch the flame catch,
as if your own inner light is being sparked.

Close your eyes.
One hand on your heart, one on your belly.

Inhale deeply, gathering yourself in.
Exhale slowly, softening into release.
Repeat until your body begins to remember ease.

Call to mind how you felt in session.
Let each breath draw that state closer,
let each exhale carry you deeper into it.

When you are ready,
cup your hands around the flame,
gather its warmth.

The flame is only a reminder
of what already lives within you.

Blow it out gently,
carrying the feeling with you
into the days that follow.