Wake Me Up: Morning Positivity - Morning Routine - Have Dreams

Episode Date: February 7, 2022

This morning, we'll focus on our dreams and find inspiration in MLK's timeless words. Enjoying Wake Me Up? Get ad-free access to the entire WMU catalog + bonus content by joining the WMU Premium Feed. Sign up and start your 7-day free trial at https://wakemeup.supercast.com/. Follow the show on Spotify - Apple Podcasts - Podchaser Say hi or request an episode at www.wakemeuppodcast.com/contact. And find the podcast on Instagram and TikTok. **Only partake in the physical movements suggested in Wake Me Up episodes if you are physically able and in safe surroundings. All movements are done at the individual's own risk. Be safe, and always consult a doctor if you have any questions or concerns.** Have a wonderful day 😃 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you'd like to enjoy Wake Me Up completely ad-free and get access to exclusive bonus content, check out the link in the show notes for the Wake Me Up premium feed, or stick around after the show and I'll tell you more about it. Good morning, friends, and welcome to Wake Me Up. Thanks so much for tuning in today. We all have dreams and hopes for ourselves, for the people we care about, for the world. Too often our dreams are shunted, our voices muted by outside forces. Right now in the United States, it's Black History Month,

and so today I'd like to honor that with inspirational words from one of the greatest speakers ever, Martin Luther King, Jr. But first, let's take some time to get up and prepare our bodies and minds for a great day. I hope you always remember. Today is your day. This is your life. Others may and will try to hold you back. As forces for good, we must stand with one another.

We must appreciate our differences. We must help each other to dream and to better ourselves. And though humanity has progressed, our road of improvement is never ending. It begins anew each day. With the rising of the sun, we face a new opportunity. To love ourselves. To love each other.

To better the world and to work together towards our dreams. So let's not waste another moment of that opportunity. If you're in bed, take a deep breath in and on your exhale roll over and make your way to standing up. All right, now that we're all up

and out of bed, let's take one quick moment for a stretch to help wake the body up. So stand up straight, make sure you have plenty of room, and of course, only take part if you're able to do this, and if you want to do something else,

please be my guest. If you're going to follow me, Reach your hands toward the sky. Reach as far as you can. Maybe reach behind you a little bit too so you have a back bend. And then exhale and fold forward at your waist. Let everything hang towards the ground. Maybe you want to bend your knees or bend one knee at a time and then the other.

Maybe you want to sway side to side. Maybe you just want to sit still. Listen to your body. Do what feels right for you. Take one full round of breath here. Inhale and exhale. And then slowly roll all the way back up to standing. And when you get there, three times roll your shoulders up and down.

Again, up and down. The last time even farther around, up and down. Fantastic. I hope your body is feeling a little more awake now. It's time for a quick mindfulness meditation exercise. So find a comfortable seat anywhere in your home. Feel free to grab a sip of water, use the bathroom, or do anything like that along the way. And this exercise will focus in on your dreams, the dreams you have for yourself, for someone else you care about, and for the world.

It doesn't need to be anything heavy if you don't want it to be. make it into whatever you'd like. All we're going to do is take your dreams and turn them into affirmations. And hopefully, along with that, you'll be filled with inspiration, positive images of these dreams, and you'll understand a little bit more clearly

the path you can take to get there. So, hopefully by now you've found a comfortable seat. And you want to be sitting upright, but try not to hold onto any tension. Take a big inhale and on your exhale, slowly close your eyes. Allow everything to soften and settle for this first moment. Relax your face, drop your jaw,

relax your shoulders. Follow that rise and fall of your breath for just a moment or so. And as you do, it will slowly bring you deeper and deeper within. All right, now that you're settled in, think of a dream you have for yourself. And this can be a lofty, lifelong goal, or it can just be the ideal day you'd like to have today. It can be as big or as small as you'd like it to be.

And once you have that dream in mind, turn it into an affirmation. By repeating to yourself mentally or out loud, I dream that blank. So it could be, I dream to be a business owner, or I dream to be a better parent. Whatever that dream is, just fill it in. And I'll give you about a minute here to just keep repeating this to yourself. Allow these words to fill you up. Allow images to come and go. All right, you can let that dream go.

and any of the imagery and ideas that have come along with it. And this time, think of someone you care about. Maybe it's a significant other, a child, a good friend, or a colleague. And think of a dream that you have for them. Maybe it's as simple as happiness or health. Or maybe it's something very specific to them. And once you have that dream for them, turn it into an affirmation.

So, for example, I dream that my child will be happy and successful. Again, keep repeating this affirmation over and over. Allow images to come and go. All of this is part of bringing that dream to life. Okay, now you can let all of that go. And we'll do this one more time. But this time, consider what your dream for the world is.

Maybe it's peace. Maybe it's that we all just laugh a little bit more. Whatever it is, turn that dream into an affirmation. I dream that the world will be a happier place. I dream that the world will be free of hatred. And again, allow those images to come and go as you repeat this affirmation over and over for about a minute.

You can let all of that go and bring your attention back to your breath for just a moment. All right, it's time to wrap up our meditation now. So begin to bring yourself back. Notice the chair beneath you. Feel your feet on the floor. Hear any sounds going on in the room around you. Take a big breath in and as you exhale, open your eyes and gather yourself. Now, in honor of Black History Month, I'd like to send you off with some excerpts from Martin Luther King Jr.'s, I have a dream speech. I've always found these words to be so powerful and moving.

Wherever you live, whatever you believe in, whatever your hopes and dreams are, whoever's holding you back in life, and however they're doing it, I think we can all find inspiration in these powerful words. My friends, I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest, your quest for freedom, left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to the faces and the places of your suffering,

knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. I say to you today, my friends, let us not wallow in the valley of despair. Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. That we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal.

I have a dream that one day the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day the places sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that little children will one day live in a world where they're not judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream that one day, every valley shall be exalted. Every hill and mountain shall be made low. The rough places will be made plain,

and the crooked places will be made straight. I have a dream today. And so I ask you, my friend, what is your dream? And what will you do today to help bring it about? That's all for this episode. Thank you so much for tuning in today. I hope these words mean as much to you as they do to me. Now go out, chase your dreams, support the dreams of those around you,

and have an absolutely fantastic day. If you want to listen to Wake Me Up, completely free of ads and promos, then be sure to check out the premium feed. It'll also get you access to exclusive monthly bonus content. There's even a seven-day free trial, so you can try it out before you commit. It's the best morning experience you'll find anywhere.

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