Practical Meditation for Busy Souls offers practical and heartfelt guidance to the magic, mystery and wholeness inside each of us, writes Christiane Northrup, M.D. While the book by Margo Adair and William Aal includes a CD with guided meditations, here is one that you can read into a tape recorder/iPod and play for yourself during some quiet downtime:

Bring to awareness whatever makes your heart sing. It may be music. It may be a loving moment with another. It may be a place. It may be a moment of creativity of inspiration. Moments of generosity. It may be a child. Bring to awareness what makes your heart sing, or quietly smile. Whatever makes your heart sing or smile, bring it to awareness now. Let it all dance in your awareness.

If there are any scenes that attract your attention, focus in on one. Recreate it; remember the details. Let it make your heart open wide all over again. Breathe. breathe all of this into your heart. Fill your heart with this energy. Breathe it in. Let it open your heart. Your heart smiles, sings, opens wide.

Now, bring to awareness what in particular has been distressing you of late. If there’s a person or situation that’s been distressing you or maybe a feeling inside that’s come up for you lately. Remember a scene in which it is present. Recreate it now. Imagine it. If tension arises, breathe through it. Release it into the ground to be transformed in the soil. Remember the good energy of your heart. Breathe heart energy. Breathe your heart song into the scene. Breathe out the tension and breathe heart energy right into the scene. As best you can, fill the scene with heart energy, however you imagine doing this. If tension arises, breathe compassion into yourself. Breathe compassion into the scene. Keep doing this until you can keep your heart open and witness the situation with compassion. Breathe. Release tension into the ground. Breathe. breathe compassion for yourself. for others. Be in peace. Be in peace with the scene. Let yourself breathe and be with the situation. Offer loving kindness to the situation. See yourself in a positive light. Be forgiving.

Look deeply into your heart. Witness what you really need. Reassure your whole self. Offer each aspect of yourself loving kindness. See others in a positive light. Be forgiving. Have compassion for everyone. What is the gift of the situation?

Adapted from Practical Meditations for Busy Souls, by Margo Adair and William Aal (Sourcebooks, MediaFusion, 2008).