Close your eyes and relax.  Now take three deep breaths: one for body, one for mind, and one for spirit.  Take one last very deep breath and hold it.  Just when you think you cannot hold the breath any longer, pull in just a bit more air.  Again, when you feel as if you cannot continue holding the breath, pull in just a little more.  When you finally do release your breath, do so very slowly in a long continuous exhale until you have released all that you were holding.  Breathe slowly and deeply as you continue to relax.  Relax all the muscles of your body: your legs, your arms, your shoulders, and your jaw.  Completely relax.

Imagine that you are sinking down into the furniture, and in turn sinking through the floor.  Allow yourself to continue sinking down and down, all the while feeling completely relaxed.  You pass deep down into the earth and suddenly find yourself in a vast cave, nestled comfortably in the bottom of a shallow boat.  There are soft blankets around you, keeping you warm, completely safe, and relaxed.  The boat is caught by the current of a narrow river, and you find yourself floating along, emerging from the darkness of the cave.  The river flows through a lush green forest, and the sky above is a deep blue.  A bubble of white light surrounds the boat completely, enveloping it in its safety, and you are able to lie back comfortably, looking up at the trees as the boat continues to float through the forest.  As you float along, the tree branches overhead become more intertwined, and the boat enters what seems to be a tunnel through the trees.  Even though the sun is now only filtering through the trees, you still feel relaxed, safe, and centered as the boat continues on its course.  The sound of birdsong lulls you into a deeper state of relaxation, and you watch the gentle breeze rippling the leaves above you.

After a while, the boat gently comes to a stop at a sandy bank.  You are now deep in the forest, and the birdsong has begun to dissipate.  The only sound at the moment is the gentle rustling of the breeze through the trees.

Getting out of the boat, you find yourself near a very large, very old tree.  Inhaling deeply, the scent of the forest is familiar to you, and you feel as if you’ve been here before.  It’s a pleasant feeling, even though you cannot remember precisely when you’d been here.

The breeze picks up slightly, but with it comes a faint new sound.  At first you think you are hearing things, but as the sound comes again, slightly louder, you cannot deny what you hear.  It is the sound of someone calling your name.  It comes again, yet you are not afraid.  It almost seems natural to hear your name being spoken in this place.  Listen to the voice calling you.  Is the pitch of the voice high or low?  What about the tone?  Does it seem imploring?  Demanding?  Beckoning?

You search for the source of the calling, and after walking around the area for a bit, you realize that the sound is coming from within the large, old tree.  Moving around the tree, you see a hole and realize that it is hollow.  The voice echoes from within.  You are not afraid, but mesmerized by the sound, and you step closer to the tree.  Peeking into the hole, you notice something glinting just inside.  Reaching in, you discover a beautiful hand mirror, and suddenly the voice becomes louder and more insistent.  It’s coming from the mirror itself.

You look into the mirror and are surprised at your reflection.  You do not see what you expect, which is the face you’ve come to know since birth.  What you see is something deeper inside, though still recognizable as you; it is the heroic archetype you have selected for yourself.

Gazing into your own eyes, what do you find there?  The mirror image speaks nothing more than your name, yet the expression on his/her face speaks volumes.  Memorize the image in the mirror and gauge your own feelings as you continue to look into your own eyes.  What emotions are going through you right now?  How do you feel as you continue to hear your name repeated?  Within a few minutes, however, the mirror image begins to blur and fade, and when it clears, you are able to see your face as you’ve always seen it.  The only difference is the gleam in your eyes.  Sit at the base of the old tree and reflect upon what has happened.

After a time, you sense that it is time to go.  You climb into your boat once more, and you pull the warm blankets around you.  The white light of safety envelopes the boat once more as it drifts away from the shore.  This time it begins to float in the opposite direction, taking you back from whence you came.  You gaze up at the trees, watching the ripples of the breeze fluttering through the leaves, and soon you hear the birdsong once more.  Emerging from the tunnel of trees into a place where the sky is clearly visible, you notice that it has become night, and the stars are twinkling brightly overhead.  The boat slips into the cave, and soon you begin to feel yourself rising from the soft blankets in the boat.  As you rise, you become more and more aware of your surroundings, and soon you are able to sense the furniture beneath you.  This is the room from which you began this journey not so very long ago.  As you become more and more aware of the room around you, you remember the face in the mirror, an image that will stay with you as you awaken from your rest.

Taking three deep breaths, one for body, one for mind, and one for spirit, you open your eyes to find yourself in a familiar place.