room to breathe

I'm still moving slowly, still not 100%, but I'm getting there. 
So I amble onto the second of my alphabet of rooms, 'Room to breathe...'


I came across this on Facebook the other day and just had to use it here - not least as my Word for 2017 was CHERISH.

I work a lot with my breath - I start my daily morning prayer/quiet time by breathing long and deep... It's how I become present to the moment, how I 'drop down' into my 'soul space', how I centre myself. I use a lot of mantras, such as this one, some remembered from others', but most composed in the moment.

I watch how Molly-cat breathes, curled up on my lap, how it's her belly that rises and falls, not her rib cage. So many humans breathe shallow, high in their bodies, seeming to have forgotten how to breathe... how to slow down... how to make the most of each and every breath, how to fill themselves up with Life-giving goodness.

Of course, on one level breathing is something we should just do, without giving it a second thought - it's automatic, it's a basic bodily function like blinking. But if that's how we always live, we deny ourselves such riches, for each breath is actually a gift, a chance to say Thank You...

And our bodies will actually thank us if we can find such moments throughout the day to just breathe... our anxiety and stress levels drop, our heartbeat slows, our monkey minds ease their chatter. For that moment, in that minute, we can actually step outside time, outside any situation in which we find ourselves, and instead find our inner calm, our inner sanctuary.

Like everything, it takes practice to do, but the more we take moments like this, the easier they become, eventually becoming second-nature, automatic - well, like breathing. 😊

Sharing with Becca at Nurturing Thursday.

Comments

Meg Evans said…
So nurturing and calming -- like breathing! :)

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