Swerving

Today I am grateful for time with our grandson Leo last evening and earlier today, and his vibrant smile. I am also grateful for my sense of touch and the simple pleasure of a cooling breeze this morning.

Yesterday on my way home from work, on a multi-lane highway, one particular vehicle seemed to be in a big hurry and was swerving between all three lanes trying to get a few cars ahead.

And that was about as much as they did, got a few cars, a few seconds, ahead. I wonder if that made the driver feel better. They were erratic and a danger to themselves and the rest of us.

Perhaps something bad had just happened and they were in a hurry to get to a loved one. Or maybe they were angry about something and taking it out on the roadway. I mustered some compassion for that driver, and then gave thanks that it wasn't me. And I kept my distance. Whatever they were up to, I didn't want to be too close. To that negative energy. To that recklessness. 

Some days I feel like that driver and vehicle, swerving through my day. Switching tasks, switching thoughts, switching emotions in a pretty big hurry. There isn't much calm and peace in that.

As I try to practice more mindful meditation in recent weeks, I am reminded to return to my breath. The centering and grounding that can happen by simply pausing and noticing my breathing for a breath or two is palpable. The air going in, my abdominal area rising and falling, the feeling of life-giving breath sustaining me.

Swerving through my day or breathing in the moment? I have a choice. We all do. And even if we start swerving, the brake of breathing in and out can always be applied.