Breathing: A Startling Occupation
Today I am grateful for the fun of tee ball with our grandson Leo and a family meal shared. I am also grateful to live in a forward-thinking community.
The guiding quote and question from Everyday Gratitude exploration, Day 2 are:
As I let these thoughts simmer throughout my day yesterday, as I let them guide me in simple ways, I came to some realizations. Not necessarily new revelations, but fresh takes on them.
I really liked Emily Dickinson's use of the word "startling." I need to be startled awake, startled present as I move through the hours of each day. I get in my busy mode, my thinking-what-to-do-next mode, and I am not paying attention very well to the right here, right now. I miss the pleasure of the task I am in, even if it is mundane. I miss the pleasure of being fully alive.
Being startled back into the present moment can be just what I need. That means focusing on my breathing. Breath awareness is key to mindfulness, meditation, slowing down. And I struggle to maintain that awareness with any regularity. Thankfully, practice makes progress possible.
I continue to practice pausing, breathing in and out, watching my chest rise and fall. The wonders of life, as simple as the rhythmic ticking of a clock in the quietude or savoring a bite of oatmeal, helped me come fully awake. What gets crowded out is the to-do list, the constant drive to keep doing and thinking that is my nemesis. I slow down and notice more.
I noticed the rise and fall of my flat chest and then the different feel of my breathing when I am wearing my prosthetics. I gave thanks for my lung capacity and I thought about others. My sister Mary Jo and the cancerous tumor in her lung. My husband Darcy and the three bouts of pneumonia he had a couple of years ago.
I become more fully awake, more fully appreciative of the life breath flowing freely in and out of me.
The guiding quote and question from Everyday Gratitude exploration, Day 2 are:
"To live is so startling, it leaves but little room for other occupations."
(Emily Dickinson)
"What worries get crowded out when I awaken to the wonder of life?"
As I let these thoughts simmer throughout my day yesterday, as I let them guide me in simple ways, I came to some realizations. Not necessarily new revelations, but fresh takes on them.
I really liked Emily Dickinson's use of the word "startling." I need to be startled awake, startled present as I move through the hours of each day. I get in my busy mode, my thinking-what-to-do-next mode, and I am not paying attention very well to the right here, right now. I miss the pleasure of the task I am in, even if it is mundane. I miss the pleasure of being fully alive.
Being startled back into the present moment can be just what I need. That means focusing on my breathing. Breath awareness is key to mindfulness, meditation, slowing down. And I struggle to maintain that awareness with any regularity. Thankfully, practice makes progress possible.
I continue to practice pausing, breathing in and out, watching my chest rise and fall. The wonders of life, as simple as the rhythmic ticking of a clock in the quietude or savoring a bite of oatmeal, helped me come fully awake. What gets crowded out is the to-do list, the constant drive to keep doing and thinking that is my nemesis. I slow down and notice more.
I noticed the rise and fall of my flat chest and then the different feel of my breathing when I am wearing my prosthetics. I gave thanks for my lung capacity and I thought about others. My sister Mary Jo and the cancerous tumor in her lung. My husband Darcy and the three bouts of pneumonia he had a couple of years ago.
I become more fully awake, more fully appreciative of the life breath flowing freely in and out of me.
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