Just Do It---A Meditation on Breathing

We've all heard these words spoken to us, or read them in articles or books, or seen them plastered on posters on Facebook.

"Just breathe."

When you're upset, agitated, anxious, feeling hopeless or depressed . . .

Just breathe.

When life seems like it's too much to bear . . .

Just breathe.

When the world feels like it's closing in on you . . .

Just breathe.

Sigh.

I've been a skeptic about just breathing, and this morning I saw yet another poster that set off the same cynical reaction I have every time . . . I'm already breathing.

But then, I stopped---the dismissiveness, not my breathing.

And I tried it for just a minute.

I just breathed, consciously, taking ten slow breaths, in and out, and gauging my reaction.

To my surprise, I found that something powerful happened.

First, I felt immense gratitude for the gift of being alive, for being able to take a breath. This feeling erased the cynicism and had a tremendous calming effect. I wasn't feeling much resentment---only minor annoyance with the poster---but that gracefully gave way to appreciation for my existence.

Second, I was reminded that the best things in life happen to us through our conscious intention. The act of consciously breathing, instead of allowing my autonomic nervous system to handle it, brought intention to the fore and turned my thoughts from how I felt about the poster to what I wanted to do and accomplish---today, tomorrow, in the remainder of my life.

Third, I felt the presence and power of God and the Holy Spirit. I remembered that when we take a breath we are being given breath, that we are animated by God's sacred spirit and guided by His love, that we are alive for a purpose---to share and spread that love, to give it where it is needed, and to use the air in our lungs to inspire thoughts, words, and steps, and actions that repair and restore the world.

Yes, all that from just breathing.

So I guess I'm a convert.

How about you?

This post also appears on the Tom Aplomb blog.