Morning crawls across my bed when I awake. My spirit returns to my body. I say, “thank you” and remind myself today is a good day.
I get out of bed and find my favorite spot on the floor looking out my window. Sitting on a pillow, I watch as the earth turns on its axis and prepare for the day. This is where I meditate. This is what cultivated my early morning mindfulness.
Nobody taught me how to do it. Nobody offered it to me as a solution, so I don’t partake on behalf of someone else’s accord. It is completely my own. It is something I feel my way through, much like the greater aspect of my life. I am a collection of moments and to enjoy a deeper analysis of these moments it became crucial to deepen the awareness of my breath.
I found it as simple as giving it attention. I gave my breath more attention and it was not long until I came to the realization that attention is love. I began loving my breath. Simultaneously, I was loving my being. It’s a powerful thing when you love something that is performed every second of your life. It’s like lighting a candle in the dark.
I now like to think of the breath as music. Full conscious connected breathing is the sound of harmony and life in a person. Shallow, disconnected breathing is the sound of disharmony in a person. Much like your favorite song, connected breathing can uplift your spirit in a single moment of clarity. It can relax you. It can reduce pain. It can dissolve fear. You can think about meditation however you like. Thinking about things however we like is our liberty. Doing whatever we like is our liberty. I like to meditate because the results that I have experienced are profound and potent.
However, people are inspired to challenge your liberty if what you are saying or doing triggers something hidden in them. The same way they fight to suppress what they have hidden in them; they fight to suppress what reminds them of it. It can be frustrating to watch these people behave unconsciously, especially when they are your family.
We can’t fix these people’s problems, but we can be the most compassionate that we can be for them. We can give them attention and be there for them with conscious breathing. Resistance and lack of relaxation creates these unconscious behaviors. Is it a coincidence that these things also break connectivity of the breath?
No matter who you are, what you do, or what you believe, you breathe. It is an absolute truth among all living things and is frequently overlooked. According to etymology.com, the word Spirit is directly from the Latin word Spiritus meaning breath. All living things are united by this animating principle. We all are united by, and emanate from, the spirit. People openly discuss beliefs more than they discuss breath.
Which is more valuable; your beliefs or your breath? I start my day enjoying the very essence that keeps us alive.
