“As my attention moves into the breath, there is always a moment of awakening as I take my first full inhale.” ~Rolf Gates
Reflect on the first breath you ever took. What must it have been like to awaken into this world on an inhale? What will it be like to let the last one go?
I did some research…
On average, a person at rest takes about 16 breaths per minute. This means we breathe about 960 breaths an hour, 23,040 breaths a day, 8,409,600 a year. Unless we get a lot of exercise. The person who lives to 80 will take about 672,768,000 breaths in a lifetime.
What is it like to feel this breath? John Kabat-Zinn said “If you are not aware of this present moment, you have abandoned your own life.” Abandoned. Your. Own. Life.
Where do we go, when we are not living our own life? Do we go to planning a better life, or wishing we were in someone else’s life, or do we simply live distracted by trivia and lists?
Today, let’s notice our breath, as often as we think about it. This breath. And this breath. And this breath…
And now the practice of yoga begins…
Namaste.
*Photo by Nine Köpfer on Unsplash
