Just breath...

They say that the most fortunate amongst us go through some kind of adversity that forces us to stop.

Stop and look within.
Stop and step out of the line.
Stop and question...how the hell am I going to get through this?!
Stop and search within for strength to get through to another day.
Strength to carry on in hope of it getting easier. 

It's my experience to know this too. And yet knowing this the pain of going through it...is still big. Real big, because the foundation of my being has been taken away. The man I call dad. The guy who was the first to hold me, the first to love me, the first to support me, the first to care for me so dearly. Just gone. Machine off. No more air. 

But then life goes on. I mean it just doesn't stop. Everything just carries on and it makes me wonder...what happened to that man I call dad when that breath left his body? 

Such a simple thing is the breath. We don't even give it any thought in a day. We just rely on the universe to simply supply us enough to get through. We don't have to ask for more, or pay for a top up. And yet still it plays such a huge part in our existence. 

In the last few days i have been doing a Kundalini yoga meditation called Perspective and emotional balance (alternate nostril breathing). It is said that doing this meditation for 31 minutes can restore the nervous system after the effects of sudden shock. It is a truly beautiful tool that i just came across, literally, one day I opened my yoga book and there it was. The simplicity of this practice struck me. Regulating the breath could have such a big effect on my body. It fascinates me…the breath and its importance to life. So I am going to stop here for a while and contemplate this phenomenon.  

This practice has allowed me to gain a level of calmness and peace within. I am reminded of the abundance of incredibly beautiful things in my life right now. All the synchronicities around me, the things i have to be thankful for and the resources made available to me to help me get through.

So today I am going to just say thank you. Thanks for all that you have provided me with. All that i can comprehend in this moment. I appreciate all of it, from the tools, the time, the space, the incredible views, to the heat against my skin, the beautiful supportive people around me and not forgetting that fresh breeze which allows me to inhale so deep…all of it adds to the life I feel blessed to be living right now.  

Dad, your memory resides in every conscious breath I take.
So…inhale, hold the breath, exhale…and smile cause we all have another day.

I will leave with this quote from Yogi Bhajan:

“The times are not going to be convenient. You need strength and the greatest strength you have is the strength of the breath.”