Breathing into 2020!

B r e a t h e

Just take a moment to inhale slowly…hold…and let it out. Then exhale just a little longer. My word for 2020 is already breathing life into you and me!

"Breathe" brings with it an essential ingredient of life, oxygen, the invisible gas that fills our lungs and fuels our cells. Its goodness then travels to every muscle and organ in our bodies... you get the idea - we can’t survive long without it. Oxygen helps us thrive, and that’s what I intend to do.

I may be rushing through errands, working out, writing, or stressing about this or that when I realize I've been so "busy" I've barely been breathing. I need to take a deep breath.

“But you retired from teaching,” you say. “How busy can you be?” All I can say is wait. Once you retire and start doing projects that you love there’ll not be enough hours in the day. You’ll still rush to cram it all in. Any of us can become so engrossed in our tasks...

“You’re too serious,” my Dad used to tell me. I didn’t believe him then, but I do now. As I get older I realize my need to chill out a bit.

Dad even made a plaque for me that Mom painted with pink roses and wise words.

“Stop and smell the roses.”

It hangs prominently on our covered porch but barely gets a glance on my way into the house. During the new year I hope it often reminds me to slow down the clock and breathe appreciation and gratitude into my day…

In 2020 I will b r e a t h e m o r e d e e p l y .

In winter we’ll w a l k in the snow.

Later I’ll s i t in my wingchair,

The one between the piano and the bookcase

with a pole lamp hanging over its shoulder.

I’ll r e a d a book or w r i t e in a journal.

I’ll s i p a cup of herbal tea.

Sometimes I’ll m e d i t a t e.

I may even s o a k my feet in lavender-infused water.

In springtime I’ll t r a v e l to favorite haunts

and e x p l o r e new curiosities.

In summer I’ll f l o a t and p a d d l e on this lake and that one.

In the autumn I’ll c h e r i s h the colors

and b r e a t h e in the crisp fall air.

All the while I’ll be b r e a t h I n g m o r e d e e p l y…

and trying to make the most of every day.