The Mother Rhythm of Breath

I live in a 108-year-old cottage, nestled under a maple tree that is so big my arm span only goes less than one-third of the way around its trunk. My cottage looks out on a secret garden, surrounded by a wall of green, and nestled in that garden is a pond and waterfall, along with all my bonsais. Such magic! And since I have multiple bird feeders, all the birds in the neighborhood have announced this is a really good place to live.

I also have multiple hummingbird feeders and the other morning I put my sugar water to boil on the stove. A moment later the phone rang, and it was my 90-year-old stepmother who I had been trying to get a hold of for days and was starting to get very concerned. I was so happy to hear from her, but the call was short because of her difficulty talking. As I hung up the phone, my fire alarm started screaming and as I ran back into the kitchen/living room, I found it filled with smoke.

In 15 minutes, I was going to be leading my phone group, so in a flurry of activity I opened the door and windows, carried the smoking pot outside, and turned on the fan.  Then, with great frustration, I finally got the battery out of the fire alarm. Needless to say, my whole system was ramped up, and leading a group when you are this challenged can be very tough.

I had about five minutes before the group started so I sat down, closed my eyes, and brought my attention to my breath. In the middle of this chaos, there was the great river of breath that has been moving through me since the moment I was born, rising and falling, rising and falling, expressing the rhythm that exists at the heart of life – the rhythm of the tides and the seasons, the dance of night and day and even the opening and closing of my heart valves.

Over the years I have found my breath to be a sanctuary, a place where my attention, rather than being caught in the busyness of my mind, can rest. And the more I have invited my attention back to my breath, I discovered the joy of moving beyond just breathing, into the joy of being breathed by life. The kind of breath I have been working with lately is one where my in-breath and out-breath are the same lengths.  I call this the mother rhythm breath, for as I settle into it, it feels like I am being rocked exactly like a mother rocks a child.

One this wild and crazy morning, one minute my mind and body were frazzled and the next minute, as my attention and breath came together, I was back into deep calm. It’s much like being caught in a wild storm in the middle of the ocean but if you dive under the surface, just a few feet below, the ocean is always calm. The same is true for us. Deep calm is always, always with us! We just don’t know how to find it, especially when our lives are wild and stormy!

So, I invite you to use your breath in whatever way works for you to calm what is agitated and to relax the tightening in your body so you can access the clarity, calm, and wisdom that is always here. The group that day was rich and nourishing and could have been so different if I hadn’t found my breath again.

Most of us feel we don’t have time to carve out even a few minutes every day to rest in our breath but the more you gently but persistently bring your attention back to your breath, it will reveal treasures you have waited for your whole life, including the treasure of discovering the peace and ease that is always with you, even in the middle of a storm!