BREATHING

/ delphini510

 

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Mr Owl above, wisely tells me that we teach best what we need to learn.
An old adage I tell him but admit I don’t always listen. Hmm …
The first and most spontaneous gift at birth is the breath.
Yet, we often manage to mess even this up. Makes me both laugh and cry,
are we both too clever and too ignorant?

Either way, this little poem presented itself and perhaps I am not the only one
to recognise this phenomenon of breathing.

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BREATHING

to the rhythm of the waves,
To the sounds of strong winds
through the forests and glades;
The sighing of reeds by the lake.

Letting breath flow deeply and easily
in harmony with them,
Replenishing body and mind.

Our lives begin on Earth with the first breath,
it ends with the last;
Thus follows that we should nourish and fill
this precious vessel, this gift,

With oxygen freely supplied from each tree,
from all living nature.

So walk straight, fill the lungs
make every cell sing,
with the fervour of a little bird;

At night let easy cadency sustain.

Our heartbeats will slow, to the pulse
of a two stroke diesel;
As it propels the skiff at sea.

All it takes is to be,
in tune with the Whole.

c/ miriam ivarson

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41 thoughts on “BREATHING”

  2. Miriam, believe it or not, I’m breathing easier whilst reading your poem, finding a calming rhythm within the wise words, my breaths seeming to find that ‘easy cadency’! Your very poem replicates the very essence of breathing, connecting us to this natural act. Yet, for so many, what we take for granted becomes lost alone the way … personally I suffered from hyperventilation syndrome in my 30s following months of pleurisy. I could not believe that I had to ‘learn’ how to breathe correctly, how something so simple was almost impossible. Here’s to all of us being ‘In tune with The Whole’. ❤️

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    • Ahh …Annika, thank you for your beautiful response and I smile with pleasure of the words making you breathe easier. You have totally caught the
      essence of why I wrote this poem and it makes me so happy.
      Pleaurisy is a serious condition and to have learnt such a lesson so early
      can be both scary and empowering.
      For me the awareness came through trauma and deep stress. That affects both heart and lungs.
      So let us breathe easy together with the grace of nature.. ❤️
      miriam

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  3. Thank you Robbie, I think many of us suffered one way or the other from
    painful wake up calls that made us aware of importance of breath which of course we just take for granted.
    The Owl now, I saw a pretty display outside a florist shop and couldn’t resist taking a photo and by adding some prewords to my poem I managed to get Mr Owl in. Thought of the one in Winnie the Poh.

    miriam

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  8. Owls are a favorite of mine, too, Miriam, and yours is adorable. And there is much truth in your beautiful words. Through our health issues, deep breathing is so important and something my daughter and I focus on whenever the pain (the monster) rears its ugly head. Deep breathing also guided my babies out and into the world through natural childbirth. It is essential in so many aspects of life. It will also be useful tomorrow when my daughter and her boyfriend drive off, beginning their road trip to Nashville. Sigh…
    I especially love this verse:
    “Our lives begin on Earth with the first breath,
    it ends with the last;
    Thus follows that we should nourish and fill
    this precious vessel, this gift,”

    Thanks for sharing this lovely poem – the timing is perfect…
    Sending love and hugs…🌷

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    • Lauren, thank your for your so sensitive and kind reply. I am touched that
      a whole stanza came so near your heart and the situation you are in. Bless you and your daughter, new experiences and journeys for you both.
      Just like this poem came out of my own experiences, other creative forms
      will grow out of yours. We only need to listen.
      Sending hugs and love to you too …🤗🌻 .

      Miriam

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  10. Miriam, your poem evokes wonderful insight into something we take for granted because it is the very first thing we do upon birth. In my religion, we believe that with our very first breath we speak God’s name (the word God being a title and God’s name being a divine secret) and at the very last breath we repeat God’s name. Thus God’s name remains holy and sacred and is called upon at only those two moments. All else in between is the life we lead, God’s name lost to us until we need it most.

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    • Sharon, thank you for your very interesting answer. I find this poetry
      writing fascinating as it translates in so many ways depending on the
      reader, thus it doesn’t live until it comes alive again in someone’s heart.

      I never heard about the belief of which you talk but am always fascinated to
      hear new ideas. The baby’s first cry is certainly one lungful of sound. In most cases.
      Bless

      Miriam

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    • David, I am glad to have you breathe along,
      I know you are well practised
      And nature will be the teacher.
      How perfect they are.
      Thank you for your lovely poem. 😊.

      miriam

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  12. Breathing may be essential for living and we take it for granted, but breathing in moments of delight and breathing them deeply in harmony with our thoughts, hearing the rhythm of waves, so beautifully depicted by the image you have shared…together they fill our lives with immeasurable joy! Thanks for making my morning so pleasant with your poem.

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  13. Thank you Balroop for your beautiful and poetic response.
    I really am glad that my poem added to the pleasure of your morning.
    As to breathing in rhytmacally in all situations in life – herein lies the trick.

    Miriam

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    • Your beautiful words makes my heart lift easy as the birds outside the window. Thank you Roland and how glad am I if the words opened your eyes to something new …. maybe you were happier just taking for granted such a natural act. 😊 .
      Miriam

      p.s. Roland, I still have no luck getting my answers to you come up on your post. I loved ‘ Throb’ and would like to respond. Excellent post though.

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  16. A lovely poem Miriam, it reminds me of the Amazon. the lungs of the earth. I was taught when I first was diagnosed the value of counting the breath to do things others have mastered. For me, my favorite is breathing out as it rids the body and mind of all pollutants, physical and spiritual… jc

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  17. Thank you Jc, I am glad you found this inspiring. Luckily the world produces oxygen all over the globe. I am now visiting Sweden which is to 70% covered in forest. Trees convert dioxide to oxygen and so does plant life.
    ” This is all part of the deep interconnectedness of all life.”. Quote from an academic article.
    Whatever stresses and illnesses we meet, it is important that we find the natural rhythm with which we were born. I wonder at times if just watching a child will make us more connected again.
    Bless

    Miriam

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  23. Thank you Rachel for this adorable comment from your granddaughter.
    That is how natural breathing is. You don’t need to think about it.
    Not until we mess it up.😊.

    Miriam

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  24. Beautiful. Starts with one of my fave critters! Breathe. It can be such hard work. Breathe. Fall is a great time to breathe in the smell of earth. B

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  25. Thank you so much B. And I am sure you learnt this too. I think the wise old Owl reverberated with many. Interesting. He does look calm though.
    Funny thing Brigitte, it was a fluke he ended up on the post as I fell for the Owl as he stood outside a florist shop.
    I am back in England this morning and will see where the focus goes.

    Oh yes … the smell of Earth and trees 🌲

    miriam

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    • Thank you so much Julie for your warming comment. We shouldn’t have to
      think about our breathing, it ought to be just natural. Yet, at times events overpower us. Then we are wise to pay attention. 💕 .

      Miriam

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  28. For many years I ran a group on meditation basics with breathing being a regular focus. It helped me as much as anyone and I still need reminders to breathe well and let every cell sing – love that line. Thank you!

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  29. Thank you JoAnna for your lovely comment. I am so glad if this poem brought back memories of how it felt when the breathing was brought in harmony ‘ and every cell sang’ .
    I followed yoga and breathing classes for years and was an amateur instructor, so will now regularly … every day practice.

    Miriam

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