breath Archives - Laurie Klein, Scribe

Breath.

Nose-to-nose,
each day,
in near silence,
this is how
a teen-aged boy
greets his alpaca:

They touch foreheads . . . and breathe,
swapping morning breath,
mutually saluting the life force.

A pulmonary transaction. A gift.
The trusting loan of what each needs most.

I think of Aslan breathing on poor Mr. Tumnus, frozen into a statue by the White Witch.

And the Hebrew word Ruach: “Wind. Breath. Spirit.”

Breath itself, in the beginning . . .

Dear Animating Mercy,

Thank you for breathing life into the first human being, part stardust, part water, part mystery.

Thank you for lungs—for every fetus, those dormant organs awakened at birth.

Thank you for dreaming up Breath Practice via placentas. Via the luminous, pulsing, umbilical cord. Each of us took practice breaths late in our third trimester. And did not drown. We inhaled rich amniotic fluid, safely expanded our untried lungs.

Thank you for surfactant, the ingenious lung coating that keeps air sacs open, inflated.

Thank you for oxygen and carbon dioxide, the great ongoing exchange among people, creatures, plants.

Thank you for sighs resetting our respiratory system, relieving stress, recalibrating emotions.

Thank you for moments that take our breath away.

Thank you for ancient truths, breathed out:

The Spirit of God has made me;
the breath of the Almighty gives me life (Job 33:4).

If it were [God’s] intention to withdrew his spirit and breath,
all would perish together and return to the dust (Job 34:14,15).

But it is the spirit in [us], the breath of the Almighty,
that gives . . . understanding (Job 32:8).

Tell me, what does holy mean now?

Aslan and Mr. Tumnus (watch the magic here).

You might also enjoy reading: Sigh, Sigh, Sigh (& Stay Alive)

Dandelion photo, by Johannes Plenio, Unsplash

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord (Psalm 150:6).

Sigh … audibly. Deeply. Frequently. (So says my fitness instructor)

Dreamer’s latest angiogram date looms. After 5 bypasses, why are we here again? Dismay feels substantive enough to mold—like river sludge between cupped palms.

Sigh. Empty the hands, lift them in trusting surrender.

An audible sigh re-inflates the vital, occasionally squashed alveoli within our lungs, keeping us alive.

So sigh some more.

A sigh alleviates stress. Research shows that 12 hourly sighs help us regroup, emotionally. Read more here.

Yes, bad news strikes, and fear makes us bristle, become thistle-y with those we love
Yes, sometimes even the air weighs on us, seemingly saturated with unshed tears
Yes, how easily we slide toward the sump of dread

Stalled out again,
going nowhere fast,
I remember “nowhere”
plus the addition
of one slender space
becomes “now here.”

Presence. One slender pause—a breath, a hum, a prayer—invites a sacred recalibration. The built-in reset for body and soul.

Inhale. Sigh aloud. Repeat.

“there is a changing of everything —
when breath becomes prayer.”*

Richard Rohr teaches a simple breath prayer. Using the name YAHWEH for God: inhale, audibly voicing the YAH; exhale, audibly voicing the WEH.

I also like Dr. Andrew’s Weil’s calming breath exercise:

Exhale as much air as possible with a big whoosh
Place tongue behind upper teeth, inhale for an easy count of 4
Hold breath for a count of 7
Exhale audibly for a count of 8

Do this four times. As it becomes easier, increase to eight repetitions, twice a day.

I vary the 4-7-8 exercise by counting on my fingers, simultaneously humming or praying.

*Prayer, Ann Voskamp

Catch Your Breath Here

Dear Animating Mercy,

Sigh, Sigh, Sigh (& Stay Alive!)