Living and Breathing

"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is God's gift, that is why we call it the present."       ~Unknown~

~So live life to the Fullest~

Sometimes I have a tendency to get bogged down in worry and sadness about life and the way things go for people – when they don't go right or terrible things happen.

One of the things that I do to help me cope is to collect quotes from many different sources. I usually don’t share quotes, but this quote is one that I have used for the past several days to help me. Maybe you need it today too. Life is a present. Today is really the only thing that is in focus – thorns and all.  

We can have regrets about the past, however today is the day we live to the fullest and make it a difference. How do you make your days count?

Laura

Raindrops on . . .

We've had much needed rain recently. I love the rain when we don't get much of it. It's doesn't seem to rule my life that way. Don't forget to take an umbrella . . . it might rain . . . I don't want my hair to get wet . . . Why Not???

I sat out on the back porch and the air was cool from the rain and I just rocked and daydreamed. I read recently that we don't daydream enough these days, and our children certainly don't daydream enough. It seems like every minute of their lives must be scheduled.  

When I was a child, I loved being able to ride my bike off somewhere in the neighborhood and know that my mother had no idea where I was (although now I think that she probably did know). But the feeling of aloneness and power and control, was a heady rush for an eight year old. 

When I was 10 and we moved to France, some of that freedom was taken away. We were among wonderful people, but we didn't speak their language yet, so Mama was more cautious. However, we lived in a huge, old house with a huge, huge yard that had walls all around it and so we "had the run of the yard" and it wasn't bad at all. In fact, it was sort of like a fairy tale. 

LauraBeth

Breathing

The first time I really learned to breathe is when my first child was born. Back in 1977 childbirth classes were just beginning to become vogue. I wanted to have my children by natural childbirth - so I took the childbirth classes! 

Well, my little girl surprised us and barreled her way into the world early - three weeks early. I had only been to three of the six classes, the last three the most important -- Do Not Miss Them -- classes! I had only learned "first gear" breathing. Breathe in through your nose slowly, while focusing on a point beyond your nose, breathe out through your mouth slowly, while still focusing on that same point. We had even practiced it quite a bit for which I am eternally grateful. With 36 hours of sweet, natural labor, that breathing thing really came in handy.

Recently my husband and I began taking Yoga classes. Once again I learned the importance of breathing. Apparently we are all rushing through life, seldom taking the time to sniff let alone smell, the roses - and therefore we don't breathe in the correct manner. Shallow breathing, the kind that starts small and fast, and then ends up with hyperventilation - that's what we mostly do. 

So next time you feel stressed, breathe. Breathe deeply into your stomach, not your chest, and breathe slowly. Count in to four and then let your breathe out to the count of five. 

Try it. It sure helped me -- at least a couple of times!