Two Breaths
“Be content with the present.” — Marcus Aurelius
This writing is Certified Human
The Obstacle
We are overloaded, constantly task shifting from one thing to the next. Urgency calls to us every minute in the form of media, text messages, phone calls, and emails.
The next thing to do is always on our mind. Our eyes and brains are continuously bombarded with reading and watching.
It's difficult to think beyond what's right in front of us. It's hard to remember to take a few breaths and reset.
The Gift and Opportunity
There's always time for a few breaths. We can take them deeper and longer than we normally would.
We can let our lungs fully expand, hold, and exhale.
This helps reset our nervous system and our priorities.
We can get back in accordance with nature by intentionally breathing deeper than we normally would, even if only for a few breaths.
The Practice of Self-Mastery
• Stop
• Inhale
• Hold
• Exhale
CHEAT CODE: STOP → INHALE → HOLD → EXHALE
The Why
In nature, we would normally sigh: a deep breath in and a long exhale out. We would do this without thinking, at random intervals. We wouldn’t be constantly distracted and bombarded by our phones, screens, and to-do lists.
We see this in other animals. Our dogs and cats will take deep breaths in and long sighs out.
We would do this regularly without thinking if we weren't so overrun with the hectic demands of modern life.
When I remember to do this, I feel calmer and more focused. I'm able to sort through the urgent and refocus on what's important.
I have to schedule this with a watch timer or some other method to remind me every 45 minutes or so.
I force myself to take a deep breath in, hold, suck in a little more air, and then exhale all the way out.
Just a few breaths to get back on target.
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