om mind
O
ne morning last September,
I awoke to my alarm and
found the room was in
semi-darkness. The onset of
autumn had crept up on me...
and all of a sudden it had arrived! Of course,
I had been aware that the nights were drawing
in and becoming chillier but the darkness was
a sudden jolt, a reminder of how silently and
seamlessly the season had changed.
As I considered this, I remembered a
dream I’d had the night before where two
friends were having a conversation. One had
to make a life-changing decision and asked
their friend for their opinion. The friend’s
reply was along the lines of: “Life is like the
seasons. We cannot dwell forever in one
season. At some point the time will come for
us to move on. Change is inevitable.”
This started me thinking about my own life
and the many changes I have been through.
I realised that sometimes life had been light
and bright with happiness flowing through it,
like a welcoming beam of summer light. At
other times the path had been hard with pain,
suffering, grief or hardship and it felt like I
was confined in a long, cold, dark winter.Transition times
At times, the move from one of the phases
or ‘seasons’ had been gradual and I
had barely been aware of the shift until
suddenly one day, like that dark morning, I
had become aware that life was somehow
different – it had moved on around me with
no effort or emotion. My life had changed
like the gradual growing warmth of the sun
in the springtime or the changing colours of
the autumnal leaves. Sometimes, however,
that change was so sudden I was thrown
from my comfort into a spinning, churning
turmoil. My emotions felt like they wouldLife is forever changing just like the seasons. As we enter another new year,
the only constant is our breath, says Lesley Durke
Always
the
breath
overwhelm me – like being caught in a
raging storm. I had become lost on my
journey and was looking for a guiding light, a
new direction that would bring me back into
the sunshine.
At other times I have been aware of the
changes in my life occurring around me and
been able to watch as, day-by-day, I moved
from one season to another. For me, these
times were like the opening of flower buds
in springtime and were times when I was
able to adapt, tune in, make choices and
decisions and ride the changes.
In our ever changing lives, the only
constant is the breath. Wherever we find
ourselves along our path, whatever the
circumstances, whatever the nature of the
changes around us, the breath is always
there. Tuning into the breath can help us to
quieten a mind that is in turmoil or help us
find focus and so ease decision-making.Breathing exercise
The following is a simple breathing exercise
that I like to do at times when I need to
quieten or focus my mind.Find a quiet, calm place to sit or lie making
sure you will be comfortable, warm and
undisturbed for a few minutes. Close your
eyes and place your hands on your belly just
below your ribs but above your navel with
your fingertips touching. Breathe in and out
through your nose and focus on taking your
breath all the way down to your belly so
that as you inhale your belly lifts and your
fingers rise and part then, as you exhale,
your belly drops and your fingertips come
back together.
After a few breaths take your hands
around to the sides of your body and place
them on your ribs. Continue to breathein and out through your nose and focus
on the movement of your ribs under your
hands. See if you can detect your ribs rising
and opening as you inhale then falling and
releasing as you exhale.
Finally, place your hands on your upper
chest with your fingertips touching and see
if you can detect your chest rising up as you
inhale and moving back down as you exhale.Then release your hands and spend
a few breaths just focusing on the flow
of your breath. Be aware of the changes
in temperature as you breathe in and
out: notice if your breath feels tight and
constricted or if the air is flowing easily.
After an exhale, stretch, turn your head from
side to side and move your body. If you are
lying down, roll onto your right side for a
few breaths and then push yourself up to
a sitting position. Rub your hands together
until warm then place them over your closed
eyes to warm and soothe them. Open
your fingers, open your eyes and then give
yourself a lovely massage of your face, neck
and shoulders.Lesley Durke is a yoga teacher and yoga
sports coach based in Kent (yoga-vitality.com)“In our ever changing
lives, the only constant
is the breath. Wherever
we find ourselves along
our path, whatever the
circumstances, whatever
the nature of the changes
around us, the breath is
always there.”