Breathe
I don’t practice yoga, but before the pandemic I did take pilates from a wonderful teacher who also teaches yoga. She taught us about breathing in our pilates classes, and she inspired this poem.
Here I am reading it, if you’d like to listen and focus on your breath.
Jone has the roundup today at her new website, where she’s celebrating Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong’s new anthology HOP TO IT. I’m jumping for joy for this one and thrilled to be included!
Liz
Lovely, Liz. Taking some time to notice our breathing can be soothing and renewing. When I was growing up, my father would tell me to take deep breaths. I don’t think he thought about yoga or anything like that, it was just something he did.
Thanks, Tababatha, what a lovely thing for your father to have shared with you.
I like all the parts, Liz, but especially the “breathe out/gratitude for all”. And that you included nature as a way of healing is special, too. What a gift our breath is, if we only took time to breathe & understand. Thanks & Happy Friday!
Thanks, Linda, Happy Friday to you too!
This is lovely, Liz. Perfect for breathing with the trees as we move into autumn.
Thanks, Laura, I hadn’t thought of that connection.
What a lovely, therapeutic poem, Liz, and such a gorgeous ending. I love that you recorded it so that it can be used as a mini-meditation. It works!
Yay! I’m glad you think it works as a meditation. That is exactly what I was hoping.
As I read your poem my breath synced up with the rhythm of your words, Liz. I love that no matter what is happening around us, we can always come back to our breath and ground ourselves. Thanks for the reminder. 🙂
Yay! I’m so glad, that’s definitely what I was hoping.
Liz, your poem gently, yet thoroughly examines breathing. Your words are concurrently calming and illuminating. They made me conscious of my own breathing. Good poetry evokes a response from a reader. You have done that. Your poem also delivers a connection to the words of a Jimmy Buffett song- ‘Breathe in, breathe out, move on.’
Thanks, Alan.
Breathe in, breathe out: what a beautiful chant that floats in my mind as you read it. I can feel the stress released with your poem. This could be my go to poem when meditating and preparing for yoga, Liz. This one also could be a great writing prompt or mentor text for students.
Thank you, Carol, I’m so very glad you could feel the rhythm and the release.
I’m especially taken in with breathe in what the green leaves release and breathe out what the leaves need. We are part of a world, aren’t we? Such a wonderful reminder of our part in this world includes breathing and gratitude for it. Bravo!
Thanks, Linda, yes, those are my favorite parts as well. What circulates through us also circulates through the world.
What a wonderful and very useful poem. I am going to share it with my family and use it myself and with my grandchildren. Love it.
Debbie
Thanks, Debbie, I’m quite touched that you want to share it with your family.
This poem is a perfect rhythm. Loved the reading and took time to breathe with it. Thank you.
Thanks, Donna.
Lovely! And so perfect for these days.
Thanks, Ruth.
Hi, Liz! We have been practicing our calming breathing since Day 1 of Prek–they are very into it! Videos help us, but it’s time to try just pausing and breathing on our own soon. I love the way our relationship to the gas and water of the universe is central to your poem.
Hi Heidi! I love that you are teaching that to your students.
I have a quote at my desk, “Breathe in hope; exhale gratitude,” but I like gratitude going both out AND in.
I will print this poem and use it with my students, as a part of our end-of-day routine of sharing gratitudes, as a connection to our life science studies, and as a model of how you can include factual information in art. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Mary Lee, it means so much to me that you want to print it out and share it with your students. ❤️
My Apple watch keeps telling me throughout the day to stop and breathe. Who would’ve thought that we would need a watch to tell us to relax. Thanks for this poem of air, in and out, and how important it is to feel gratitude every day.
I’m glad you have that reminder. I keep thinking I should set one up to remind me to get up and move!
Your poem is lovely and helpful as a reminder.
I look forward to reading your poem, in HOP TO IT. Breathe is perfect to practice breath work. Thank you for that.
Who knows if you are still looking at comments five years into the future, but I found this poem and hope to share it as part of a breathing exercise at church on Sunday. I will of course name you as the author. Breathing is very hard for me (breath exercises, I mean) and so I was hoping to find a poem instead of just the breathing exercise script. Also, when we contemplated our future last fall with the impending election, I came up with a phrase, “we will touch leaves,” and the fact that your poem references leaves gives me so much joy. Thank you for sharing this poem on the internet!
Yes, of course, you are welcome to use it–I was hoping people would. I am honored that you want to. Thank you for letting me know.