God is Not a Drug
This morning, as I was leaving the school after I dropped my children off, I ran into a child in the hallway. She was probably about eight and was wearing a pink sweatshirt that said "Smile." She had an extremely worried look on her face so I stopped and asked her if she was okay. She hesitated at first, but then she said, "I left my homework folder with my friend and she is not here yet. So I don't have my homework to turn in." Panic spread across her eyes. After asking her some details about when her friend was going to show up, she said to me, "I am afraid my teacher is going to tell me I am irresponsible." I immediately started breathing, which I am finding is the best thing to do with fear. The sacred breath of life is the only thing that can truly transform fear. So, I breathed and then I invited her to breathe with me, right there in the hallway. And she did. I saw her face begin to relax just a bit. And then she decided to go in and tell her teacher what happened.
The breath of life does not make things all better right away. The child's homework didn't magically show up at our feet. God is not a drug. But the breath gave this child the courage she needed to go in and talk to her teacher. In its non-judgment, the breath reminds us that we are gifted with life, that is the core of who we are. So today, I invite you when you feel afraid or things just aren't going your way, to breathe first. The breath of life won't fix the situation to our liking, but it will help it to move emotion along in creative and renewing ways. It will also connect us to our bodies and make us present to the moment, which gives us the strong foundation we need to show up in this complex, and wondrous experience we call life.
Wonderful story about your sensitive and timely corridor intervention at school!
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