Breathe

Sometimes when I'm running I forget to breathe, and then it feels hard.

I think I do this in life too. When I get stressed the immediate response is to first clean the entire house, then bake, look up forty million things on the internet, and then clean the house again an hour later.

Ironically, this never helps. I could stand to borrow some wisdom from these owls.

Last night, I tried something new.  In the midst of an anxious fluster, I turned off my appliances and laid in bed and prayed thanking God for what I do have. Just being able to breathe and have gratitude helped me screw my head back on straight and stop being a crazy nancy!

There are some things that every human in every place can appreciate. These are blessings like faith, breath, compassion, nature, life, communication, touch, passion, and LOVE. The very greatest thing is love.

Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love-  1 Corinthians 13:13

We are blessed to have many things. Basic things like running water, music, art, shelter, and food are things some people are not able to take for granted. 

Then a step above that. I get to run everyday with my best friends, feel safe, obtain an education, and communicate with my family, travel, and live a life where I am blessed with chance to GET to think about things other than just basic needs and survival. 

So the anxious self-pity party is over. Life can again resume! It's always darkest before the dawn. Listening to SHAKE IT OUT by Florence and the Machine gets me motivated to get the devil off my back!