I am sitting by a green turtle resting on a beach in Hawai’i.  The waves are gently lapping the shore, while palm branches dance in the breeze.  I feel an ease in my body and heart, as I breathe and relax and slow down.  I say “Yes” to this moment.  Yes to just breathing and relaxing and feeling connected to my Soul and my Source and this beautiful Earth.  Yes.

Then I wonder, how can I sustain this feeling when discomfort arises? I hear these words: “Say Yes and Breathe, like you are doing here now.  Say Yes and Breathe.  No matter what is going on, Say Yes and Breathe.”

Flying home I get a chance to practice.   As we descend into San Francisco, I feel a pain in my forehead from the change in air pressure.  This time I choose to say Yes to this moment and focus on my breathing instead of on the fear and discomfort.   It’s just a temporary experience.  I don’t need a pill to stop the pain.  I can be present and breathe consciously.  I can do this.  Yes.

A few days later I get some dental work that leads to a root canal, and I use this same technique.  I breathe in for 4 counts and out for 6 to calm my nervous system.  I have chosen to be here.  I am grateful for the dental technology of 2024.   I feel grounded in my body and remember that this is happening now, and it will soon change.  I can do this.  Breathe.

My summer was a roller coaster of physical imbalances and events for me and others in my close circle.  These included medical tests and procedures and ended with the deaths of a friend and our dog Otto.  I tried to meet each moment without fear or resistance.  Sometimes I used a breathing technique to focus my mind and calm my body like box breathing:  Breathe in for 4, hold for 4, out for 4 and hold for 4.  Sometimes I would breath in Peace and breathe out Love.  Other times just being present in my heart was enough.

As I said Yes to the moment and breathed into my body, I felt more empowered and able to make clear, conscious decisions.  I learned what I could change and where I needed to accept and surrender.  I discerned how I could help another and what I needed to stay stable.  I allowed the feelings of sadness, fear, confusion and overwhelm as well as times of gratitude, tenderness and grace.  I noticed how they came and went like the ebb and flow of the tides.

My purpose in writing about these experiences, insights and practices now is to remind us all of how important it is to manage our inner stability and peace.  We can maintain our alignment to Source and ground ourselves, no matter what is going on around or within us.  In fact, if we let ourselves be pulled off center by every passing event or emotion, we lose our power to navigate our lives.  We also diminish our ability to fulfill our purpose here.

When we feel the next bump, we can remember “It’s just another now.”  We can meet the moment empowered with calm, clarity and courage.  We can say Yes to ourselves and to this now and Breathe.  Say Yes and Breathe.

Yes.  Now.  Breathe.