I have enjoyed the teachings of Eckhart Tolle. He was first introduced to me by Oprah Winfrey when I took her on-line workshop titled, “The Power of Now.”
Take Time to Breathe SlowlyandDeeply
On the website, Respiratory Therapy Zone, there are some wonderful quotes that reinforce the importance of slow, deep breathing:
99 Awesome Quotes About Breathing (Respiratory Therapist Edition)
Breathing is the process of taking air into the lungs and expelling it back out into the world.
It’s important to understand what it means to breathe and to really have a deep understanding of the word.
To do that, let’s take a look at some of the absolute best quotes about breathing. Are you ready? Let’s dive in!
Best Quotes About Breathing:
1. Breathing is the greatest pleasure in life. – Giovanni Papini
2. Just breathe. – Author Unknown
3. Breathe deeply, until sweet air extinguishes the burn of fear in your lungs and every breath is a beautiful refusal to become anything less than infinite. – D. Antoinette Foy
4. Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure. – Oprah Winfrey
5. Inhale the future, exhale the past. – Author Unknown
Ed Coyle Photography Montana sunset
I like that last one… for it is when we can breathe out the past that we make space for the now.
More Great Quotes
6. The trick to life is to just keep breathing. – Johnny Lung
7. Learn how to exhale, the inhale will take care of itself. – Carla Melucci Ardito
8. When the breath is unsteady, all is unsteady; when the breath is still; all is still. Control the breath carefully. Inhalation gives strength and a controlled body; retention gives steadiness of mind and longevity; exhalation purifies body and spirit. – Goraksasathakam
9. The wisest one-word sentence? Breathe. – Terri Guillemets
10. Only those who know how to breathe will survive. – Pundit Acharya
11. If you woke up breathing, congratulations! You have another chance. – Andrea Boydston
12. Pause, breathe. Repair the universe, then proceed. – Author Unknown
13. Breathe in deeply to bring your mind home to your body. – Thich Nhat Hanh
14. Without full awareness of breathing, there can be no development of meditative stability and understanding. – Thich Nhat Hanh
15. Breathe, it’s just a bad day, not a bad life. – Author Unknown
Bob & Nancy at Big Sky
It’s a good life when at 81 you still are downhill skiing and you can go with your ski buddy up to the top of Big Sky and enjoy the freshness of the Good Life. That’s where Bob & Nancy are today.
It’s not a bad life when you can look out your window at the Madison Range, Jack Creek Canyon and Fan Mountain, and breathe in the freshness of the air, and know how blessed you are!
Breathe in the fresh air Fill it gently in your lungs Release all tension
Breathe deeply – – – Release Now, go out into the world And plant a love seed
It’s a grand Tuesday! Thanks for visiting JanBeek. See ya tomorrow.
No, it’s not a love affair between me and my youngest Swiss grandson, Chrissy. But, Chrissy is the reason for my blog topic today.
I was shocked earlier this week to learn that Chrissy has a girlfriend. I didn’t know it. I hadn’t heard anything about it! And Chris lived for about 5 months here in Montana last year… it’s not like we’re distant relatives!
I was delighted to learn the news, because Bob & I have been praying everyday for Chris… asking God to keep him safe, help him find happiness, help him be accepted into the nursing program he has applied for, and help some smart young female discover what a sweet. lovable guy he is – and give him the love and affirmation he needs and deserves. I know God listens to my prayers. I was convinced He would answer these fervent requests.
Prayers Answered
Then I learned in a text exchange with our daughter (Chrissy’s mom) this week that not only has Chris found a girlfriend, but he found her with the magic of the internet!
I tell you, friends, it’s a new world out there! Our young people have prayers answered by a very hip God Almighty! Chris has been communicating regularly with darling Natalia – using the wonders of FaceTime, no doubt.
Aren’t they adorable together?
Long Distance Romance
I am not an old-fashioned 80-year-old Grammy who objects to internet match-making. I figure this is a big world, full of wonderful people all over the place. The person God intends for us may not live in our part of the world. In the olden days, people didn’t know about some distant soulmate unless they happened to travel to that foreign land and happened upon them “accidentally.”
In today’s world, Match.com and other dating sites link people up from across the world. I don’t know if that’s how Chris met Natalia or not, but if it is, good for him! What fun!!
Cut the Distance
In today’s world, if you spend enough time seeing and talking to one another on-line, and the sparks fly across the miles, there will come a time when (if you can afford it) you want to cut the distance and meet face-to-face.
If you think I was shocked to learn that Chris has a girlfriend, imagine my surprise when I discovered last Thursday that the next day Chris was flying 6,000 miles to meet Natalia and her family face-to-face. AMAZING!!
I did a little research and found the city where he is… the only city in Colombia with access to the ocean. I can imagine how beautiful it is. I researched ten top things to do in and around Cali… and of course I sent my grandson an e-mail suggesting a few of them for the two of them. Silly me! Natalia lives there! Of course she will know the top spots! And she’ll be able to give Chris suggestions a whole lot better than this long-distance, inquisitive Grammy can! But, the Devil made me do it! Hah!!
He probably won’t take her salsa dancing… that’s one of the things I learned Cali is famous for. I restrained from sending him the step-by-step instructions on how to learn to salsa in five short minutes! But I did send a link to a hot night spot where salsa dancing is featured!
He probably won’t take her out to a bee yard, but this is a picture of a Colombian beekeeper – – – and after all, Chrissy’s Grampy is a retired beekeeper! Wouldn’t you think he’d want to teach her all about that part of his family heritage?
He’ll probably take her to a restaurant more than once. My guess is, that’s about as close as he’ll get to the idea of salsa. But who knows? He’s full of surprises these days!!
Chris will probably take a walk along the shore – and enjoy many beautiful sites. I’ve asked him to take some more pictures and share them. Do you think he will? I hope so!!
Where Will it Go From Here?
What happens next?? Your guess is as good as mine! I don’t know if the relationship is meant to go beyond wonderful FaceTime conversations and a memorable trip to see her face-to-face and meet her family. Only God knows. But, in the meantime, I am grateful he made the trip there safely; he sent us one picture; he shared with me what city she lives in (so my curiosity could be satiated); and he and Natalia look happy together.
God bless you, Chris and Natalia!
Ain’t love grand? Do you have an internet love story to tell?
Stay tuned. I’ll let you know what happens next when I find out!
This week’s menuWaiting for the crowdBiding time with a crossword puzzle Early birds here to visitTune in to those conversations- you’ll keep up with all the community news!Karen & Briana are busy creating their delicious lunch for today. They treat themselves to coffee, tea, water, or lemonade… Or as server, I deliver it. Sometimes whole groups reserve a table and meals for their lunch meeting. This was the ROMEOs = Retired Old Men Eating Out!Mary is the volunteer at the reception desk today. She collects their $5. Best deal in town!!The Center is used for a variety of purposes. One of them is described on this poster that greets our diners. All our workers are volunteers except for Brianna who is the main chef, menu planner, shopper, etc.
The hands above belong to today’s volunteer dishwasher. He is eating his meal early so he’s available to do his job when the dishes and pots n pans start pouring in.
But no meal’s complete without dessert, right?And no chocolate pie is complete without whipped cream!Never fear… if chocolate’s not your thing, we have coconut cream! Your friendly waitress will BEE happy 🐝 to take your order.
So, that’s what I did this morning. What did you do
When the great Sufi mystic and poet Jalal-ud-Din Rumi died at sunset in Konya, southern Turkey, on December 17, 1273, he had composed over 3,500 odes, 2,000 quatrains, and a vast spiritual epic called the Mathnawai. Now with A Year of Rumi from acclaimed Rumi scholar Andrew Harvey, you will receive a hand-selected poem from this incredible visionary’s life work every day for the next year – that’s 365 poems from the 13th century.
Increasingly, Rumi is being recognized as the unique spiritual genius he is, as someone who is fused at the highest level and with the greatest possible intensity the intellect of a Plato, the vision, passion and soul-force of a Christ or Buddha, and the extraordinary literary gifts of a Shakespeare. Rumi is, not only the world’s greatest mystical poet, but also an essential guide to the new planetary spiritual renaissance that is slowly emerging from the ruins of our civilization. He speaks to us from the depths of our own sacred identity, and what he says has the electric eloquence of our innermost truth. No other poet or philosopher has Rumi’s almost frightening intimacy of address, and has conveyed the terror, rapture and wonder of awakening to Divine Love with such fearless and gorgeous courage, such humility and such unflinching clarity. “The daily poems have become a routine part of my morning, and they always seem to resonate with difficulties that I am currently facing. That means that each morning, I am given a few minutes to just consider the meaning behind my choices, the value behind what I care about, and ways to better love those closest to me. These few minutes have become a centering time of self-actualization.”You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean, in a drop.
One of the world’s foremost Rumi interpreters, Andrew Harvey began a life-long exploration and explication of Rumi and Sufi mysticism in Paris in 1984, with a group of French Sufis and under the guidance of Eva De Vitray-Meyerovitch, the magnificent translator of Rumi into French. This collection of versions of Rumi by Andrew Harvey contains some of the master’s most luminous verse, along with some of his lesser-read poems, with the aim of presenting a balanced view of his teaching that includes both the high-flying love of God and the rigorous path of discipline essential for those who seek it.
“Stop acting so small. You are the universe in ecstatic motion.”
“Whatever lifts the corners of your mouth, trust that.”
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”
“Be like a tree and let the dead leaves drop.”
“I have been a seeker and I still am, but I stopped asking the books and the stars. I started listening to the teaching of my Soul.”
“In the blackest of your moments, wait with no fear.”
“These pains you feel are messengers. Listen to them.”
“Close your eyes, fall in love, stay there.” Actual course participants share their experiences
“I just started my year of Rumi and it is one of the best gifts I could ever give myself!”
“Rumi brings me closer to God than I have ever been. I feel as though Rumi lives within me and I, him. I hope to find through this course that Rumi can help me let go and let God.”
“Rumi is the truth. The whole world it is in danger – how we can change that only by love? To love each other and not by words, but by actions. Love is the universal law. We live in world with no boundaries, no walls and no control. We are free and do not want to be controlled.”
“Have you not spent hours gazing at the night sky under a spiraling Milky Way in utter joy? Rumi must have done that. His oneness with All is everywhere explicit in this work.”
“Rumi messages are very spiritual and deep, sometimes it takes me a few days to get the real meaning, but the process is what is about to open up and seek deep within you.”
“Rumi has the ability to always connect with the Almighty, as if in tune.”
“I have found that every time I read a Rumi poem it immediately resonates within my soul, my spirit. I use to be in quest for the perfect Rumi poem; however, I have found that each are so loving and beautiful that they are expanding inside of me. The more I take them in the more they grow and the deeper the feelings of these gems go inside my soul, my spirit. There is a personal journey commencing for me and I find that there are few words to adequately explain what I am feeling but that of the feeling of joy.”
“I enjoy receiving the daily translations in my inbox, it delights my soul to relish in all that is Rumi. I have a greater appreciation for the simple pleasures of life because of his poetry. He inspires me to create not from the mind, but to feel and think with the soul.” About Andrew Harvey
Andrew Harvey is an internationally renowned religious scholar, writer, and teacher, and the author of over 30 books, including the critically acclaimed Way of Passion: A Celebration of Rumi, as well as The Hope: A Guide to Sacred Activism, Journey to Ladakh, The Return of the Mother, Son of Man, and The Direct Path: Creating a Journey to the Divine Using the World’s Mystical Traditions. He is also coauthor of the best-selling The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. His work has been honored with the Benjamin Franklin Award and the Mind Body Spirit Award (both for Mary’s Vineyard: Daily Readings, Meditations, and Revelations, with photographs by Eryk Hanut), and the Christmas Humphries Award for A Journey in Ladakh. Born in south India in 1952, Harvey studied at Oxford University and became a Fellow of All Soul’s College in 1973. He is Founding Director of the Institute for Sacred Activism.
This article inspired me to look more deeply into this 13th century genius. My blogging. Writers’ Group friend, Lilie Allen (@ WordPress Tea, Toast and Kindness) often quotes him. I think this 365 page book of selected writings by Rumi sounds promising.
Our Valentine Friends Treated us to a dinner At Blue Moon Cafe
Driving to Cameron, The setting sun was gorgeous Happy Valentine
Loved meeting long-time friends in Cameron.
Bob & Richard had a lot of catching up to do.
So did Pam and I. Good friends are such a blessing, aren’t they?
We were grateful for clear roads to and from.
How did you spend your Valentine’s Day? Did you go out to eat? Did you meet up with long-time friends or share the day/evening with family? Tell me about it!
