A New Year - A New Breath

In a matter of hours, we will let go of this year and welcome in the next. Many of us celebrate this passing from old into new with parties, food, music, and the company of family or friends. Some of us may choose to ease into the New Year in quiet, solitude and reflection. Whatever activities we choose, we recognize on some level that we are celebrating the letting go of something that is done, and the letting in of something that is new.

That same celebration occurs on a micro level each time we breathe. With each exhale, we let go of that which has served us. In those seconds of breathing out, we let go of what we no longer need and create space for what comes next. Without first letting go, we would not have room for any more. So we exhale, and let go. And at the end of that exhale, when we have let go as much as we can, we simply allow the next new revitalizing breath to fill us. We have no need to take a breath; we simply allow it in. We accept it naturally, knowing it sustains us, feeds us, and gives us life. We just as easily let it go, knowing the next one will be there when we’re ready.

Try this exercise. As you exhale, imagine your out-breath flowing down the front of your body, from your head down to the tips of your toes. As it curls around your toes, begin to inhale and imagine the in-breath flowing up the back of your body, from your feet to the top of your head, where it becomes the next exhale. Breathe out - down the front. Breathe in - up the back. Continue to follow your breath as you breathe. Exhale, down the front. Inhale, up the back. Notice any changes you may be feeling as you relax into a natural breathing rhythm. Down the front. Up the back. Exhaling. Inhaling. Letting go. Letting in.

Tonight, however you choose to celebrate the end of this year and the beginning of the next, pause for a moment and celebrate your breath. Exhale - let go. Inhale - allow in. Anchor into your memory a connection between your New Year celebration and your breath. Remember this connection as the string of now moments stretches through the year. Remember your breath, and recapture tonight's celebration of exhaling - letting go, inhaling - letting in. Create the space. Allow it to be filled.

It is all worthy of celebration -- each New Year, each moment, each breath. So, celebrate! And, breathe.