BREATHE.....YOU ARE ALIVE!

In all of this craziness........whatever your story tells on a daily basis, surely different than mine or the man next door......... we DO HAVE THE CHOICE, to BREATHE............. you know, that thing that we do all day long?

That thing that sustains us? Yea, let's not forget about that OK? After all, where would we be without our breath?

I sat and read a book tonight, that I read to my mother, on her death bed.

This is not to be a sad blog, just factual stuff.

Anyway, I just moved, and am still setting up shop, and tonight, was doing my bookshelves. My sacred, sacred books, the written "scriptures" of any and everything that has been an interest and passion, sit on those book shelves, and I wiped every book clean, and took care of them like they were gold.

Anyway, I found the book that I brought to the ICU unit, when my brothers and sister called me to tell me that it didn't look good for Mom.

I threw my clothes in a suitcase, and gathered anything that meant something to me, just in case she passed. It was a wild couple of hours. As I was showering, this guttural thing came over me, contemplating what could possibly happen? Of course, Mom isn't going to check out??!! Right?

Anyway, I threw my Buddha statue in the suitcase, some significant books, pictures of us 5 kids, and some things that I knew would be close and dear to my mom. I gathered the Cd's that she would love, and on the plane I went.

I don't mean to make this sound so quick and unemotional. Yes, it was quick, and yes, extremely emotional, but my point to this whole thing was not about my mom's death, that really, just came as an after thought, to..............BREATHE YOU ARE ALIVE.

Why?

Well, my Mom did have Emphysema and Asthma, so, breathing was the major issue.

I thought if I brought my book Breathe You are Alive, book by Thich Nhat Hanh, I could read some verses out of it, to her, to maybe just put it out there, that I could give her the Breath of Life, and do some healing exercises, that maybe some God would step in and help me along to save her from whatever it was that was happening for her.

Well, making a long story short, the book made it to her room. I made an altar in her room with my statues, a picture of us 5 kids, Rosary Beads that I bought for her at the Vatican in Rome, and anything that would possibly make for The Gift of Grace to kick in to save this soul's life.

My sister and I stayed in the room, and it was quiet, and Mom was semi sleeping, and we were trying to think of anything to do that was healing, and conducive to the situation that, thrown into, who would have any idea how to handle, but we somehow had the strength of who or what, I don't know, but we came together in such unison, and something came over us, and there was no question as to where to find strength, or courage, or anything, to be present in the moment, to Mom, and to each other, and to what needed to happen for that being, and for us.

We both meditated, and started doing deep breathing exercises while scanning her body with our hands just above her body, to possibly infuse her with our breath, the intensity of our will, to bring life to a body that was ready to check out on us at any moment.

I reached for my book, Breathe, You are Alive, and had marked some pages while I was on the plane, and started reading some chapters to her, and in the meantime, we both were doing the exercises and giving our heart and soul, for lack of better words, to find a ray of light to give.

Even though there was a book, and words written by someone else, there was a mystical happening........... in that room, as my sister and I read, and breathed, for Mom, in hopes that our efforts would help her to stay with us.

It had to be THE MOST SACRED MOMENT IN MY LIFETIME, to be there with my sister, doing this sort of ritual, this healing, standing above our Mother, giving her our all!! We were pillars for her, and for each other, and a life of it's own transpired, without any thought, without any fear, just a strong willed passion to merge with another human being, to give your everything to see if miracles can happen.......... with this person that happened to be our mother.

BREATHE YOU ARE ALIVE, is an amazing book that teaches you, or anyone, the divine gift in staying connected to your breath. Not to take advantage of what we absolutely need everyday, to function, to do any and everything. Without it, we are.........on our death beds.

Don't take your breath for granted. If it is in any way, at risk, you will see how incredibly fortunate we are to have each living breath, inhaling, and exhaling. And.........if you were to witness someone at risk, you will immediately gain an understanding of how incredibly sacred our breath is, and how we spend so much time worrying about this and that, and all the while, all we needed to do was BREATHE, in the moment, and it carries you to where you need to be next, or in that very moment in time.

Get acquainted with your Breath. It breathes YOU............... you need IT!!

Don't take it for granted. It sustains us guys.

BREATHE.........YOU ARE, IN FACT, ALIVE!!!!!!! DON'T MISS OUT ON YOUR ALIVENESS.

Also, in your conscious decision to be aware of your breath, you give life to others, who may need it more than you do.

Stay awake.

Someone may need you too!

Thank you for the opportunity to always share my heart.

I know these are long, but my heart outstretches these small boxes with lettering.

Grateful, beyond belief, nonetheless.

I love you,
Gabriela