Quote of the day: “Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your breath as the means to take hold of your mind again.”
― Thích Nhất Hạnh, The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation
I’m a wimp in so many ways. But I use the practice of breathing through to give myself room to accept experiences that I would otherwise avoid in order to experience nature, beauty, and wonder.
I don’t like feeling uncomfortable, sweaty, too hot, or too cold. I dislike bugs and itchy bug bites. Spiders totally creep me out as do ticks, rats, bats and centipedes. I keep trying to maintain a non-violent stance in my life, but have great difficulty not swatting flies, mosquitoes, ants, and spiders when I find them inside the house. Clearly, I have a long way to go before I reach any kind of spiritual enlightenment.
My pain threshold is extremely low as is my appetite for thrills. I’m frightened easily and don’t consider myself terribly brave.
I like my comforts—clean sheets, cool breezes, warm baths, and soft easy chairs. So why would I go out of my way to plan adventures that involved sweating, not sleeping, pain, mosquitoes, ticks, flies and bats?
Because there is more to life than comfort!
If I were to insist on staying inside my comfort zone I would miss so much! Stepping outside the box of my normal life wakes me up, makes me notice and appreciate things in a new way. It also teaches me where I am limiting myself because of my own clinging to comfort and fills me with compassion for displaced persons all over the world.
I probably won’t ever run a marathon or canoe the Boundary Waters. And I’m unlikely to do the kind of rough travel that would take me to wild places around the world.
But I try every so often to step outside my comfort zone to do something that makes me nervous and a bit scared and uncomfortable. I don’t do this because I’m a masochist. I do this to keep expanding my edges and to help me learn that comfort is often highly over-rated.
I find that I often long for the comforts of home, even as I walk through a new adventure. It’s not that I let go of all of my desires and preferences.
I breathe through them, letting my breath bring me back to beauty, soul, spirit, and wonder.
Sometimes I still bail early, not staying as long as I had planned, not doing everything I wanted to do. It’s OK to be imperfect and inconsistent and perfectly human. We all are. Try stepping out of your comfort zone. Use your breath to bring you back to yourself when you’re feeling challenged. Notice your clinging. Notice your thoughts. Be kind to yourself. And keep breathing through and allowing.
How long has it been since you stepped out of your comfort zone? What experiences are you missing?
May you walk in beauty.
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