Airtime

This week’s blog will focus on some of my favorite exercises from the second section of my book “The Songbird In My Heart.” These exercises are called “Acts of Contemplation, Freedom for a Glad Heart” and are designed to put you in touch with your deeper self. Each day a corresponding prayer from the book will also be posted to Facebook.

The inspiration for these exercises came from two unlikely sources. The first are the beautiful books from Thomas Merton and his editors A Book of Hours, Seeds of Contemplation, and New Seeds of Contemplation. The second is the red Fieldbook by Peter Senge to his best selling business book The Fifth Discipline. While this part of the book bears little resemblance to these great books, they did serve as inspiration.

Please take some time and try them out! If you like, let me know how it goes. Best of luck. Mark

Acts of Contemplation, Freedom for a Glad Heart

Monday – Wake-up Time
Today – Airtime
Wednesday – Mealtime
Thursday – Moontime
Friday - A Moment in Time


Airtime
Opening Thoughts
There is nothing more influential to your healthfulness and peace of mind than your breathing. Your body and all of its complex processes are dependent on a reliable oxygen and carbon dioxide transport. Your breathing connects your body to your mind and in so doing offers a useful entry point into your consciousness.

Acts of Contemplation
Act 1- Try this breathing exercise:
• Let in the fresh air and sounds of nature
• Relax in a comfortable chair.
• Breathe in slowly to 60% of lung capacity over a count of 5.
• Let the breath out slowly, over a count of 5.
• Repeat this process ten more times.
• As you repeat, begin to notice your heartbeat (probably in the neck).
• Feel your heartbeat radiate out to the rest of your body.
• Now, notice the pleasant feeling in your body (probably in the belly). Let that feeling radiate out to your entire body.
• As you breathe feel the presence of your body and a deep peacefulness.
• Write down anything you feel is important in a journal.

Act 2 - Try this breathing exercise:
• Let in the fresh air and sounds of nature
• Relax in a comfortable chair.
• Breathe in slowly to 60% of lung capacity over a count of 5.
• Let the breath out slowly, over a count of 5.
• Repeat this process ten more times. As you repeat,
o Imagine the breath entering slowly through the toes up the spinal cord into your forehead
o Imagine the breath exiting slowly from your forehead down your spinal cord out your toes.
• Feel the aliveness and presence of your body.
• Write down anything you feel is important in a journal.

Act 3 - Try Act 2 standing with the legs spread shoulders width apart. Imagine drawing the air from the earth below through the soles of your feet, up your spine, through the top of your head into the sky above. As you release your breath, imagine drawing the air from the sky above through the top of your head down your spine and into the earth below.

Act 4 - Try this breathing exercise.
• Let in the fresh air and sounds of nature
• Relax in a comfortable chair.
• Breathe in slowly to 60% of lung capacity over a count of 5.
• Let the breath out slowly, over a count of 5.
• Repeat this process ten more times. As you repeat,
o Imagine the breath entering slowly through every pore in your skin into the center point of your body
o Imagine the breath exiting slowly from the center point of your body out every pore of your skin.
• Feel the aliveness and presence of your body.
• Write down anything you feel is important in a journal.

Act 5 - Try Act 4 standing with the legs spread shoulders width apart.

Act 6 – Review and consolidate your notes for future reference.