March Sea Life day 22 "Stop and Breathe"

"Stop and Breathe"

I walked into my kitchen this morning and found that my teenage lovelies had left a stack of dirty dishes on the bench top. So, instead of enjoying the lovely bird songs I heard or reveling in the pleasant dreams I had just awakened from, I suddenly felt a growling in my gut  and as I stared unhappily at the large pile, the thoughts started coming...what a way to start the day....who do they think will clean this up?.....how inconsiderate....grumble, grumble......

With each thought, I grew increasingly irritated and then super grumpy that my initially good mood was disappearing at lightening speed. I fixed myself a cuppa coffee and took a quick look at the little sign I had taped to my fridge. Following the advice I had painted on my sign changed everything. The idea for it came from something I had seen days ago.


Last week as I walked through through the hallways of an elementary school where I was subbing for the day, the class I walked with came to an abrupt halt. Wondering why they'd stop mid step, I looked over and saw a laminated paper version of a STOP sign posted to the wall. The class stood still and no one spoke.

After a few seconds, we proceeded until we reached a second  sign, where again, they all stopped and stood quietly. What a brilliant idea! I promptly stole it (the idea, that is).

As we go through our days, many of us get so busy and are moving so quickly, that the word "stop" would be the last thing on our minds. Stopping might mean:

1. Not finishing something that needs to be done
2. Creating more stress for ourselves
3. The beginning of panic and an increase in the frantic pace

I swiped the idea and created several small signs for myself and posted them in various places. They look like this:

During the day, they remind me to stop and breathe. It is incredibly calming and feels like a super-mini meditation. I'm guessing just about everyone can find time to slow down a bit and take those 3 deep breaths. It can really change how things look and feel.

"Stop and Breathe," 8 x 10" Watercolor and ink