Breathe

New Year's Resolution #1: to breathe

It might sound like I set the bar way too low this year, but "breathe" is really just a shorter way of saying "find and maintain a spiritual center that is impenetrable by noise, chaos, pain, emotion, and anything else that moves me from a place of grace". This is the year I'm going to try to make meditation part of my daily life. I've been wanting to do this ever since I read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert a few years ago.

I'm struggling with whether or not to document my journey here. It's possible some of you have considered trying (or are in the midst of practicing) meditation and would find my public failure at it very comforting. I'd really like to offer you that. In all seriousness, I have already experienced a beautiful first few days and I am almost giddy at the possibilities meditation may hold for me. I am not a stressed-out person. I don't immerse myself in tasks and relationships that run me ragged. But I am very influenced by auditory clutter (an alternative definition for "family"), and I spend way too much time talking to God and too little time listening. So... meditate it is. By the way, that also means I'm going to have to learn Sanskrit.

Luminary -- I made the luminary pictured above out of Arches Aquarelle watercolor paper, Sumi ink and Dr. Martin's Hydrus watercolors. I cut the painting into four pieces and used a blanket stitch with embroidery thread to connect them. It surrounds a glass-enclosed votive at the center of our dinner table. If I breathe more, will I eat less?