Little Bo Breath
Little Bo Breath has lost her depth,
And can’t tell where to find it:
She closes her eyes, tunes inside
And breathes from hips to armpits.
When you feel shallow and dull, deeply breath to get more full.
Settle your seat and settle your feet.
Close your eyes and visualize a cave in each armpit; dwell inside.
Breathe in waves from hips to caves.
Deepen each region of your pits, so a ball of wool could comfortably fit.
This transpires to the cave of your heart, embodying this depth is an art.
Serve others from this Chit, that all begins in your armpits.
Dare to roam this deep, no matter how intense get the sheep.
Bondage and ignorance and limitation!
As Earth Day approaches this year, I am struck by what it means to truly foster Peace on this planet. I remember as a child, learning about anti-nuclear protestors who chained themselves to fences and were forcibly removed and jailed. These brave souls became my heroines and heroes in the late 1970’s and 1980’s. I was moved to tears singing Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” and hearing stories of civil disobedience and the message of non-violent resistance. Later in the 1990’s, when I danced barefoot on my very first Earth Day, a lump would form in my throat when I celebrated each small victory (and the Gigantic Hearts) of environmental protestors who sacrificed so much to save a single tree and worked to preserve open space for our children’s children. Peace.
The week before college life officially started at Belmont Abbey College, the Student Life department held one of its biggest and most important trainings of the year for its Resident Assistants. “RA’s” are some of the most influential student employees on campus. They represent the college in helping new students settle into resident hall life, assist in planning social events, lead discussions, report maintenance concerns, serve as a resource to campus information, lend a listening ear and comforting shoulder to cry on, perform room checks, work in the hall office and much more.