Hi,
It's Brooks,
And it's good to be here with you.
Today we're gonna talk about strengthening the lungs.
This is a very timely topic,
Because there's the coronavirus out there,
Which affects the lungs.
So I thought it'd be really good to put our attention on our lungs,
And to appreciate them,
And to strengthen them.
And I feel like I have good experiences to be able to talk about this.
I had a double lung transplant almost seven years ago,
And got two new lungs,
And I'm doing really well.
I've had no rejection,
And I've learned a lot about the lungs.
You know,
I experienced previous to the transplant,
My lungs were really,
Really sick,
And it was very difficult to breathe.
It was quite a hard couple years.
And then those lungs were let go of,
Because they no longer worked,
And I got two new ones.
And I really appreciate breathing.
I appreciate the work that the lungs do,
And I understand that the lungs are very sensitive.
They're one of the most sensitive parts of our bodies,
And they need the attention,
They need the appreciation,
And they become stronger,
More powerful,
When we appreciate them,
And we love them,
And we recognize the work that they do.
So let's spend some time with our lungs.
And you can do this with your eyes closed or open,
It's up to you,
Whatever's most comfortable.
You can find a comfortable place to sit or to lie down.
And put your hands on your chest,
And feel the breath come in and go out.
Feel your ribs expand with the breath coming in,
And the breath going out.
And there's a rhythm to the breath.
It can be very relaxing.
I liken it to going to the ocean and watching the waves,
Which I find to be very calming.
The body breathes in,
The body breathes out.
It's so great that we don't have to do this.
The body does it for us.
As we feel the breath come in,
And then the breath go out,
We become aware that the lungs are breathing us.
They pull in oxygen from the air,
And they spread the oxygen through the body.
So I'm of the belief that the lungs must love us,
To constantly be breathing us,
To constantly giving us the gift of life.
How lucky are we that we have these two organs in our body that ceaselessly work to give us the experience of life.
How much must something love us to do that?
Lungs are the embodiment of love within us.
All we have to do is put our hand on our chest,
Or just to focus on the breathing,
And we're reminded of that powerful love,
That powerful grace,
And how lucky we are.
And it's natural to find yourself feeling gratitude for the work that your lungs do for you,
For the service they provide you,
For the life that they give you.
The lungs are very vulnerable.
Next to our skin,
The lungs are very vulnerable.
Next to our skin,
They're one of the most vulnerable organs in our body,
Because when we breathe in,
Whether through our nose or through our mouth,
We're taking in air,
But we're also taking in elements that are out there.
Right now there's a lot of pollen around here,
So I'm noticing that.
I breathe in and I can smell the pollen,
And sometimes I have allergies as a result of that.
So the lungs are unprotected in that way.
We breathe in,
And these elements go into our lungs.
Now our lungs have the ability to to take care of themselves in some ways,
But they also thrive off of our love and attention,
Our appreciation of them.
And when we love and appreciate them back,
As much as they love and appreciate us,
They become stronger.
They're able to do more for us.
On top of what they already do,
Out of their pure love and compassion,
It gets even stronger.
So being aware of our lungs,
Being aware of the work that they do,
Being aware of their amazingness.
And they're quite big too,
For organs that are quite large.
So they take up a large part of our body.
So there's a lot to love.
So being aware of them and loving them in return for the love they give us makes them stronger,
Makes them more adaptable.
Now that doesn't mean we're never going to get sick if we do that.
Sometimes we get sick.
Sometimes we breathe in something through our lungs.
And we can get a cold or we can get a flu.
Sometimes we can get a virus like COVID-19 out there.
It's possible.
Because we're around other people,
We breathe in.
They breathe out and we breathe in what they breathe.
Breathe out.
So it's possible that we could get sick.
And that's not the lungs' fault.
It's not that the lungs blew it.
You know,
They're doing a bad job.
It's part of the life of being a lung,
Being lungs.
It happens.
So if we find that we do get sick,
We can still love our lungs.
Even though they may have a hard time breathing in the moment,
Even though they may struggle,
They especially need our love at that time.
So what I'm saying is whether you're sick or you're well,
You can love your lungs.
Because they love you.
Even when you're sick,
Even when they have a hard time breathing,
They still love you.
They do everything they can.
When I was really sick before the transplant and I was having a hard time breathing,
Even though my lungs were very damaged,
I knew that they were doing the best they could to keep me alive.
Even though they're having a really hard time,
They gave everything.
They gave 100%.
And it felt really good knowing that.
I used to talk with my lungs during that time.
I'd put my hand on my heart and talk with them.
So I'd like you to do that now.
Take a few moments to talk with your lungs and tell them how you feel and feel them.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
So now we're going to end our meditation,
Our lungs meditation.
And you can stretch or open your eyes if you had them closed.
And congratulations.
You've connected with such a beautiful part of your bodies.
And your lungs are the better for it.
And as a result,
You're the better for it.
I encourage you to do this now and then.
Put your attention on your lungs like this.
And the more you do it,
The greater that you strengthen your lungs.
And the more you recognize the love that your lungs have for you.
And the more you feel love for your lungs.
And perhaps you can feel the gift of life that your lungs are constantly giving you.
I wish you the best.
Take care.
