As second runner up to my best New Year resolution so far, which was to make no resolution at all, I actually can attest to the great benefits to be had when resolving to take 5 deep breaths, outdoors, daily.

Through the nostrils, slowly and deeply in and out, evenly paced with no straining, jaw relaxed and face pleasant/neutral.  Look at something lovely, in the near distance.  All of which does add up to yogic breathing, at base.  But without a mat or a plan, and inserted into the day at such time as the outdoor manages to remind the body and mind of true inhabitance.

Perhaps most important: if a day passes by without those breaths being taken, there’s always a door nearby.  Open it up and breathe, because it can just happen at will.  Also, this year I’ve pared down to three breaths.  And though tempted by the adjective “measly,” the benefits accorded by those three conscious breaths are so undeniable as to defy minimization.

And if any of you (my handful of sweet readers whom I have resolved to acknowledge with gratitude despite the bashfulness born of my social media ambivalence) do indeed resolve to take those occasional and intentional outdoor breaths, I hope the small exercise of will serves your spirits well.

Merci, truly