The Air, The Wind, and The Breath

It hit me and fell. A creature unlike any I had seen before. It was the largest and most beautiful butterfly I’d ever seen.

As I lean down to look, it did not move. “Poor butterfly” your life like many short. Leaning over compelled to feel it’s softness, my hand and body stopped. There I was frozen on side of the road looking at a lifeless creature.

In an instant, a picture of an ambu bag came to mind. With one hand, I was supporting a chin and the mask. With the other hand, I squeezed the bag to provide the first breath of air to sustain life. This was my patient, the first who would try to die on my shift.

Back on the side of the road, all I can do is take a deep breath and blow. At the same time, I felt a warm breeze over my left shoulder. As the air fell upon the butterfly the right wing lifted. Was it alive?

In the same moment, I was free from this holding state.

Back home, I spent the day learning about butterflies. As well, I looked through many pictures trying to identify its kind. But there were none like this butterfly. Had I found a new species?

No, I’d found a moth.

Like my patient, they would both leave my presence alive.

As I walked away, I knew where my breath came from. Or did I?

As Florence Nightingale (1860/1969) points out “. . . few people think, where that air comes from” (p. 12).

Reflecting on the evidence

1. Differentiate The Breath, The Wind, and The Air.
2. Analyze the spiritual symbolism of the moth from one culture.

References

Beck, M. (2023, August, 18). Lifeless it Lay [Photograph].

Beck, M. (2023, August 18). The Air, The Wind, and The Breath [Photograph].

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Culture. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved August 22, 2023, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture

Nightingale, F. (1969). Notes on Nursing What it is, and What it is Not. Dover Publishing. (Original work published 1860).

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Antheraea Polyphemus. Wikipedia. Retrieved August 18, 2023, from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antheraea_polyphemus

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Butterfly. Wikipedia. Retrieved August 22, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly

Special Thanks

Sheryl Renee, Queen Bee Painting, reviewer for The Air, The Wind, and The Breath.

Annah Renee Schwartz Howell, my daughter, editor and reviewer for The Air, The Wind, and The Breath.

Tracey Stones, fellow blogger and friend, editor and reviewer for The Air, The Wind, and The Breath.