Pain, Trauma & Addiction

Thanks for sharing what comes up for you in regards to these prompts, @Rick @ FinestCoaching. The one that strikes me most is your response to number 3, perhaps because I feel the closest resonance to that one at the moment. When I sit with what happened there in Texas, my heart aches - grieves - for the suffering of the parents, teachers, friends, community members... and for the world as a whole.

RE: Your Quote, Gillian,  “Mindfulness can encourage creativity when the focus is on the process and not the product.” 1. Morning time...My New quality of Vision, since having Cataract surgery, y'all with know with age...(Had my Left Eye on May 2nd-Right Eye on May 9nth)...everything is brighter with my eyes adjusting & healing; my images are crisper. With Blinds closed in our office, the sky is bright after a horrendous Rain/Wind storm last night....light sneaks into the corner of my Right eye since our office window is to my right....with no light on my open area is darker, though a tinge of light enters. 2. Being a Professional Photographer, sometimes, I just Shoot, not knowing what will appear with no judgement & utmost curiosity; this is Mindful Photography at it's best...I'll post some Photos of muddy Turtles from a Pond I spotted yesterday. 3. My Heart bleeds with Sorrow for those Families in Uvalde, Texas today...I sit back & think of how many days I worked as a Social Worker visiting many Schools yesterday, never giving thought that my life might be in Danger..forget Politics today...still brings tears to my eyes...simply gut-wrenching!:( 4. I'll report on my Photography experience yesterday visiting a local park ...as I looked down in the putrid dark brown muddy water below me saw slow movements of Turtles barely tipping the rippling the brown muddy surface of the pond, & even dipping downward to a dark brown to dark gray muddy water below...bringing my eyes upward there is a vision calls to my mind a Beautiful to somewhat bright light reflect on the water, contrasting this a brighter green edge of dark and light to dark colored Green trees reflecting on the water then. actual contrasting actual trees entering from the backwoods of the shoreline; up-above was the view of the bright grayish storm-threatening sky...fairly detailed as much as possible...such contrasting Beauty:) (I'll upload that particular Photo when I have a chance).

I've been reading a lot lately as part of a course I am taking. A couple of the books from this list that have been inspiring me and reminding me of what I want to help create in this world are: Mind to Matter by Dawson Church - reminding me of the power of subtle energy and how I can create my reality by aligning with 'higher' or more universal energies, like peace and love A Fearless Heart by Thupten Jinpa - reminding me of the importance and power of continuing to cultivate compassion, for self and for others

For the writers out there, a few creative writing prompts that invite you to convey your experience of this moment: 1. Write about the quality of light coming through your window right now, no matter if it's day or night. (From Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg). 2. Use 'This moment...' as a prompt, a place to start (also from the beautiful book mentioned above). 3. Write about what your heart feels like in this moment. 4. Describe a single object that's close to you right now. Examine it carefully, curiously. Tell about it. Then do the same for something you can see in the distance.

Exciting announcement! The Mindfulness Exercises Podcast will be going live next week. 🎉 As Sean shared in this mindful musings email yesterday: This has been a year in the making. Each episode will be a guided, curated journey into deeper levels of mindfulness to benefit both practitioners and trained mindfulness teachers alike. The podcast invites you to: - Go beyond listening into deeper experiences of mindfulness - Try new evidence-based meditations to keep your mindfulness practice fresh. - Learn from the world’s top mindfulness teachers on how they practice and share mindfulness with others Here’s a preview of what you can look forward to in future episodes: Exploring Habit Change with Dr. Judson Brewer Mindfulness for Changing the World with Sharon Salzberg The Neuroscience of Happiness with Rick Hanson Kevin Griffin Answers Mindfulness Teachers’ Top Questions Compassionate Inquiry with Gabor Maté Mindfulness through an Equity Lens with Michelle Maldonado My personal answers to different mindfulness topics Plus … meditations, mindfulness exercises and more" I'll share the link with you when the podcast goes live next week. Keep your eye on this thread 😊