Our Mindful Nature: Meditations Inspired by Nature to Soothe the Overwhelmed Mind and Ease Anxiety

Gifts. ⁠ ⁠ Last week, on my birthday, I received so many gifts. Gifts of time, attention, tea & cookies... By the end of the end of day, my heart was so full of gratitude it felt like it might burst, and the question floating around in my head was - ⁠ ⁠ What if we felt in our bones that all of our life experiences contain gifts? ⁠ The good. The bad. The boring.⁠ When our meditation practice shifts from simply paying attention to the acknowledgement of gifts, well now, we have taken the first step in deepening our meditation practice to something beyond our small ego-based selves… What a gift meditation practice is, a luxury of time, breath and relating to yourself with curiosity and kindness. And here is the interesting thing - with every gift that we acknowledge, 30 more come tumbling into view. Suddenly, we find ourselves awash in gifts that might have previously been unnoticed moments in our lives. Every breath, every thought, every feeling is a gift from your soul to your ego-self. Will you waste these gifts obsessing about your next to-do, or will you witness that obsessive thought with a smile and a “thank you” as you honor the gift of wisdom that just landed in your lap? Today’s episode of The Mindful Minute is a practice in recognizing the gifts. ALL the gifts. With every distraction, every discomfort, every joy, every mundane thought, we will remind ourselves, “this is a gift.” Curious what comes from a practice like this? Try it for yourself and find out! You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

I’m currently reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. In it, the author writes of providing an antidote to what she calls “plant blindness” - the learned ignoring of the plant life around us. This blindness “impedes the recognition of the green world as a garden of gifts.” Kimmerer offers an antidote via a cycle of experience- Attention Gift Gratitude Reciprocity I recognize this cycle as also being the cycle of waking up. This is the cycle of an ever-deepening meditation practice. And it begins with paying attention. Let’s try it together in today’s mini meditation. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

What’s love got to do with it? ⁠ Well... Everything, it turns out.⁠ ⁠ So many of us come to a meditation practice searching for some version of “peace” - less stress, more happiness, some form of contentment. And yet, far too easily, we can get stuck with one foot off the meditation cushion, not realizing we haven’t let ourselves go all in.⁠ ⁠ As practitioners, it is important that we remember that meditation doesn’t end with the mind. We don’t simply meditate, get to know our own thoughts and then stop. We follow an ever-deepening spiral of awareness that both broadens our understanding of the world around us and deepens our understanding of ourselves as awakened beings.⁠ ⁠ My February meditation series lays out a map that moves us through this deepening cycle from a mindful mind to an awakened heart with plenty of practice time so you can feel for yourself what love has to do with it

Sunset is the time when the masculine energy of the day {the heat, fire, planning and passion} is met with the feminine energy of the moon {the cooling, nourishing, restorative and creative}. In some cultures, this time of day is seen as a portal - A time to descend into the netherworld to collect fuel, firewood or the creative spark. A time to close out the cycle of the day, to honor birth and death, conscious and unconscious… Meditating at sunset is an invitation to honor the ritual of cycles in our lives and the wholeness that comes when we don’t miss any of the steps in the cycle. Join me for today’s mini meditation as we learn how to meditate at sunset and cultivate the quality of compassion as part of this practice. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Our January meditation series comes to a close with a reflection of sunset and the practices that are asked of us at this time. Sunset is the time when the masculine energy of the day {the heat, fire, planning and passion} is met with the feminine energy of the moon {the cooling, nourishing, restorative and creative}. In some cultures, this time of day is seen as a portal - A time to descend into the netherworld to collect fuel, firewood or the creative spark. A time to close out the cycle of the day, to honor birth and death, conscious and unconscious… Sadly, as with so many things, modern culture has taught us to bulldoze right through this transition with no notice or pause. I’m as guilty of this as the next person. From 5 - 7 p.m. it feels like a full out sprint in my house. Dinner. Baths. Bedtimes. Clean-up. Crash. Who has time to savor the striations in the sky as day and night meet… And yet… There is something in this nightly invitation to pause that teaches us about wholeness and about balance. Not the mythical I-can-do-it-all-perfectly-all-the-time balance, but the balance of give and take. Sometimes the masculine. Sometimes the feminine. Sometimes with the doing. Sometimes with the being. It is an invitation to honor the ritual of cycles in our lives and the wholeness that comes when we don’t miss any of the steps in the cycle. Sunset is the opportunity to invite in the element of compassion within our meditation practice. We can feel the sunset wrap her arms around us like a wise, ancestral grandmother and say something warm and lovely - Good job today. What a beautiful heart you have. I love you. We need those words spoken to us and it is quite possible no one else will say them as often as we need. So, we learn how to say them to ourselves - literally and metaphorically. Join me for today’s episode of The Mindful Minute as we learn how to meditate at sunset and cultivate the quality of compassion as part of this practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Today’s mini meditation includes 3 special steps that we can use to infuse our meditation practice with a bit more sacredness. It’s an upleveling, if you will, for times when we really need our meditation practice to support big emotions and important moments in our lives. This practices is inspired by this reminder from Martin Luther King Jr. - “Along the way of life, someone must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate. This can only be done by projecting the ethic of love to the center of our lives.” These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Today’s episode of The Mindful Minute is a special offering in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the painful struggles our country is wading through in this moment of time.  Two weeks ago, on Wednesday, January 6, we watched as a group of Americans stormed our Capitol during a joint session of Congress. We watched and heard hatred spew for so many of the cultural, ethnical, racial, sexual divides that make up our population. And amidst this heartbreaking and terrifying display of hatred, our own {my own} values of non-hate/ non-violence have been tested. Today, I am holding close this reminder from Martin Luther King Jr. - “Along the way of life, someone must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate. This can only be done by projecting the ethic of love to the center of our lives.” Today’s class will be a discussion of what to ‘do’ with hate/anger/grief/fear - all the heavy emotions - within our meditation practices and how to project the ethic of love to the center of our lives. Please join me <3 You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Lunchtime is the time of day when we need an added dose of focus and energy to carry us through the rest of the day. It is a natural point of low energy, and often it is also a time when we start to think about how much we haven’t gotten done yet. We start planning tomorrow’s to-do list while still working through today. This tension between low-energy and high-demands actually diminishes our ability to get things done in a creative and timely manner. A mid-day meditation practice is benefited from bringing in the mindfulness tenant of non-judgment. Non-judgment asks us to release our obsession with ‘good job/bad job’. It asks us to let go of ‘I like it/I don’t like it’. And instead, it asks us to simply sit with what is… The simple flow of breath and quieting of the mind is restful and restoring for the body and the brain. Give this practice a try today and see how it impacts your afternoon! These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

For years, lunchtime was my meditation time. It was an easy time for me to be consistent; I knew I was going to eat lunch at some point every day, I knew I could take 10 minutes before that first bite to tune-in, and I could sync it with my kids naps! This is also the time of day when we need an added dose of focus and energy to carry us through the rest of the day. It is a natural point of low energy, and often it is also a time when we start to think about how much we haven’t gotten done yet. We start planning tomorrow’s to-do list while still working through today. This tension between low-energy and high-demands actually diminishes our ability to get things done in a creative, not to mention timely, manner. A mid-day meditation practice is benefited from bringing in the mindfulness tenant of non-judgment. Non-judgment asks us to release our obsession with ‘good job/bad job’. It asks us to let go of ‘I like it/I don’t like it’. And instead, it asks us to simply sit with what is… Rather than grasp for that fully finished project; the perfectly completed to-do list in the middle of the day… let us settle down for a rest within what is. The simple flow of breath and quieting of the mind is restful and restoring for the body and the brain. Isn’t it interesting that we KNOW it is true that if we rest we will be more productive and yet we still fight with it. Funny when you can’t believe the science right in front of you because the culture so loudly insists it isn’t true… or is it? Taking time to pause regularly might be the most sacred and important act we can make in 2021. This is the building block; the fully evolved solution will grow out of this quiet, intentional space. Tune into The Mindful Minute today as we take time for a mid-day meditation pause, and find out for yourself, what happens when you make space to rest in the middle of your day? You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

This mini-meditation is a sunrise {or morning} meditation practice that is designed to help you start your day with a wakeful and calm presence. Practicing first thing in the morning is a great way to get in touch with the quiet of your mind, to establish yourself within your intentions and to move into your day with a quiet grace. I can’t guarantee that your kids, pets and colleagues will cooperate, but I can guarantee that at least you’ll have a head start on a peaceful day ;-) Join me! These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can practice with me live each Monday as I record this podcast. My virtual meditation class includes time for Q&A and a chance to connect with me personally! https://www.union.fit/orgs/meryl-arnett **Use code: Mindful5 to get your first class for $5!** Even better, if you enjoyed today’s episode, leave me a review wherever you get your podcasts, screenshot it and send it to meryl@merylarnett.com to get your first live class with me FOR FREE! ***Did you know I have a FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com? It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl