Mindfulness Garden Games
by Joann Calabrese
author of Growing Mindful

Mindfulness

Media

My interview with Karen Hager, Out of the Fog Radio is here: https://bit.ly/otfgarden 

Listen to my recent interview with the Express Yourself Teen Radio Podcast  here:  https://www.voiceamerica.com/show/2014/express-yourself

Here is a link to my recent interview on the on the Bernard Alvarez Show:   htttps://www.facebook.com/events/2751454395169731/    

My article, “Spring Renewal–Four Plant Based Practices,” appears in the the February issue of Aspire magazine. Read it here.

The February  issue of Aspire magazine has an article by me, Spring Renewal – Four Plant Based Practices. Check it out here.

See my article in the January Llewellyn Journal, Embracing Winter Energy: Three Practices. Check it out here.

My book, Growing Mindful – Explorations in the Garden to Deepen Your Awareness, provides inspiration on practicing mindfulness in the garden.  The activities in Part One of the book include garden crafts, meditations, and movements. Part two of the book is an exploration of the energetic correspondences of 52 different plants. Each plant can be used as a mindfulness focal point for one week of the year.

I have also created a three minute video on mindfulness walking with photos of Bluff Lake Nature Center in Denver.

View it here:  Mindfulness Walk at Bluff Lake Nature Center

Download a Winter Mindfulness Scavenger Hunt 1

Mindfulness is the practice of being present in each moment and paying conscious attention to what is actually happening, rather than being lost in our heads.

Some of the Many Benefits of Mindfulness Practice

  • Reduces Stress
  • Improves Focus
  • Improves body awareness
  • Reduces anger and other emotional reactivity
  • Increases compassion and empathy
  • Improves immune function
  • Helps with pain management
  • Improves memory
  • Improves adaptability

Here are some of my favorite books on meditation and mindfulness practice.

The Foundations of Mindfulness, How to Cultivate Attention, Good Judgment, and Tranquility, Eric Harrison

Jon Kabat-Zinn. Originally published in 1994, the book that moved mindfulness practice from a religious context to mainstream. Although Kabat-Zinn has written lots of other books, this book has all the basics. Kabat-Zinn is the executive director of the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. He is the founder and former director of the UMMC Stress Reduction Clinic and an associate professor of medicine in the division of preventive and behavioral medicine. Using mindfulness meditation, Kabat-Zinn works to help people reduce stress and deal with chronic pain, and a variety of illnesses, particularly breast cancer.

Jon Kabat-Zinn. Once you’ve read Wherever You go There You Are, or have a beginning practice, this book can be used as part of a daily reminder. Each short chapter focuses on a different aspect of mindfulness and can be read quickly.

Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life,   Thich Nhat Hanh

 

 

 

 

Meditation for Beginners,  Jack Kornfield

A book on mindfulness practices for children, using the analogy of a seed and garden to talk about nurturing the practice

 Websites

  • Heart-Math Institute. The mission of Heart Math is to help establish heart-based living and global coherence by inspiring people to connect with the intelligence and guidance of their own hearts. The website posts research, articles, and Free Tools for Well Being, including specific tools for children and young adults. Lots of information at this website.
  • UCLA Mindfulness Research Center.     Free guided meditations provided by the UCLA Mindfulness site.