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

Since 2006, I have been pulling at the threads of meditation. The threads of mindfulness, of Shamatha, of Vipassana, of Tantra, of Sri Vidya... ⁠⁠While styles, words, and texts may differ, there are some threads that run through all of these practices. ⁠Threads of Truth, I call them. ⁠⁠In the creation of my Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training, I wove these threads together. ⁠⁠The word "Sutra"  {as in The Yoga Sutra} means to stitch together, and this training is built upon what I've crafted and named as the Awakened Heart Sutra.⁠⁠This sutra contains the fundamental elements that anchor a meditation practice in ancient wisdom, and offer enough expanse from which you can begin to weave your own meditative magic. ⁠⁠Join me for today’s special episode as I share a bit about the ideas and principles behind this training.You can learn more about my:*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can also grab my 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

Two of the most common questions I receive from meditation students:How do I know meditation is actually helping me?Will meditation help with my depression/anxiety/PTSD?Today, I am bringing you a fascinating conversation with one of the world’s experts on what meditation actually does for your brain, Dr. Andrew Newberg, and he is going to help me answer these very questions!Dr. Newberg is the director of research at the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health and a physician at Jefferson University Hospital. He is board certified in internal medicine and nuclear medicine, but what is most interesting to me is that he is a pioneer in the neurological study of religious and spiritual experiences, a field known as “neurotheology.” His research includes taking brain scans of people in prayer, meditation, rituals, and trance states, in an attempt to better understand the nature of religious and spiritual practices and attitudes. In today’s episode of The Mindful Minute Dr. Newberg talks to us aboutWhat happens to our brains with as little as 8 weeks of practiceSome of the different types of meditation and which ones ‘work’ {hint: they ALL do!}A myriad of ways to address the stress and anxiety of pandemic livingHow to build the healthiest brain possibleHis new book Brain Weaver shows that optimal brain health is achievable by successfully weaving together a tapestry of our bio-psycho-social-spiritual dimensions. I loved his book, and truthfully, I could have chatted with him for hours. His work is fascinating and so inspiring as we all endeavour to take better care of ourselves. Enjoy this conversation!You can learn more about Dr. Newberg and his book, Brain Weaver, here: http://www.andrewnewberg.com/If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.You can also grab my 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 is from my exclusive content from Shoreline meditation app. This meditation is accompanied by a custom soundscape from Gordon Hempton. Use headphones for the best possible experience.There is a reason so many fairy tales take place in a forest. There is something magical that happens here. It is a little dark, a little scary, a bit light, and a bit life-affirming. The forest holds it all. When we meditate in the forest, we invite in the spectrum of experience and we approach it all with childlike wonder and curiosity.The forest we hear in this meditation is Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest in the Southern Appalachian mountains of North Carolina. This is one of the last virgin hardwood forests on the east coast. The cathedral-like arches and vaulted ceilings of these hardwood branches form a forest with wonderful acoustics; home to the eastern winter wren and many other beautiful singers.Members of the Cherokee Indian Tribe were the first indigenous people to hear the sounds of this landscape.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 learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can also grab my 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

Y’all know I am a voracious reader, right? So much so that I considered calling my donation page a “buy me a book” page. Books inspire me, provoke questions, and uplift me. I am releasing a series of interviews with authors of some new books that I have just read and love deeply! You know the other thing that I love and do daily {aside from meditate}? I journal. Journaling is such an important practice for me that I even included it as an important part of meditation teacher training! And, today’s guest wrote an entire book inspired by the profound impact of journaling.Marc Champagne unpacks the mental fitness practices and reflective questions shaping the lives of some of the most successful and brilliant thinkers in the world. He is the host of the top 50 ranked podcast, Behind The Human, and co-founded the journaling app (KYO) which ended up reaching over 86 million people without any paid advertising, all within the first two years of launch. He has studied mental fitness practices for over a decade and has consulted for top-rated digital journals and wellness companies.Marc's first book, Personal Socrates, explores the pointed questions that stimulate our mental fitness and teach us how to direct our internal narrative to work for us, instead of against us. "We all ask questions, but are they the right ones, the best ones, and are we asking enough of them?"–Marc ChampagneLearn more about Marc and his new book here: https://www.behindthehuman.com/If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.You can also grab my 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 an important conversation I am sharing with you guys today. I recently had the tremendous honor of having a conversation with Dr. Traci Baxley, the author of Social Justice Parenting: How to raise compassionate, anti-racist, justice-minded kids in an unjust world. Dr. Baxley’s work introduces clear, do-able and specific steps for families to take to engage in the social justice activism that today’s society needs most. She specifically addresses why “raising good kids” and “protecting my little kids from the problems of the world” are false narratives that white parents {myself included} must continue to push back against.And, best of all, Dr. Baxley presents this important conversation in an open-hearted, shame-free way. When I read her book, I felt clear and empowered to introduce important narratives to my children and to engage them in ways our family can take supportive actions.I told her before we started recording that I felt like we were already friends just from reading her book, and that is even more true after our conversation. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Please, please, please go buy her book, read it, and start having these conversations with your own families, if you aren’t already. Lastly, if you are curious why a conversation about social justice is happening on a meditation podcast, please take a moment to listen to today’s episode. Our meditation practice allows us to create connection, clarity and compassion for ourselves, but it doesn't stop there. Our practice ultimately expands outward until we know our connection to all beings everywhere as a true, immutable fact. And, that knowledge asks us to step into action to support our beliefs. That doesn’t mean you have to be at every protest; it doesn't mean that we each do what we can to eliminate the suffering of all beings, everywhere. In small, manageable ways. With heart. I love you all; keep practicing and enjoy today’s episode. 

In a recent meditation, the Franciscan priest and author Richard Rohr wrote: “Being human means acknowledging that we're made from the earth and will return to the earth. We are earth that has come to consciousness.In all the ancient teachings, we read that the body is a microcosm of the universe. There is both poetry and science in these statements. When we acknowledge the truth of this connection between earth and body, it is as if we are entering a deep forest. We must have both the courage to enter the forest as well as the willingness to feed the intuitive senses that will carry us safely through.Join me for a short guided meditation that reflects on this connection to earth herself. 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 learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can also grab my 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

Recently, I listened to an interview with Suzanne Simard, author of Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest.She talks so beautifully about how forests are wired for wisdom and how trees that we previously thought were drowning out young saplings are actually helping them to thrive, much like a grandmother-mother-child relationship.Within this interview, a comment was made that Humus, Human and Humor all share the same root word, and I can’t stop thinking about the truths hidden in this simple fact. The root ‘Hum’ in Latin means ‘ground’. ‘Humus’ means earth or ground.In a recent meditation, the Franciscan priest and author Richard Rohr wrote: “Being human means acknowledging that we're made from the earth and will return to the earth. We are earth that has come to consciousness.In all the ancient teachings, we read that the body is a microcosm of the universe. There is both poetry and science in these statements. When we acknowledge the truth of this connection between earth and body, it is as if we are entering a deep forest.We must have both the courage to enter the forest as well as the willingness to feed the intuitive senses that will carry us safely through.“We are earth come to consciousness.”This month’s meditation series is an exploration of lying on the forest floor, and the connection between humus, human, and humor. We begin with a meditation on earth itself. Join me. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.You can also grab my 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

As our Living in a Divided World meditation series comes to end, I wanted to wrap up the month with a discussion with one of the amazing creative souls that has provided me with a sense of connection and hope during the pandemic - my cousin!Uli Beutter Cohen is a New York City–based documentarian, artist, and the creator of Subway Book Review. She explores belonging to a time and place through writing and photography. Uli is a sought-after speaker and panelist. Her work has been featured on TV, in print and online by New York magazine, Esquire, Vogue, Forbes, Oprah Magazine, Glamour, the BBC, and The Guardian, among others.For nearly a decade, Uli has ridden the subway through New York City to observe, interview, and photograph some of its most imaginative people: the readers of books. Between The Lines: Stories from the Underground, Uli’s first book, is the remarkable result—a collection of conversations that beautifully illuminate who we are and where we are going. Between the Lines is an enthusiastic celebration of the ways stories invite us into each other’s lives, and a call to action for imagining a bold, empathetic future together. So, get on board, stand clear of the closing doors and enjoy this special ride.*Between the Lines releases everywhere on October 26, 2021. You can pre-order Between the Lines at your favorite indie bookshop.Pre-ordering books is a huge help to authors. https://bookshop.org/a/3206/9781982145675 Find Uli at https://www.subwaybookreview.co/@subwaybookreview@theUBCMindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in.Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteYou can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.You can also grab my 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

In this mini meditation, we dig into the four qualities that all beings possess in immeasurable quantities. Lovingkindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy & Equanimity. This guided meditation will walk us through all four qualities, allowing us to foster and grow what we need most for the days that lie ahead.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.In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me!Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteSpecial thanks to today’s sponsors:Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/BaronfigMindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.

This meditation series, Living in a Divided World, is a series about truly acknowledging the level of divisiveness in our society and in ourselves at this particular moment in time. It is a series exploring how we might find a sense of balance or even peace within the fractures.Part 1 invited us to courageously stop and notice that we stand at a crossroad. A crossroad between aversion {all that we disagree with} and attachment {all that we believe to be true and just}. A crossroad where all opposites meet. Part 2 offered the chance to lean in softly, with a willingness to be changed by what we hear. It was a reminder that much of our practice hinges on the ability to listen. And now, in part 3, we dig into the four qualities that all beings possess in immeasurable quantities. Compassion is one of them, to be sure, but compassion alone isn’t enough to get us through this moment. Join me for today’s dharma talk and guided meditation practice; it is designed to help us draw out these 4 immeasurable qualities when we need them the most. Right now.In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me!Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteSpecial thanks to today’s sponsors:Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/BaronfigMindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.

As we explore living in a divided world, as we struggle with the myriad of problems that face us in this moment, it can be hard to understand the teaching of The Middle Way. The invitation to rest in the middle of tension, paradox or discord without needing to resolve it, can feel uncomfortable to say the least. As I work through this teaching in my own practice, I often find myself reflecting on the words of Rilke - “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue.”Join me for today’s mini meditation as we learn to love the questions themselves. 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.In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me!Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteSpecial thanks to today’s sponsors:Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/BaronfigMindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.

“Of course we can always imagine more perfect conditions, how it should be ideally, how everyone else should behave. But it’s not our task to create an ideal. It’s our task to see how it is, and to learn from the world as it is. For the awakening of the heart, conditions are always good enough.” ~Ajahn SumedoAs we talk about facing the divisiveness that plagues our every moment, the never-ending list of crises that need solving, we are exploring a path within meditation known as “The Middle Way”.The Middle Way lies between aversion and attachment; it lies within the meeting point of opposites. This teaching feels like something like a koan to me. A koan in an unanswerable question, riddle or poem that invites us to a state of awakening. We can’t explain it but somehow, when we hear it, we understand the truth that lies within it. There is a part of us that feels called to stand up for what we believe is right, to stand up for the health of the world {in all of the ways, and addressing all of the pandemics, and in this same moment, we are invited to sit in the middle of the tension, paradox and discord, and quietly relax right in the middle of it all. It is ok if you respond to this teaching with more questions than answers, with a whole list of comments that start with, “but…” I have questions too. And, I am reminded of Rilke as he writes, “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue.”These teachings don’t say “don’t feel”, and they don’t say “don’t act”. These teachings allow for all of it to be here. In the middle. In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me!Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minuteSpecial thanks to today’s sponsors:Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/BaronfigMindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my:*Shoreline: my new meditation app*Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training*Live, virtual meditation classes with me*Upcoming eventsAll by visiting merylarnett.com.

As we explore the paradox of the deep divides of our world today and the teachings of connectedness that have existed throughout time, we use practices like this meditation to help us land right here in the present moment. Meditation is always inviting us into the reality of the present, where all opposites exist at once. "The still point of the turning world" as T.S. Eliot calls it. We can choose to battle out right/left politics, and all the other ways of division, but the truth is we are the same. We, all beings, Are. The. Same. We share 99.9% of our genetic material with every other human on this earth. We are all scared of dying and of being alone. We all biologically need to belong and feel ‘correct’ in some way. And yet, the more we entrench ourselves in our own correctness, the more we ensure our fears become true. We feel more alone. We feel more threatened and unsafe. Climb out of the trench. Sit on your cushion. Land right here, right now. Let’s 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. In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me! Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/Baronfig Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com.

Today’s episode kicks off a new series for me, and I've been turning this over in my mind for months {maybe years?}... exploring how our meditation practice invites us to engage with a world that feels more divided than ever. This month, on The Mindful Minute we are going to *Deal with Divisiveness* - I struggle as much as the next person with fear, outrage, frustration and exhaustion. And yet, I do believe there is a way forward, and I believe that our meditation practice always shows us the next right step when we are willing to listen. ⁠ ⁠ Meditation is always inviting us into the reality of the present, where all opposites exist at once. "The still point of the turning world" as T.S. Eliot calls it... but once we land here, what do we do?⁠ ⁠ Join me for today’s discussion and guided meditation as we begin an exploration of division and interdependence * together* <3 In celebration of my 5-year podcast anniversary {!!!}, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Plus you’ll get goodies in the mail from me! Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/Baronfig Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com.

BIG news, y’all! This month I am celebrating 5 YEARS of podcasting?! 5 years of creating, writing and sharing meditations with you. And, this little podcast has grown to over 40,000 listeners each month! Wow. And, thank you! Thank you for listening and being a part of this community. I’ve got some big goals and some fun giveaways to help celebrate this milestone. Tune into today’s episode to learn more and then to meditate with a beautiful practice from my app: Shoreline. Today’s 10-minute meditation is a sound meditation that includes an ancient practice from the zen tradition known as a koan. A koan is a type of teaching that is offered as a phrase, question, short poem that feels both completely cryptic and deeply understood in the same moment. You don’t have to try to understand or explain it. Just let it live inside you as you listen. Pop some headphones on for the best sound experience, and let’s begin. 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. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/Baronfig Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/

What a fun show I have in store for you today! As I very often do these days, I got an email a few months ago suggesting that I consider artist Kyle Webster as a guest for The Mindful Minute. Now, I get a lot of these emails and 99% of the time, I say ‘no thank you,’ because this show is not primarily about interviews, but occasionally one feels like a really good fit. And this one??? Well, it was suggested we talk about meditation {my favorite subject}, creativity {my second favorite subject}, and beautifully designed notebooks {ummmm, hi. Obsessed.} so this was an absolute yes for me. And, I’m delighted to say that the conversation was just as good as I hoped it would be. Kyle T Webster is an international award-winning illustrator, living in North Carolina, who has drawn for The New Yorker, TIME, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and more. He is known throughout the world as the founder of KyleBrush.com, the brand behind the world's best-selling Photoshop brushes for professional illustrators, animators, and designers. And most recently, he released an interactive, meditative notebook through Baronfig called Trace. Today, Kyle and I explore the intersection of mindfulness and creativity, the difference between meditation and meditative practices and how valuable it is to realize what is meditative for you, why boredom is a vital element for our lives, and he shares a bit of his own meditative practice that we can try at home {even if you “can’t” draw!}. Side note, this interview is how I was introduced to the company, Baronfig. I am so in love with their notebooks {the dream and meditation journals specifically} that I have since asked them to be a sponsor of The Mindful Minute. Bonus for you - you can buy Trace at 20% off using code MindfulMinute21! *This interview was secured before Baronfig and I had any discussions of sponsorships. All guests on this show are here because I truly wanted to share a conversation with them. No one can pay to be a guest on this show.* Check out Kyle’s notebook here: baronfig.com/accessories/trace If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://bit.ly/Baronfig Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/

This class originally aired in July 2020: According to the Yoga Sutra, meditation connects us to our inner luminosity & sorrowless joy. In modern day terms, when we talk about meditation as a tool for emotional resiliency, we are really talking about tapping into this inner luminosity. ⁠ ⁠ We won't avoid hardship and pain in our lives just because we meditate, but we will be able to maintain connection to that inner luminosity and sorrowless joy to help us move through with more grace. Join me for today’s mini episode of The Mindful Minute as we work with a specific meditation practice to help us build awareness of that inner light. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. 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 learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my 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 class originally aired in July 2020 and is just as fitting today as it was then: This month, my meditation series has been focused on building emotional resilience. We are learning how to use the tools of meditation to help us not only survive tough times but more so to thrive in our daily lives. Today’s episode, the final installment of this series, is my personal favorite because I think it is the game-changing practice. It is the practice of cultivating compassion to take back power. Yep. Compassion equals power. Let me explain. When we are stuck in the tough feelings created by traumatic experiences {fear, shame, anxiety, uncertainty, anger} we are also stuck in what is called our “reptilian” mind. This part of our brain is not evolved or complex in any way. When we are here, we are mostly stuck here, just surviving. Today’s meditation practice is one that helps us move out of our “reptilian” mind and into the more evolved, complex part of our mind. I’m going to call it the wise mind. Developing emotional resilience, in large part, requires us to be able to shift ourselves out of our reptilian mind and into our wise mind. We need to be able to ask ourselves smart questions like What is going on right now? What am I feeling in my body? What am I believing right now? Or What story am I telling myself right now? And then, rather than try to logic away a harsh feeling, we practice with compassion. We use the practice of cultivating a warmth of heart to take power away from singular emotions and give that power to our wise minds, where we can make conscious choices and regain a sense of joy in our days. Join me for today’s dharma talk and 20-minute guided meditation where we learn one of the ancient meditation techniques offered in The Yoga Sutra and how it is still relevant to our modern day lives. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my 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 class originally aired in July 2020: If you’ve discovered each time you sit to meditate lately, you are overcome with feelings of discomfort {too many thoughts, too much tension or anxiety in the body, too busy, etc.} then this is the class for you. Over the last few months, as I’ve sat to meditate, I’ve noticed a literal feeling of “tangle” in my chest. A tight, anxious, moving feeling that immediately makes me want squash it. ⁠ Don’t feel that. ⁠ Stop it. ⁠ Ignore it. ⁠ ⁠ I’ve tried it all, and the truth is, no matter how temporarily successful I might be, there that d*mn feeling is again the next time I sit… At some point, in the midst of this feeling and the war of thoughts it inspires, I heard so clearly, “love the tangle.”⁠ Love the tangle. Put your hand on your heart, and I say, "I feel you. I hear you. I acknowledge you." Allow the tangle to be here. Soften the edges, if you can. And, gently, so gently, turn your awareness towards the breath. Every thread of breath gliding to and through that tangle, spreading light and space in its wake. Not to eliminate the tangle, no, but rather to create safe space for it just to be a part of this momentary experience. ⁠ ⁠ Let’s practice this together in today’s mini-meditation from The Mindful Minute. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. 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 learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my 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

As pandemics and humanitarian crises abound, I am re-releasing my July 2020 series on emotional resilience. This particular class couldn’t have come at a better time. When our hearts are breaking, our fear is overwhelming, and we feel helpless to offer help or answers, we must lean into our own discomfort without needing to fix it. We must love the tangle. Keep practicing. Keep Going. I’m with you & I love you. This class originally aired in July 2020: This month’s meditation series is exploring how a meditation practice bolsters our emotional resiliency. Basically, meditation is one tool that helps us ensure we will make it through tough times with more grace. We started the series {part 1} with a look at the 24-hour, global news cycle and how that can create a semi-permanent state of anxiety in many of us. This week, we discuss how to shift ourselves out of constant anxiety and into a state of rest & relaxation. If you’ve discovered each time you sit to meditate lately, you are overcome with feelings of discomfort {too many thoughts, too much tension or anxiety in the body, too busy, etc.} then this is the class for you. Over the last few months, as I’ve sat to meditate, I’ve noticed a literal feeling of “tangle” in my chest. A tight, anxious, moving feeling that immediately makes me want to squash it. ⁠ Don’t feel that. ⁠ Stop it. ⁠ Ignore it. ⁠ ⁠ I’ve tried it all, and the truth is, no matter how temporarily successful I might be, there that d*mn feeling is again the next time I sit… At some point, in the midst of this feeling and the war of thoughts it inspires, I heard so clearly, “love the tangle.”⁠ Love the tangle. Put your hand on your heart, and I say, "I feel you. I hear you. I acknowledge you." Allow the tangle to be here. Soften the edges, if you can. And, gently, so gently, turn your awareness towards the breath. Every thread of breath glides to and through that tangle, spreading light and space in its wake. Not to eliminate the tangle, no, but rather to create safe space for it just to be a part of this momentary experience. ⁠ ⁠ More on this experience and *how* to love the tangles in today’s episode of The Mindful Minute. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my 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 class originally aired in July 2020: We can all apply specific mindfulness techniques to help us navigate these emotionally tricky times with as much emotional resiliency as possible. The goal is not to avoid hard times, but to know without doubt that you can survive these times. When we are feeling the impact of traumatic stress, one of the primary feelings is one of powerlessness. Therefore, the antidote is to begin to regain a sense of power during our days. We can start by bringing our minds right back here to the present moment. Join me for today’s episode of The Mindful Minute as we use presence to calm ourselves and reclaim our peace of mind. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. 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 learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my 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

Well my loves, school has started here and already we are getting covid exposure emails, the news is filled with fourth wave worries, and I’m feeling much of the familiar worry, frustration and fear that I felt last year at this time. So I’ve decided to pause some of the upcoming interviews I have planned, and instead, I’m going to re-run the series I created in July 2020 - Meditation & Emotional Resilience. Can’t hurt to remind our minds and soothe our hearts as we ride the waves of fall 2021. This class originally aired in July 2020: Oh, loves. It has been a year thus far, hasn’t it?! Murder hornets, pandemics, and long-overdue demands for social justice have asked much of our emotional resiliency. As I’ve worked with students to navigate these times, I’ve realized that I’m relying on much of my experience in teaching mindfulness for PTSD {Post Traumatic Stress Disorder}. For several years, I was lucky enough to work alongside brilliant psychotherapists and social workers as we offered tools to those working through PTSD and substance abuse. While we won’t all receive a formal diagnosis of PTSD, most of us are working through the experiences of trauma in our daily lives. All of us can apply specific mindfulness techniques to help us navigate these tricky times with as much emotional resiliency as possible. The goal is not to avoid hard times, but to know without doubt that you can survive these times. When we are feeling the impact of traumatic stress one of the primary feelings is one of powerlessness. Therefore, the antidote is to begin to regain a sense of power during our days. This meditation series will look at some of the key steps towards regaining that sense of power and learning to be more comfortable with the acknowledgement that there is very little we can actually control. Let’s start with presence. Get here, in this moment, now. Join me for today’s episode of The Mindful Minute as we explore what it takes to build emotional resilience through meditation. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Awakened Heart Meditation Teacher Training *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my 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 is one of the most popular meditations on my app - Shoreline. Take 5 minutes to try it now! “Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm.” ⁠ ~Robert Louis Stevenson⁠ ⁠ There is something about the imagery of a clock in a thunderstorm - a steady, safe consistency that invokes the feeling of meditation.⁠ ⁠ Meditation isn’t a promise that there will be no loud noises, disruptions or heartaches. The practice is simply a tool that provides a steady, safe consistency from which we can respond to any given moment and any given situation. ⁠ ⁠ You can listen to a longer version of "Like A Clock in a Thunderstorm" guided meditation on Shoreline {available in the Apple app store}. ⁠ I wrote this meditation alongside the perfectly captured thunderstorm recorded by Gordon Hempton in Arkansas. You can hear the space, the energy and your own private pace within 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. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my 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

Well y'all... I was SO excited to host this conversation with my Teacher, Tracee Stanley, that I forgot to switch to my podcast microphone for recording.... So the audio might sound a bit different, but I promise the conversation is 100% worth listening to! Without doubt, if you listen to one of my episodes from 4 years ago and one today, you will hear quite a difference in my teaching. Much of this evolution is due to the guidance and practices offered by Tracee over the years. Tracee Stanley, founder of Empowered Life Circle shares teachings that are inspired by more than 20 years of study in the traditions of the Himalayan Masters and Sri Vidya Tantra. The focus of her teaching honours life as a ritual and she is devoted to yoga nidra, meditation, self-inquiry, nature as a teacher, and ancestor reverence. She is the creatrix of the Empowered Life Self-Inquiry Oracle Deck and host of Radiant Rest Podcast which celebrates the practices, teachers, and traditions that prioritize the rituals of rest, sacred dreaming, and self-care. Today, she is going to talk to us about the power and grace of yoga nidra, why we should practice both yoga nidra and meditation, and how to find the time to do so! This conversation was such a treat for me; I know you will enjoy it too. Tracee was kind enough to share a special practice for us, Moon Nectar. You can listen to it here: https://traceeyoga.com/moon-nectar Tracee’s book Radiant Rest - Yoga Nidra for Deep Relaxation and Awakened Clarity published by Shambhala Publishing is now available where books are sold. Learn more at radiantrest.com, empoweredlifecircle.com, and traceeyoga.com. Special thanks to today’s sponsors: Baronfig - Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ Mindful and Modern - Mindful and Modern makes the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my 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 week’s mini meditation is a self-compassion break guided by Dr. Kristen Neff. It is a powerful practice that offers you the chance to access exactly what you need in this moment - tender or fierce self-compassion. You can listen to the full interview with Dr. Neff in the previous episode titled Fierce Self-Compassion. You can learn more about Dr. Neff’s work here: https://self-compassion.org/ Thanks to this week’s sponsor, Baronfig. Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ 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 learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my 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