practice

Would you consider washing the dishes, taking a walk, or using a coloring book, opportunities to practice meditation?

If mindfulness is an awareness that comes from setting your attention on the present moment in a “non-judgmental” way, then daily life becomes full of opportunities to practice mindfulness. Just by changing where you place your focus, ‘taking a walk’ becomes a ‘walking meditation.’ I feel that even using a simple coloring book can be a mindful experience, I dare say, a coloring meditation. By choosing to be here now, each moment is new and your mind, body and spirit have a chance to rest as you relax into the rhythm of what is…

As an artist, I find aspects of my creative process to be very meditative and a cherished source of grounding in a chaotic world. When troubling thoughts or puzzling questions (or strong emotions) surface, one of the ways I bring myself back to the present moment is through applying color to intricate designs. What may seem trivial or mundane become my bridge to mental clarity, calmness and stability.

In 2012 (which also happened to be the year of the dragon!), I asked the questions - Could we embrace our anger as if it were a dragon costume? Could we wear this dragon covering to move toward integrating our anger without fearing engulfment or destruction? Could we put it on when we needed fierceness and take it off again when a task was accomplished?

I found my answer to this inquiry when I began a daily drawing meditation practice where strange and fantastic creatures from my imagination helped me to view anger as a vital messenger in my emotional toolkit. In creating these coloring meditation journals, I compiled quotes about anger, the unknown, resilience and release to be paired with ensembles of my dragon drawings.

The authentic, raw, made from love artwork of these adult coloring books was formed from a will to survive and an effort to make sense of my existence…but also to allow myself space for incongruence, an exercise in being okay with the flow of these drawings being a bit off, imperfect, and sometimes grotesque.

These mindfulness journals I have created are unique in that they are designed to give your mind a place to settle, a task to focus on while also providing room for you to explore your emotions with wise words spoken by a community of people who have been where you may be finding yourself today. I am inviting you to connect with color and allow your thoughts to pass like clouds as you get into the flow of discovery with these dancing dragon drawings. Get started with free downloadable sample pages today (see below).

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Consider this an invitation to play!