Oct 30, 2025
One of our colleagues, Chris Germer, co-creator of the Mindful Self-Compassion class, said, “An unstable mind is like an unstable camera: we get a fuzzy picture.”I’ve been feeling lately that my picture has been pretty fuzzy. There has been a lot of...
Sep 3, 2025
This year I participated in a Nature Meditation teacher training program offered by Mark Coleman’s Awake in the Wild. I was inspired to do this training to find a community of meditators who share my love of the out-of-doors. I honor the way being in nature makes me...
Jul 31, 2025
Longtime MNW student Maggie Weisberg wrote this reflection for her final MBSR class in June. It was so wonderful, we wanted to share it with you! We’re including her reflection preceded by an email note from Maggie offering permission to publish this here....
Nov 9, 2024
The simple answer sounds shocking: yes, it can be.The fuller answer is more nuanced. We all know that, much as we all need safety and protection, there is nothing that’s completely safe. Even our mindfulness practice can be harmful. It can trigger difficult internal...
Oct 3, 2024
What happens when you take stock of your day, your life, your purpose? What is the nature of the language you use with yourself? Most of us tend to be harsh and critical of how we are conducting our life. We easily spiral into self-talk of “shoulds:” I should be more...
Sep 7, 2024
Something that occurs to me regularly at our mindfulness retreats is: “I never would have thought of this!”It never would have occurred to me that being quiet and sitting still with a group of people for days at a time would bring so much benefit. That it would lead...
Aug 2, 2024
“May you be happy…” Have you heard this phrase before? It is one of several phrases that might be used in the loving-kindness meditation practice. Others include: may you feel safe, may you be healthy, may you be at peace, and may you live with ease. What is your...
Jun 6, 2024
After several very serious discussions and a thorough multi-year review of the evidence, the Mindfulness Northwest team has reached a clear consensus – there is an above-average overlap between mindfulness practitioners and birders. It makes sense! Mindfulness is a...
May 3, 2024
I hear it all the time, especially at the end of a class or workshop: how do I keep this going? Daily practice, finding community, and doing a retreat come to mind. But how about books and movies? For this list, I’ve skipped the many wonderful “How To”...
Feb 2, 2024
In our classes, when we turn toward difficult emotions, we often say, “This is where the rubber meets the road.” In other words: This is where it gets tough, but also, this is why we’re doing this practice. I have five parents: two in-laws, two birth, one step. In the...
Dec 1, 2023
Growing up near Lake Washington, I was the kid who sat on the dock watching with envy, terrified of getting in the water as my friends had fun splashing about. I suspect that my Dad grabbing my foot in the pool to play “Jaws” when I was little had...
Nov 3, 2023
A few weeks ago, I decided to meditate outside, on my deck. It was a beautiful day, a slight breeze rustling through the trees, birds twittering, sky a startling blue, with no clouds. As I was adjusting myself in the special seat I had prepared, with the pillow just...
