Mindful Spring 2021

Meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg introduced me to a compassion practice where you picture yourself surrounded by kind, warm-hearted beings who are sending you generous offerings of love and goodwill—I like to think of this magazine as a version of that practice. This Spring issue you’re holding is more than just a collection of articles—it’s a collection of hearts and minds sharing stories about how they’re showing up in the world with kindness, patience, humor, and grace. In these pages you’ll find Ashanti Branch (page 11), whose Million Mask Movement encourages us to embrace our authenticity by sharing what we let others see and what we keep hidden. Michelle Maldonado offers a calming breath practice (page 15) to soothe our overactive minds if we wake in the middle of the night.…

@louiselieffering reminds us there’s beauty all around if we take the time to appreciate it. @livinginmommywood shows us how mindfulness can create safe spaces for people to share and learn. @iamlenafranklin shows how the stillness of breathing allows us to take time out for ourselves. How do you speak to yourself with self-compassion? “Me: I’m sorry… Also me: I forgive you.” Pamela C. “I remind myself every day that This Too Shall Pass.” Deanna B. “This moment does not have to ruin the rest of the day. A new day can start right now.” Tracey N. “Whenever doubt creeps in, I remind myself, ‘You’ve got this. You were MADE to handle this. You’re strong enough. Stronger than you think. Keep going.’” Kelly S. “I remind myself to be grateful.” Beverly J. “With positive…

We are dedicated to inspiring and guiding anyone who wants to explore mindfulness to enjoy better health, more caring relationships, and a more compassionate society. By reading Mindful and sharing it with others, you’re helping to bring mindfulness practices into the world where the benefits can be enjoyed by all. Thank you! Print magazine & special topic publications 30 Day Mindfulness Challenge FREE! Guided meditations & podcasts Mindfulness video courses Visit online at mindful.org Get More Mindful…

PLAYING AROUND When his daughter Harper was four, G Cody QJ Goldberg realized most playgrounds just aren’t accessible. Harper uses a walker, and the wood chips at the playground got stuck in the wheels before she could even reach the play equipment. Her family founded Harper’s Playground, a nonprofit “driven by the vision of a world in which no one is left out,” according to their website. To make playgrounds radically inclusive, Goldberg recommends “three levels of inviting,” meaning the space should be physically, socially, and emotionally welcoming to all ages and abilities. Spiral walkways allow wheelchair and walker access. Slides are extra wide so a caregiver and a child can go together. Before the pandemic, workshops were offered to help others create accessible playgrounds, and in the decade since…

DOG GONE When a rescue dog from Spain bolted out of a jet’s cargo hold in Toronto, staff at one of North America’s busiest airports worked through the night to find the panicked Podenco, suspending traffic for an hour, and using security and thermal cameras to track her down. “Boy, could she run,” worker Keith Everett told CBC News. The dog eventually laid down under his truck, and Everett joined her, gaining her trust before reuniting her with her humans. FAIR BALL When Kevin Ashford heard that a little leaguer in Fresno County, CA, lost her baseball cards in a wildfire that destroyed hundreds of homes, he stepped up to donate his own 25,000-card collection to nine-year-old Reese Osterberg. Ashford told NBC News that in this context, his collection is…

GIVE MORE Can mindfulness meditation help people to be more giving? A team of researchers at Yale University and UCLA assigned 326 workers who were registered with a laborcrowdsourcing platform to either a mindfulness group or a control group. Those in the mindfulness group watched a short breathing meditation video. The control group saw a video teaching kids how to draw Mickey Mouse. Both groups provided demographic information, and were told that they would receive either $1, $2, or $3. They were then given the opportunity to donate part or all of the funds to United Way, a well-known nonprofit organization that helps people with few financial resources. Those in the mindfulness group donated at a rate 2.61 times higher than those in the control group. Mindfulness group participants who…