Embodied Practices With Marlo

Painting pine trees is my new watercolor obsession. Everywhere I go, I see pine trees everywhere but here's the thing, each pine tree I observe is different from the last. No pine tree is the same the one before it. I hope I'm making sense. Anyways so it got me thinking.  As a simple mindfulness practice, I recommend observing pine trees. When you are walking, take a moment to settle into your body. Notice any part of your body that is tense and take a nice inhale in and a long exhale out, focusing on releasing any tension you might be holding in your shoulders or any part of your body that feels tense. Do this for a few breaths while walking. Just be present. If a thought comes and distracts you, it's all good. Your meant to think. Acknowledge it and simply come back to your breath. OK, so once you feel more settled while walking, start to notice the landscape around you. Notice the sky - what color is it today? Is it gray and moody or can you see patches of blue? Do you n...

So I had this lofty goal of doing some landscape paintings this weekend but I never got around to it. Instead I did paint swatches of what I have in my watercolor palette.  And I realized something. I realized that sometimes we can't force a goal or an outcome. We can want it, but we can't force it especially if maybe we are too tired or we are simply aren't motivated or inspired to do it. So what does this have to do with mindfulness? If you are thinking of having a mindfulness practice, whether traditional in the case of sitting meditation or your form of mindfulness is painting or drawing but you can't seem to do it that day. Then don't do it.  One day of no practice isn't actually bad for you. Just acknowledge that's happening + don't force yourself to feel like you should.  I think part of being mindful is wanting to do it. Feeling inspired to do it as opposed to adding a check mark to that goal. So if this how you feel today much like how I've ...

My meditation practice shifted shortly after getting recalled back when Covid began. Let me backtrack here for intents and purposes. I started to hear the news about this mysterious disease in China in January 2019. Then in February of that same year, my ex co-workers and I (I don't have that job anymore because it had closed down permanently) were all wondering when the building would temporarily close due to the rise of cases in BC. Then March came + we got our notice to stay home. At first we were told that it would be two weeks which I thought was the dumbest thing I've ever heard. I knew deep down I'd be at home for much longer than that.  So when I stayed home like so many people to curtail the rise of cases, I was still meditating + journalling regularly.  But something shifted in my life by June 2019 when I got recalled to work at that company that I was working in at the time. I was always stressed + scared about the unknowns. Surprisingly not when I was at work. T...

I love trees and since painting is one of my primary ways of relaxing, I've come to appreciate trees in a different way. Not every tree is the same. Some are tall and lanky, others burly with lots of roots taking place. Some have leaves year round while others lose theirs during winter time. Regardless, they are all beautiful to me and remind me of their imperfections. So when you decide to go for a walk or are rushing around, take a moment to notice any tree.  What do the branches look like? Start to look at each individual branch if you can and notice how they just go in whichever direction.  Does this tree have leaves or not? Are there buds growing on the trees and if so, are they so small that they look like tiny little bumps right now?  Do you notice any interesting patterns on the trunk of the tree? Feel free to lightly touch the trunk  and feel its interesting textures. Is it rough or smooth? And upon closer inspection of the tree, what else do you notice? Whi...