I stop. Canyons of light and shadow dance across the rectangular patterning of the oak bark. I trace the canyons, red and black ants crawling over my fingers. Turkeys laugh. Deer trot by. The full moon sets, sun rises, and I track time with breath. Now, walking. Lift, move, place. Heel to toe, toe to heel, edges, center. Now, sitting. Just this. Gentle gaze. I see everything and nothing all at once. Soft belly. Spine elongated yet natural. Light and shadow. Ancestors everywhere. “What allures you?” Just this.
Three days ago, I did nothing but eat, meditate, and sleep for a week of silent nature meditation at Spirit Rock. I type this now from an airport window, watching the pink sunset kiss Phoenix, AZ mountains, bleary-eyed on a red-eye layover en route to one of the largest herbal conferences in the world, the International Herbal Symposium (IHS). Walking, driving, and flying from my first multi-day silent Buddhist meditation retreat to my first time teaching at the IHS, I feel grateful (what an honor to teach alongside so many of my heroes). I toe the edge of overwhelm (from silent sacred everynothingness, to flying through the air in a big metal box, to celebrating with hundreds of excited herbalists-- this is a lot). I’m here.
Slowly walking from one side of the terminal to the other at the Phoenix International Airport, I soften and expand my gaze, see everything and nothing, and track my breath, feet, and body. Just this moment. Body, breath, sounds. Seeing, hearing, sensing. Just this.
Movement within stillness. Stillness within movement. Still waters flowing.
What mindfulness practices ground you in everyday life?
What small rituals anchor your attention in this present moment, in what truly matters?
Sassafras & Rosa multiflora near Boston, MA
🌻RETREATS🌻
Come join us for...
Nourishing Life at the Omega Institute in upstate NY, a Five Elements immersion in a gorgeous location. All participants get a copy of my Embodying Elements workbook. Sept. 11 - 15, 2023
Elemental Creativity at Green Gulch Farm, just north of San Francisco-- with Zen Monk Fu Schroeder and Art Monk Abbess Suiko McCall! Art, movement, and meditation with three stellar teachers. Nov. 29 - Dec. 3, 2023
🌻MORE RESOURCES🌻
Find mindfulness resources at jilinglin.com/links#meditate
Take a retreat! Here’s some retreat center ideas and my upcoming retreats
Herbs to support travel-- here’s two articles I love, from
New Podcast Episode: Herbal Action Project, with Shaman Jesus
PS: The International Herbal Symposium was a blast. I reconnected with old friends, made new friends, taught about things I love, learned more about other things I love like clinical skills for better midwifing people-plant-place relationships-- and am inspired to integrate these skills into my local Ventura clinic & teaching home-scape.
❤️ Enjoy the rest of your summer,
acupuncture . herbs . yoga
Book your acupuncture appointment here
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