Pic of the week: The sun setting, upside down

                           THE MINDFUL GALLERY'S PIC OF THE WEEK

Sunny Side Up: Photo by Christine Eaton

The mindful anchor in this photo: The setting sun, upside down.

(What is a mindful anchor? When we practice mindfulness we want to have an anchor, notice when we stray from it, come back to it, and doing so over and over again. This is oftentimes the breath in sitting meditation, but it can be nearly any point of focus that allows us to find stillness and peace)

The photo this week leads us to an abstract way of utilizing awareness/mindfulness. We've all seen sunsets and know that they range of a scale of beautiful, natural phenomena. When I was up in Burlington VT a couple weeks ago I watched the sun set on Lake Champlain. As I took photos I wanted to play with lighting and perspective. And, as a student of mindfulness, later understood that in doing so I was literally reinterpreting my relationship to the natural world, slowly. When you practice mindfulness regularly, shifts in perspective do happen. Sometimes grandly and sometimes gradually. Appreciation deepens. Understanding occurs. What I love most about this photo is that when you first see it you may not think anything is off. But, look closer and you see the ocean above the sun and the sun setting into the sky. If you look deeper, you see it. 

Try looking deeper into the natural world and discover how it then unfolds in other ways, relationships, decisions, etc. Perspective happens. Life awakens. 

Pic of the week: The heart leaf

THE MINDFUL GALLERY'S PIC OF THE WEEK

The heart leaf

The mindful anchor in this photo: A leaf in the shape of a heart

(What is a mindful anchor? When we practice mindfulness it is all about having an anchor, noticing when we stray from it, coming back to it, and doing so over and over again. This is oftentimes the breath in sitting meditation, but it can be nearly any point of focus that allows us to find stillness and peace) 

I must have passed these leaves several times before I actually noticed them. How can that be? These leaves are fairly big and wrap around the fence on my back porch. The day I took this I was paying attention, that's why I saw it. Seems like it's not a big deal, but when I take the time to slow down and notice, certain things will show themselves that were unavailable to me because I was too busy thinking about where I was going and what needed to be done. The brain can only be doing so much at once. I believe it also stuck out because I was in need of seeing it, as a reminder. I have a strong affinity for nature and sometimes undervalue the healing potential it has. Taking moments to observe it in both its beauty and it's demise is an important part of mindfulness, and of being human. So the next time you're out for a walk, consider paying attention to what you're seeing and notice what reveals itself, what you're drawn to, and reflect on why it's meaningful to you.