Amid a world of change and strife, Mindfulness Month offered a balm for the weary soul, mind and body for the WashU community, with the added benefit of re-establishing our connection with the nature all around us.
All photos and images by Sharon Rhiney
The month of events was organized by Mindfulness Science & Practice with support from Arts & Sciences’ Incubator for Transdisciplinary Futures (ITF), the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies, and IDEAS at DOM (Department of Medicine and the School of Medicine).
Here are 10 things to know about Mindfulness Month, which continues through November 4. And take a moment to watch our highlights reel at the end.
- It’s everywhere!
This year, organizers expanded the event from Mindfulness Week in 2024 and Mindfulness Day in 2023 to a whole month of activities across the Danforth and WashU Medicine campuses.
- It’s informed by students
A group of students in an Interaction Design class at Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts studied Mindfulness Week 2024 and recommended holding future events at locations throughout campus, not just in one place. This has made it easier for people across WashU to participate.
- It’s all about connection
Each activity on the Danforth campus was carefully crafted to take place at one of the Buder Center’s Connection Points. Thanks to a group of environmental analysis students, there are 15 designated outdoor spaces on the Danforth Campus dedicated to mental health and wellness.
Each location has a pre-recorded meditation exercise posted on the Connection Points website. Visit a site, scan the QR code, and tune into a few moments of mindfulness. Soon, each location will also include the Indigenous names and uses of the plant species. Renaming our trees with those designated by Indigenous tribes is one step towards acknowledging the foundations of our space.
- Land and story
In the spirit of the Connection Points, a leader from the Native Women’s Care circle, Saundi Lynn McClain, taught us about the importance of land relations. We also had a storyteller, Buffalo Heart Woman, share the spiritual journey towards greater love and connection reflected by the dragonfly, butterfly, and hummingbird in Lakota teachings.
- Honoring a great teacher
Our opening event honored Dr. Larry Ward, a revered teacher in Thich Nhat Hahn’s Plum Village tradition of engaged Buddhism and the author of “America’s Racial Karma: An Invitation to Heal.” Ward was also the eighth speaker in our Mindfulness & Anti-Racism speaker series this past spring. Poet Cristina Correa read from Ward’s new anthology of original poems, and Kenneth Kulosa played cello while attendees stopped to dance, reflect, pause, and enjoy.
- Sound healing
Patients, faculty, and staff bathed in the harp music of Lisa Gilbert one morning at the Center for Advanced Medicine. Another day, Diana Parra played singing bowls and other sound healing instruments in the Farrell Learning Center at WashU Medicine.
- Mindful activities
Sitting still isn’t always easy; mindful movement can help us learn to stay present in daily activities. In the garden of McMillan Hall, dance professor David Marchant guided participants through a new perspective on vision during communal movement.
There were also drum circles on both campuses. Social worker Gladys Smith from WashU Medicine often facilitates drum circles to help survivors of physical and emotional violence release, relax, and restore. In a Farrell Learning Center classroom, drum circle participants left feeling both lighter and grounded. On the Danforth campus, students, staff, and faculty gathered around Crow Circle to drum with Eileen Wolfington, a gifted drum circle facilitator.
Another day, psychological and brain sciences professor Todd Braver used the lunchtime period to lead a mindful eating activity at the shaded picnic benches on the South 40 campus.
- Loving kindness
Four members of WashU’s Mindfulness Science & Practice community offered loving kindness practices. Meditators spread out in the grass and enjoyed the babble of the Brookings Hall fountains and the guidance of Andy Weigert early in the month. Resh Gupta facilitated a similar event this past Tuesday, while Lilli Cloud and Shirley Ashauer focused on compassion and caring for self and others at WashU Medicine.
- Lots of laughter
Two laughter yoga sessions, one on each campus, helped participants reconnect to a sense of childlike wonder, lightness, and playfulness with guidance from self-care facilitator Eileen Wolfington. At Danforth, there were curious onlookers and a cute pug dog who seemed to give a high five of approval for the gathering around the magnificent connection point of the Crabapple Alcove on the east end of Olin Library.
- But wait, there’s more
Mindfulness Month is not over yet!
Due to inclement weather, the event scheduled for Wednesday, October 29, has been rescheduled. Art Therapy / Organ Concert with Eileen Cheong and Jordan Geiger will be Tuesday, November 4, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at McMillan Cafe in McMillan Hall.
On Thursday, October 30, join us for Resonant Rest, from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. a sound bath facilitated by Diana Parra. This event will now take place in McMillan Cafe on the 1st Floor of McMillan Hall, but please be sure to wander through The Butterfly Garden this autumn! The Butterfly Garden is one of the 15 Connection Points.
On Friday, October 31, 12 - 1 p.m., join us for the tenth speaker in our Mindfulness and Anti-Racism Series. Author and meditation teacher Oren Jay Sofer joins us via Zoom to speak about "Mindfulness and the Crisis of Belonging: Finding Our Ground in a Divided World," thanks in part to sponsorship from the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity and Equity (CRE2) and the Buder Center.
You can also join a watch party in Brown Lounge on the Danforth campus or in the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center, FLTC 302, on the WashU Medicine campus. Light refreshments will be served following the event at both locations. Learn more and RSVP on the event page.
CEU credits from the Brown School of Social Work are available for attending this talk. Contact Manasseh Begay to request at b.manasseh@wustl.edu.
