Our Mindful Nature {Formerly The Mindful Minute}

Welcome, Witches.

This all new meditation series is devoted to the archetype of the witch. Why, you ask? Well for starters, it is spooky season, but perhaps more importantly, because the witch archetype is especially potent for those of us grappling with reclaiming our personal power. 

There are so many ‘types’ of witches: the kitchen witch, the green witch, the water witch, etc. And,all of these sub-types refer to the place or activity where we source the majority of our power. 

Today’s episode is devoted to the Kitchen Witch:

In ancient Greece the word for “cook”, “butcher” and “priest” was the same -‘mageiros’- and the word shares an etymological root with the word magic.

– Michael Pollan

The Kitchen Witch is one who finds her power in the kitchen. 

• She is deeply committed to nourishment - with a cauldron bubbling and tea brewing 
• She is drawn to family recipes connecting her to ancestors
• Her ingredients connect her to the earth element
• And perhaps most importantly, cooking on stove or hearth-fire, connects her to the alchemical power of fire. 

Fire resides in the belly. It is the heat of action, of purpose, intention and passion. It is also the fire that burns the ghosts that haunt us.

This fire is directly tied to the heart space, the home of air/breath/spirit, this is where our caring, compassion and love originate. For the kitchen witch, these two domains are intimately linked - our fire transforming our love - making love manifest.

Join me for today’s episode devoted to the alchemy of the kitchen witch complete with a 20-minute guided kitchen witch meditation and a custom-made kitchen witch soundscape from Nick McMahan. Enjoy!

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Thank you to Nick McMahan for today’s custom-crafted soundscape, sound design, and editing; and thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

More often than I can count, I have conversations with students asking me what’s next in their meditation practice, how to go deeper, or how to feel better in the toughest of times… and today, I am delighted to share a powerful conversation offering a few answers to these tough questions.

Andrew Holecek is a returning guest to the podcast, as well as a renowned author and humanitarian who teaches internationally on spirituality, meditation, lucid dreaming, and the art of dying. His many books include Reverse Meditation and Dream Yoga. And now, he has a new book out - 

I’m Mindful, Now What? Moving Beyond Mindfulness to Meet the Modern World. 

This book, and our discussion today, reveals how the form of mindfulness many of us know is merely one thread in a much older, greater tapestry of contemplative practice. For anyone who has sensed the potential for something much deeper and more profound - this conversation is for YOU.

Andrew and I talk about: 

• Brining meditation off the cushion and into our day-to-day experiences
• Practices that move beyond simply “calming down” 
• The near enemies of practice, which include spiritual bypassing, spiritual materialism and the tricky distinction between tranquility and liberation. 
• Waking up vs. growing up
• Five nocturnal meditation practices, the value of the dream state, and the magic of liminality.
• Lastly and most importantly, we talk about why these practices matter when the world is on fire. 

At the end, Andrew shares a guided meditation that he does every morning to start off his day. Join me for this inspiring conversation and practice. And listeners, I need to know - should I have Andrew come back to tell us more about these dream practices?!?

There is so much richness in this practice, here is a breakout of some of the key moments:

01:32 The Five-Year Retreat Experience

04:42 Beyond Mindfulness: Deeper Practices

06:54 Shamatha and Vipashyana Explained

12:18 The Importance of Waking Down

15:48 Therapeutic and Somatic Support

18:32 Traps on the Meditative Path

24:16 Waking Up vs. Growing Up

26:48 Nocturnal Meditations

27:16 The Importance of Dreams

27:34 Polyphasic vs. Monophasic Cultures

28:16 Ego and Altered States of Consciousness

29:06 The Three-Dimensional View of Reality

31:00 The Five Nocturnal Practices

32:51 Exploring Liminal Dreaming

34:14 The Science Behind Liminal Dreaming

35:23 Observational Intent and Thought Image Amalgamation

36:37 Deconstructing the Sense of Self

42:56 The Collective Mind and Quantum Entanglement

48:44 Guided Meditation Practice

Learn more about Andrew Holecek and find his new book here: https://www.andrewholecek.com/

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find her at:

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

Today’s episode is an invitation to settle into the deepest listening and to celebrate what we find when we move beyond the noise of humans. Today, we embark on a meditative listening experience crafted by nature field recordist Nick McMahan. 

Earlier this year, Nick spent several days seeking out the quietest spot in Oregon. Exploring nature’s whispers and finding serenity in the sagebrush are what inspired today’s guided audio experience - a recording of Nick’s exploration.

Together, we will listen to the symphony that arises within Oregon’s quietest ecosystem.

What does it mean to listen to such quiet? What can we learn in the absence of human-made noise?

Grab your headphones, close your eyes, and join Nick on a journey through the Basque Hills of Oregon:

High and dry. There is hardly anything here. No water, no trees, just a small two-track (dirt road where people have driven enough times to form a road, but the ground has never been graded), and a distant horizon. The terrain appears endlessly flat, but after some time walking, I cannot see my car anymore. No towns, people, highways, or aircraft. A strange silence seems to be suspended in the still air. I sit down in the sagebrush and the wind calms. Looking closer I see various small wildflowers growing in clumps, thoughtfully placed near roots and sage. I lay down. It doesn’t feel dirty here. The dusty soil is cool, almost soothing. Eyes close, it is not long before a whir of wings pass not far overhead. Quickly followed by another and a hushed chirp. Something imperceptible has shifted. There is another soft chirp. Another whir, over to the left. Then a trill. Gradually building, a mesmerizing chorus of Brewer’s sparrows and a steady drumbeat of a common poorwill in the distance weave the song of this quiet sage land.

These sounds were recorded on the ancestral land of the Northern Paiute people.

Today’s episode was written, recorded and edited by Nick McMahan. Nick is a nature sound recordist and photographer, seeking projects to promote a more conscious world. Learn more and check out his sound libraries by visiting: nickmcmahan.com

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production, editing and social media support: instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

Soundscape Alchemy.

Friends, what an episode I have for you today! Months ago, I took an impromptu trip to Canaveral National Seashore to visit acoustic artists Perri Lynch Howard and Gordon Hempton.

Frequent collaborators on the podcast, I was ecstatic to spend a weekend practicing the art of listening with them both. We walked mangroves, explored shorelines, and discussed the interplay of human voice, aerospace traffic, and birdsong.

The creative collaboration of Gordon and Perri resulted in a stunning piece of environmental art titled, “Hear Me Out.” 

Join me today for a discussion of what it means to listen with honesty, to weave ourselves into the natural world we inhabit, and to move “in close proximity to lifelong love.”

In this episode, Perri and Gordon delve into their experiences during their artist residency at Canaveral National Seashore through the Soundscape Field Station Artist Residency Program. The conversation highlights their collaborative project 'Hear Me Out', which investigates the changing soundscapes and their artistic interpretations influenced by the environment. They share their journey of recording, the emotional challenges faced, and how Doris Leeper's legacy inspired their work. The discussion also touches on the significance of natural sound preservation and future projects related to soundscapes and environmental art.

At the end, pop in your headphones, close your eyes, and listen to “Hear Me Out.”

Gordon Hempton

Acoustic ecologist Gordon Hempton has circled the globe three times in pursuit of the Earth’s rarest sounds. His sound portraits which record quickly vanishing natural soundscapes have been featured in People magazine and a national PBS television documentary, Vanishing Dawn Chorus, which earned him an Emmy. Hempton provides professional audio services to media

producers, including Microsoft, Smithsonian, National Geographic and Discovery Channel. Recipient of awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Rolex Awards for Enterprise he is co-author of One Square Inch of Silence: One Man’s Quest to Preserve Quiet (Free Press/Simon & Schuster, 2010) and Founding Partner of Quiet Parks International.

https://soundtracker.com/

Perri Lynch Howard

Perri Lynch Howard is a multi-disciplinary artist working in painting, drawing, installation, and sound. Her visual work and sound installations convey the passage of light, sound, and signal through landscapes on the front lines of climate change - a phenomenology of place. Howard received her BA from The Evergreen State College, BFA from the University of Washington, and MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art. Her art has a global reach through projects completed in Italy, Portugal, Brazil, Canada, the Arctic Circle, and in South India as a Fulbright Senior Research Scholar.

https://www.perrilynchhoward.com/

Thank you to Nick McMahan for today’s sound design and editing; and thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Lastly, thank you to Atlantic Center for the Arts and the ACA Soundscape Field Station for making this collaboration possible.

https://atlanticcenterforthearts.org/home/soundscape-field-station/

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

In this Monday night meditation class, we delve into the concept of listening and silence amidst the constant noise of modern life, especially during the election season. Today’s discussion touches on the various sources of human-made noise and their impact on inner peace, the varied definitions of silence, and the key to mindful listening.

David G. Haskell wrote, “listening opens us to what is hidden or unappreciated,” and together we will explore this hidden, unappreciated terrain.

Today’s guided meditation, featuring natural sounds from the quietest place in Oregon as recorded by Nick McMahan, encourages listeners to practice deep listening, find tranquility within themselves, and hear what was previously unheard.

Let’s practice!

The nature sounds you hear in today’s episode are from the ancestral lands of the Northern Paiute people. Now considered the edge of the Great Basin or the Basque Hills area of southeastern Oregon.

Thank you to Nick McMahan for today’s nature field recordings, sound design, and editing; and thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

U.S. Poet Laureate and fellow meditator Ada Limón joins me today on Our Mindful Nature to chat about her Signature Project, 'You Are Here, Poetry in Parks.' 

Y’all this was a dream conversation for me - full of presence, hope and truth. Full of poetry and beauty even as we discuss climate crisis and environmental activism. 

Together, we delve into the origins of ‘You Are Here: Poetry in Parks’, its deep connections between nature and poetry, and its aim to foster mindfulness and presence. Ada shares thoughts on the power of small actions amid climate crises, the inclusivity of the project's installations in national parks, and the importance of everyday nature. We also talk about the power of realizing that You. Are. Here. 

“'You Are Here: Poetry in the Parks' aims to deepen our connection to nature through poetry,” said Limón. “I believe the way we respond to this crucial moment on our planet could define humanity forever. In conceiving of my signature project, I wanted something that could both praise our sacred and natural wonders and also speak the complex truths of this urgent time. Above all, this project is about rising to this moment with hope, the kind of hope that will echo outwards for years to come.”   

At the end, as a mini practice, Ada reads her stunning poem Sanctuary.

Ada Limón is the twenty-fourth US Poet Laureate and the author of The Hurting Kind, as well as five other collections of poems. These include The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was named a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award, and Bright Dead Things, which was named a finalist for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Award. Limón is a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, and her work has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Times, and American Poetry Review, among others. Born and raised in California, she now lives in Lexington, Kentucky.

Learn more about You Are Here: Poetry in Parks: https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1207/3-6-24-poetry-in-parks.htm

Find Ada’s book You Are Here; Poetry in the Natural World here: https://milkweed.org/book/you-are-here

The Methow people were the first people to hear the sounds of Methow Valley, Washington that are included in today’s episode. 

Thank you to Nick McMahan for today’s nature field recordings, sound design, and editing; and thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting 

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

In this guided meditation, we explore an elemental balancing practice for anxiety management and nervous system regulation. Reflecting on personal experiences with balancing extreme temperatures and anxiety, I share a visualization and sound meditation that has been deeply supportive in my own practice. I hope it will be useful in your own practice as well!

No discussion, no distraction - just the meditation for your daily practice.

Enjoy!

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Thank you to Gordon Hempton for today’s nature field recordings, to Nick McMahan for sound design, and editing, and to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

soundtracker.com

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

In this guided meditation, we explore an elemental balancing practice for anxiety management and nervous system regulation. Reflecting on personal experiences with balancing extreme temperatures and anxiety, I share a visualization and sound meditation that has been deeply supportive in my own practice. I hope it will be useful in your own practice as well!  

Together, we will guide our energy to move from the root chakra to the third eye, integrated with breath work and visualizations to promote balance and cooling. 

The supportive soundscape in today’s episode is a recording of a summer night in Olympic National Park from acoustic ecologist Gordon Hempton. You will hear a summer breeze swirl through tall grasses while chattering birds and a distant coyote settle down for the night.

In this episode:

00:00 Welcome and Introduction

00:46 Balancing in Extreme Temperatures

01:25 Dealing with Anxiety and Imbalance

03:05 Elemental Balancing Practice

04:32 Combining Practices: Elemental Balancing and Still Lake of the Mind

07:58 Guided Meditation: Journey Through the Elements

27:56 Closing and Returning to the Present

The sounds in today’s episode were recorded on the ancestral lands of eight tribes: Hoh, Jamestown S'Klallam, Lower Elwha Klallam, Makah, Port Gamble S'Klallam, Quileute, Quinault and Skokomish. 

Thank you to Gordon Hempton for today’s nature field recordings, to Nick McMahan for sound design, and editing, and to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at:

soundtracker.com

nickmcmahan.com

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

7 a.m. 

It’s a cool, blue morning, and we are seated alongside the Coosa River in Alabama. Our guided meditation practice begins with mindful breathing and sensory awareness. This is an opportunity for cosmic connection and deep relaxation.

It is silent except for the birds’ morning chorus and a whisper of wind through the river grasses.

Gradually, a family of geese make themselves known, and we are instantly reminded of Mary Oliver’s poem Wild Geese, which ends with the line - 

{...} the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting — over and over announcing your place in the family of things.

Today’s poetic meditation is inspired by this invitation to remember our place in the family of things, to maintain a mindful awareness of our relationship with nature, to re-weave ourselves into the animate earth around us. Join me for this 6-minute, nature-inspired meditation.

Creek Native Americans were the first people to hear the sounds of the Coosa River that are played in this meditation.

Thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find her at:

instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro

If you enjoyed today’s episode, please Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week.

Want to support this podcast? Consider sending this episode to a friend or leaving a review. It is free and it really helps this show to grow!

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@ourmindfulnature

Today’s episode is the meditation offered at this year's Summer Solstice inspired by the poem An Inn for the Coven by Gabrielle Calvocoressi.

No discussion, no distraction - just the meditation for your daily practice.

Enjoy!

Sign up for my newsletter at https://merylarnett.substack.com/ to receive free mini meditations each week, creative musings, and more.

Thank you to Nick McMahan for today’s nature field recordings, sound design, and editing; and thank you to Brianna Nielsen for production and editing support. Find them at

https://www.nickcmcmahan.com/

https://www.instagram.com/brianna_podcastpro/

Watch on YouTube, Make a donation, or learn more about my free offerings and live classes by visiting

merylarnett.com

instagram.com/merylarnett

youtube.com/@themindfulminutepodcast