Cath Grey Mindfulness

19/01/2025

We choose our joys and sorrows
long before we experience them
- Khalil Gibran -

Have a beautiful week, everyone! 🌟

04/12/2024

"The most fundamental truth is this: the power is in you. It’s not outside of you, not in external circumstances or other people, but deep within you. And when you realize that, life transforms from something to be fought into something to be created — a masterpiece painted by your own hand."

- William Whitecloud -

08/09/2024

25/07/2024

Sometimes the ordinary is just extraordinary...
Feeling so thankful to live in this magical place and on Gumbaynggirr country

31/05/2024

Breathing in, I dwell in the present moment.
Breathing out, I feel it is a wonderful moment.
- Thich Nhat Hanh -
.. And an invitation to take a couple of minutes to experience this, from the amazing Marshmallow Laser Feast art collective

An immersive experience of shared breath with the Amazon rainforest.

31/10/2023

Got lost here in the forest earlier today, but then I found the right path...
And then, driving home I felt lost all over again listening to the world news :(

Sometimes perhaps all we can do is keep our gaze on what's important and can change whilst we (try to) lean into how things are. In the words of someone the world lost too young:

"We’re all a little lost and it’s alright
It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay"
- Jane Marczewski (aka Nightbirde) -

03/08/2023

Hey there ADHD friends! You know how ADHD life is exhausting and stress makes it worse but then you feel like you can't afford to take a break because (____ fill in the blank with self-ceitical thought)? Or maybe you're afraid you'll never rejoin the land of the active once you slow down. Well, here is your permission slip to rest! Rest IS "productive" (though I hate that word) in its own right. It is entirely purposeful and impactful. You are allowed to rest and reset. It is what keeps us going. Trust yourself to rejoin. Maybe identify one small way to re-engage after rest. Once we create intentional space and permission for self-care, oftentimes the stuckness gets better and it isn't so hard to start again because we have taken the space to meet the underlying need. So. Rest. Reset. Rejoin. Re-engage. Love to you all! Now I'm going to go take my own advice, I promise.

11/07/2023

Am working with several clients experiencing deep shame, so something I heard today struck a chord:
Shame "happens long before we did anything wrong. So we always think we feel ashamed because of what we did... but... shame precedes it. You can induce shame in a nine-month old baby who has no concept of having done anything wrong...
It has nothing to do with you. You haven't done anything wrong."
- Gabor Maté -
Shame is not the same as guilt. Shame has nothing to do with you or who you are or how worthy you are. It has nothing to do with you. It has nothing to do with you. It has nothing to do with you.

This simple infographic can help you work through self-criticism and determine whether you are feeling helpful guilt, unhelpful guilt, or shame.

22/06/2023

Whatever we do over and over becomes our practice.
So an invitation for you...

Take a moment, if you wish, to tune into your body right now. What sensations do you notice?
Find a place in the body that feels soft, open, warm. Rest your attention there. What does ease feel like? Hang out here for a while.
If you have too much pain or discomfort to do that, you might place a gentle hand on that part of the body. Or let your attention fall downward so you can feel the earth beneath your feet, that solid support holding you. Feel (*know*) what it's like to be supported.
Stay in this space for as long as you wish - a minute, an hour, a lifetime.

With mindfulness we can observe with friendly interest the challenges that come our way, noting how we experience these as precisely as we can: Tingling, tingling. Aching. Heaviness. Emptiness.

And we can also make it our practice to get familiar with feelings of comfort and safety and wellbeing: Feeling calm? Connected? Relaxed and at ease? Let's pause there awhile, you and me.

-care

14/06/2023

What we truly are does not lack anything,
does not seek or need anything,
because it is already *being* everything.
- Monica Gagliano -

21/05/2023

- How can we integrate the part of ourselves that strives to get stuff done with the part that wants to rest and heal?
- How can we channel our energy so that we're working *with* our agitation constructively?
- How can we balance the pull toward distraction with curious engagement? Or the urge to “do something, damnit!” - and then soften, slow down and get clearer on what’s most important?

To explore these questions within a reflective community, you might consider joining us for the upcoming Morning of Mindfulness:
On Saturday 3 June from 10am-1pm we'll be at the Casuarina Steiner School going through guided practices which are suitable for beginners and seasoned meditors alike.

Message me or reach me at hello@cathgrey.com for details.

"Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving. It doesn't matter. Ours is not a caravan of despair. come, even if you have broken your vows a thousand times. Come, yet again , come."
- Rumi -

01/05/2023

As I'm still away in South Africa we won't be having our Morning of Mindfulness previously planned for next week, but we will still be going ahead on Saturday 3 June.

We'll be exploring the balance between feeling calm and at ease, and feeling energised, alert and focused; how to move between these states, and how to experience both at the same time.

Do join us if you can! Details can be found here https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/morning-of-mindfulness-registration-622526763307