JoAnn Saccato

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12/22/2020

Can we find peace in the stillness?

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Rome, Italy. 2019
I can feel my habits asserting themselves, lurching automatically, yet thwarted at most turns. Is that happening for you, too?

Jim and I usually travel for an extended period during the holidays. Last year it was our epic trip to Italy and years before to Southeast Asia. But this year, with stay at home orders looming all around us, we're staying close to home. Not by choice.

But. But. But....

I can feel my privilege jump into self-righteous action, "certainly an exception can be made for us!"

Habits can be hard to manage--particularly when
we're feeling threatened. Particularly when we find ourselves in an ongoing unfolding large scale disaster. Reaching to comfort foods. Watching more movies. Shopping. Like a caged cat whose instincts MUST be expressed and in turn hurts itself, I am this creature of habit!

Mindfulness is poised to wake us up from these habits and sometimes help dissolve them, and all I can say is I can see the habits more clearly, but am not necessarily free from them.

Sharing special traditions may not be possible this year, but something is emerging and I notice it most when I sit in stillness. Rather than see these current conditions as a restraint being forced upon me, I'm beginning to see it as an invitation to something deeper. Something not available when I'm busy traveling or shopping.


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11/22/2020

Finding and extending gratitude during difficult times

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As we find ourselves 8+ months into the COVID-19 pandemic with worsening conditions, along with the attempted derailment of the usual transfer of power in the United States after a tense election, the continued opening of deep and scaring wounds from racial injustice, a climate in crisis that is continually being denied by a large segment of the power elite in one of the largest contributing nations on the planet, and ongoing natural disasters that continue to outdo their predecessors, it's hard to find the wherewithal to practice gratitude, much less extend it.

But, while finding moments of gratitude can be challenging, those small moments can add up to big shifts in our inclination in our day-to-day life, as well as provide protective factors against the ongoing stress and trauma we find ourselves in today.


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9/24/2020

Reflections From the John Muir Trail 2020: Part VI - Learning Ourselves Through Nature

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In awe at the base of an ancient Rocky Mountain Juniper. Ansel Adams Wilderness, California.
On the sixth day of the journey I came across what I thought was an ancient Cedar tree standing alone in all its splendor with an exceptional view of peaks across the way.

I became enamored with aged, dying and dead trees when in my youth I saw my first leaf skeleton. I was so fascinated with it's structure--a delicate outline of the leaf with a grid of once-hidden bones across its body. Since then, I've always been pulled toward the contorted and demised elders in the forest.

This tree, that I guessed was about 3,000 years old, turned out to be a Rocky Mountain Juniper, the uses, of which, to the indigenous peoples of the Americas, are too numerous to list. But my instant reaction was a recognition of its sacredness.

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9/18/2020

Reflections From the John Muir Trail 2020: Part V - More on Appreciation

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Sunset at Ruby Lake. Ansel Adams Wilderness, California.
Before I settled into camp at Ruby Lake, the night of catastrophizing where I became determined to bring appreciation rather than fearful anxiety to what could have been my last night alive, I sat near the lake and prayed, is this the right spot for me to stay tonight?

The lull of the late afternoon ascended as the sun descended behind the craggy peaks of Ruby Lake. The stillness of water, save the champagne like glistening of sunlight dancing across the small expanse, sedated the day's activities. Birds flitted here and thereto find their last nuggets of seeds and bugs for their evening nourishment. The dragonflies, jokering around in two- and threesomes, swerved in and around me at water's edge, occasionally hovering briefly at eye level, as rainbow glistening wings reflected splashes of sun rays. A chipmunk came next to me, perching on a rock overlooking the lake while munching on a pine cone.

Paying me no never mind, I wondered if it had the same awe I did this time of day? Did it choose this specific spot for the view at sunset? Or was it just a convenient relatively flat place where which to eat dinner?

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9/10/2020

Reflections From the John Muir Trail 2020: Part iV - lost in Bear territory

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I left Iva Bell Hot Springs mid morning with a spring in my step from a nice hot bath to start the day and the knowledge that the trail was an easy downhill for most of the way.

I may be able to push through the eleven miles back to Red's Meadow, I thought, as I oriented toward the northbound section of the Fish Creek trail. That would be a day earlier than planned. I was a week and a half into the trip and had gained my stride.

As I looked at and appreciated the last rock lined hot pool, the thought of loving awareness popped into my mind. That's all life seems to want from us is our loving awareness as it unfolds.

This will be my practice today--bring loving awareness to each moment.


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9/3/2020

Reflections From the John Muir Trail 2020: Part iii - Bear Encounters

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View of cabins at Red's Meadow Resort, a popular resupply stop on the John Muir Trail. Ansel Adams Wilderness, California.
"They really are intimidated by humans," Sally said as we sat around the picnic table at Red's Meadow Resort eating our highly prized Red's burgers. "Just scare them off with loud sounds and act big."

I'd heard this numerous times along the trail. Brown bears--those bears we find in California--aren't interested in humans, but are interested in our food. How many evenings before bed since learning how to backpack three years ago were spent painstakingly going through the ritual of making sure that "everything that goes in or on your body" is safely sealed into a bear-proof canister and stashed some distance from the tent?

So many hours spent fretting about having residual mint fragrance from toothpaste lingering in my mouth or the scent of lotion on my dry cracked hands. Was it enough to be detected? Images of the young camper who awoke to a crunching sound--which turned out to be the sound of his own head being munched by a bear--repeatedly forced their way into my head. I shuddered every time.

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8/20/2020

Reflections from the John Muir Trail 2020: Part I - Just Five Breaths

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Purple Lake, Sierra National Forest. John Muir Trail. August 13, 2020.

The first few days on the trail are usually filled with some anxiety and many questions: Did I remember to pack the soap? Is there enough food? What about bear activity? What am I supposed to do if I encounter a bear? Do I look them in the eye? Act big and try to scare them off?  Did I bring too many pairs of socks? And on. I fiddle with equipment and work to remember where to put things that make the most logical and efficient sense.

For some reason this year, my mind was super activated and super scared. This was my first time solo for 14 days and needing to resupply along the route. My legs were also super antsy at night after hiking five or so miles with 35 pounds on my back. My senses, as always when I'm out in wilderness, were on high alert, particularly listening intently for movement in and around camp in the evenings. I try to arrive at my 'home for the night' early enough in daylight hours so my nervous system can settle into the space before dark. It's something I learned with Shyla, my canine companion, many years before.

I also make an effort to not be right next to running water that is loud enough to block my ability to hear movement around me. It's all survival instinct, I know, and I do my best to make myself as comfortable as I can when I solo hike.


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6/19/2020

Mindfully responding to these challenging times

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I don't know about you, but I'm regularly inundated with information these days. All of it important for these times, but sometimes it's difficult to pick and choose where and for how long to put my attention. I sometimes get caught in overwhelm to the point of freezing in my tracks. While I'm a survivor of trauma, and this is not an uncommon experience, I'm struggling to find my way through like so many others.

Equally, discerning what meaningful actions to take in response to institutionalized racism and inequities is challenging me. There are so many avenues to take for dismantling the systems of racial injustice. And, particularly, being a white woman of privilege, I feel it is imperative I contribute.

How do I (we) navigate through these times and not get lost in crippling overwhelm? Personally, I'm seeing this time akin to a long-term large scale disaster. It's unfolding over a long period of time. It is persisting the way the fire or tornado season does--over months. How do I actively contribute to better our situations AND care for myself during this long period of upheaval?

Firstly, I remind myself that this is a marathon and not a sprint, so my tactics need to be different. Then, I think about the self-care I need to stay engaged in the long run. I turn to my practice for respite, support, nurturance and wisdom on how to proceed.

Next, I choose mindfullly how to navigate my time and days. Here's just a few of the myriad ideas and resources that are surfacing in my research. 


  • Disaster resiliency - Having survived numerous large scale disasters in our community in the past few years and working with survivors towards resilience, I'm recognizing common reactions to disaster in myself and others--foggy brain, difficulty sleeping, difficulty making decisions, feeling anxious and fearful, reaching out to a little too much comfort food, just to name a few. (For more information about reactions to disaster and simple supports for moving forward, you can download a helpful brochure from the Lake FRC HOPE project, a project I led in 2018.)
  • PTSS - What we know as Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS)--symptoms that persist after a traumatic experience (anxiety, nightmares, physical distress and increased fight or flight response, to name a few) arise after exposure to a traumatic event. What was brought to my attention recently, was how with Black Americans and other People of Color, the 'event', racialized trauma, is an every day ongoing event. Much like living in a war zone, our friends and family of color have been living under these traumatic conditions for over 400 years in this country. Resmaa Menakem, healer, author and trauma specialist, reminds us that this is not 'post' traumatic stress, but rather 'persistent' traumatic stress--meaning the end of the 'event' hasn't occurred. (Here's a fascinating podcast interview with Resmaa and Robin DiAngelo, author of White Fragility, on this issue and here's a free somatic based e-course Resmaa developed to help abolish White Body Supremacy in the next 9 generations.)
  • TSM - As I learn more about trauma sensitive mindfulness (David Treleaven is at the forefront of research and education around this topic) and incorporate those supports in my teachings of mindfulness, I cannot stress enough the need for fierce self-compassion as we navigate through these times. To me, that includes:
    • Limiting the amount of time spent with media, social media, news information, etc., particularly intense and violent imagery that can trigger trauma. (This is not about putting our heads in the sand, but rather not overexposing ourselves needlessly and impacting our nervous system in a way that renders us less available to navigate wisely.)
    • Practicing a lot of loving kindness meditation (Here's a link to a free guided one.)
    • Expanding social supports. I know this is difficult during pandemic social distancing and diminished community activities, but there are lots of online and outdoor opportunities for connection, including:
      • Wednesday Community Meditation. Brief talk, guided meditation, reflection and clarifying discussion. 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Pacific.
      • Sangha Live. Daily and weekly talks and guided meditations, from within the Buddhist wisdom tradition context.
      • List of freely offered Insight Meditation sitting groups mostly situated within the Buddhist wisdom tradition.
      • Dharma Seed. A large number of guided meditations and talks by renowned teachers in the Insight Meditation / Buddhist wisdom tradition.
  • Learn more - In  a recent talk (Password: 1H^o+6b0), Clovis Lewis, a friend and pastor, inspired this writing on compassion as a path to long term justice and equity.
  • TAKE ACTION: Regardless of your color of skin, it will take all of us to dismantle these embedded systems of race-based injustice and inequity.
    • Educate yourself on the actuality of these systems--it's sometimes hard to see, much less acknowledge these systems when we're swimming in them.
    • Vote! We must support candidates that understand the deeper issues and are willing to take them on wholeheartedly. Here's some helpful information from one of my favorite teachers, Jack Kornfield about how to get out the vote.
    • Pray: This loving kindness prayer by Zenju Earthlyn Manuel offers inclusion in so many beautiful ways.
    • Take action in your local community. Join us for one or more of these upcoming Community Call to Action events.

These are turbulent times--times that I believe will lead us to a higher ground as people and a more compassionate species on the planet. Be gentle with yourself and each other. Smother yourself in self-care to support your ongoing resilience and allow your mindfulness practice to be a source of nurturing refuge and a path to deeper wisdom.

With warmheartedness,


JoAnn

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JoAnn Saccato, MA, is a certified teacher with the Mindfulness Training Institute, life coach, author and consultant. She is the author of Companioning the Sacred Journey: A Guide to Creating a Compassionate Container for Your Spiritual Practice and Mindful and Intentional Living: A Path to Peace Clarity and Freedom.

Mindfulness is an umbrella term used for a large body of popular health and wellness practices based on purposefully bringing a curious, kind and non-judgmental attention to moment by moment experience. It is a scientifically proven approach that helps reduce stress and stress-related illnesses, increase focus and attention, decrease incidences of and relapses with depression, reduce anxiety, reduce relapses in addiction, and aids in sleep and digestive disorders. It has also been shown to increase well being, life satisfaction and happiness, as well as improved social relationships.

You can reach JoAnn at JoAnn@MindfulAndIntentionalLiving.com. To follow her visit: www.MindfulAndIntentionalLiving.com

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6/4/2020

Mindfulness and Compassion as a Path to Justice and Equity

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This post is inspired by a recent talk I heard from my friend Clovice Lewis, an astounding musician and minister in training with the Unitarian Universalist community.

Compassion arises when we recognize suffering and motivates us to act out of care and concern to help relieve the suffering we see. Our capacity for compassion is locked into our human nature--everyone has this capacity and the capacity can be grown. So, not only does compassion and kindness serve us by nourishing resiliency, it can be used as a means to the end of injustice and inequity.

But, first, we need to understand more about compassion. It takes four stages to allow compassion to help heal and prevent injustices and inequality:
  1. see  suffering
  2. relate to the sufferer
  3. grow our circle of inclusion and care, and
  4. take action to end suffering and prevent future suffering

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5/26/2020

What Novel Things are Opening Up for You?

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Maypop, a species of Passion flowers. May, 2020.
I was inspired toward an inner inquiry after I excitedly welcomed the first bloom on a Passion flower in my yard. I was so mesmerized the first time I saw one of these markedly distinct flowers, I immediately conjured up the belief that they had to be from another planet! The plant in my yard is chock full of blooms for the first time in the three years I’ve tended it.

The bloom arrived simultaneously with the second phase of opening in our community, and a push to clear away 7+ years of ivy overgrowth and thick forest duft in preparation of the upcoming fire season and to reveal--to open up--the all-elusive forest floor.

All this prompted me to inquire: All this opening going on, I'm curious, what is opening up for me? And what about others--what is opening up for them right now?

Rather than go into a long written inquiry, I decided to go inward with a mindfulness practice and explore directly what was opening in my heart, mind and body.

(You can explore a guided version of this practice HERE.)


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