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Deborah Ferris Mindful Meditation & Reiki, Tillsonburg, ON (2025)

12/08/2025

Mindful Body Scan II
When doing a mindful body scan you can lie on the floor or on a bed. Watch out you don't fall asleep and if you do then do this form of meditation when you are more alert.

Reiki Blessings to all.

12/08/2025

Body Scan Mindfulness
Sometimes we may feel that we don't have the energy to sit or walk in meditation. We could choose instead to scan through the body in a mindful way.

This is an opportunity to be curious and to observe what is going on in the body. Start at your feet and notice what you sense. Does one foot feel different than the other? Is there tension, ease or maybe you don't sense anything? It's all good info.

Continue to work up the body until you get to the top of your head and then focus on the wholeness of your body not just the individual parts. This meditation can take up to 45 minutes.

Notice how you feel as you breathe in and out allowing a smile to flow from the top of your head to your feet.

Often we ignore our bodies that are speaking to us if we just tune in. Take care my friends. As the Buddha said: "Our body is precious. It is our vehicle for awakening. Treat it with care."

Wishing you good health, happiness, peace and ease. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

12/01/2025

Look For the Good
Today is the beginning of a new month, and this month of December reminds us that we are getting ever closer to the celebration of the Winter Solstice and the Christmas holidays.

There is a freshness to the beginning of something especially if we look for the good and beauty that is around us and within us. We might choose to see the fresh fallen snow as a delight or as one more chore on a Monday morning. Which serves us?

When we can see the goodness of a moment, a day, a month and beyond it makes us feel good or happy inside. When we only see the down side we feel gloomy.

We can give ourselves and others the gift of goodness, love and appreciation today, a new fresh day filled with 24 hours as Thich Nat Hahn has said.

And let's not forget tomorrow has been designated Giving Day. This is typically a day organized to give money and/or time to charities and non-profit agencies. It is certainly a day that we can also give a smile, share a laugh, contact a dear one and spread the gift of love and generosity around. This is such a wonderful benefit to the giver and the receiver.

Wishing you much goodness in your life and the eyes and heart to find these moments.

Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

11/24/2025

Filling Your Well
Sometimes we might feel fatigued, drawn out or stale. When this happens we need to fill our well of self-care and the well of creativity within us.

Julia Cameron in her book The Artist's Way sets out a number of activities that can help us replenish our creative energy, spark our joy and curiosity. For instance, spending time with anything that is beautiful, such as nature, art, music and so on.

Having new experiences that interrupt our habits also sparks our joy, as does being in stillness.

Meditation can help us be in spaciousness and stillness and is an experiential time for using our curiosity -- what do we sense, observe in the moment and the next one.

Having fun and laughing also qualify as ways to fill the reservoir. These various activities are certainly part of a good self-care practice too.

Add in a dash of kindness, compassion and generosity towards yourself along with a walk in a park or the woods as you move your body and a good night's sleep are extra components of good care. And, don't forget to eat healthy foods with gratitude as you nourish body/mind/spirit.

This week you might wish to see what fills your well and notice how you feel more energized and even happier.

Wishing you happiness, wellness and peace. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

11/17/2025

Balance With Mindfulness
Do you sometimes feel off balance and out-of-sorts? You look out the window and see a grey sky and bare trees and it is cold out.

This is a perfect time to do some mindful yoga and meditation. Even a few minutes can help warm you up and get you grounded again.

As you begin your practice, breathe in and out deeply and feel how your legs and feet are in contact with the floor, representing the earth and sink your imaginary roots deep down so that you are feeling the stability and strength that is within you.

With hands in prayer pose or anjali give thanks for 'this new day, a fresh 24 hours and smile' (Thich Nhat Hahn, Vietnamese monk and meditation teacher's adapted gatha poem).

Continue with your yoga practice and then sit or walk in mindful meditation. You can do mindful walking meditation inside your home or outside. Focus on your breath and feeling that sense of being like a tree with roots deep in Mother Earth that anchor you through the good times and the difficult ones. Feel a smile entering at the crown of your head and flowing through every part of your body as you continue to concentrate on the in breath and the longer out breath feeling calm, strong and balanced.

Maybe this week you would like to adopt this yoga and meditation practice. If you don't know yoga poses you can find videos online or find a local class near you. Guided meditation can also be found online or find a teacher near you.

Wishing you happiness today and everyday. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti. And, may we each find the beauty in the grey sky and the blue, blue sky.

11/10/2025

Mindfulness & Nature's Beauty
Learning to be mindful is a practice and one of the most enjoyable ways to practice is spending time in nature.

On a snowy day you can simply look out the window and mindfully look at trees covered in snow or take a little foray into your garden and be present with what you see, hear, touch and feel in the moment. As you do this, notice how you feel and even where in your body you notice the feelings and sensations. Really take in these moments. You can even amplify them.

Mindfulness is an opportunity for us to be curious and to investigate the present moment and its aliveness.

Nature provides us with so much beauty that refreshes our body/mind/spirit. Going for a walk amongst trees and by water especially uplifts and gladdens the heart. It's also good for our immune system too.

This week notice the beauty of nature whether from your chair or being outdoors.

Wishing you wellness, happiness and harmony. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

11/03/2025

Patience in Meditation and Life
Patience has been called a virtue and it is so true as many of us find it hard to be this way.

The Buddha advocated patience whether you are sitting in meditation or living your life. There will always be ups and downs, frustrations or suffering so we need ways to help us keep our calm and cool.

Patience involves pausing before reacting, cultivating inner peace and responding with clarity and compassion to challenges and to other's actions.

When we cultivate patience we develop an understanding of our minds and emotions and how other's may act in ways that show they are suffering.

This week you may wish to notice how patient you are whether waiting in a line-up, waiting for a response from someone or having patience with your own physical or emotional skills. Work at breathing and pausing before reacting.

Remember compassion is key.

Wishing you ease and peace. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

10/27/2025

Just For Today ...
The Fifth Reiki Principle or Precept that all Reiki students learn is 'Just for today or Today only be kind and grateful to all sentient beings'. This is an important precept for all of us to live by.

We can be kind and grateful towards ourselves. If we make a mistake or we are not seen, we can treat ourselves gently knowing that we can learn from situations and events. We can realize that we need not be dependent on the other for us to be okay. We can know that if someone is unkind to us they are coming from their own suffering.

This precept also advocates for us to extend kindness and gratitude to others. We can be kind to those who are suffering whether physically or in some other way. We can extend gratitude to trees, flowers, animals and so on.

When we are kind and thankful we are filled with joy and happiness. This truly helps make the world a better place.

This week look for ways to express your kindness and gratitude from acknowledging a loved one or stranger to caring for a plant, an animal and so on.

Wishing you happiness and peace. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

10/20/2025

Diwali Festival of Lights
There are a number of countries that celebrate Diwali including India, Fiji and Malaysia as well as in some cities in Canada.

This is a celebration of the victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance. People celebrate by lighting candles and lamps during the five day festival.

As well, gifts of sweets are exchanged, homes are cleaned and fireworks light up the sky in countries like India.

Even if this isn't part of our cultural background, we can recognize this special time by lighting candles, meditating or praying for peace, harmony and love to prevail.

We all wish for happiness and lightness in our lives. May we find our true joy, love and may Light prevail in the world.

Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

10/13/2025

Gratitude on Thanksgiving Day
Gratitude is an acknowledgement of all that sustains us, says Jack Kornfield, Mindfulness Meditation teacher and author.

Today and every day we can give thanks for our shelter, food, family and friends, good health or the portion of good health that we have and more.

Let us remember today our blessings and gratitudes like the teachings of the Buddha, mindfulness, the beauty in the world, healing energies/arts like Reiki, the bounty of the harvest and so much more.

Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving and peace, love and harmony. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

10/06/2025

Gathering the Harvest
The Fall season is a time when we gather in a harvest of foods. Below is a sample of our cherry tomatoes that are continuing to flourish.

As we gather in food for storage, preserving or eating fresh, at the same time we can be gathering in our intentions for how we have been acting in the world at this time.

For example, did you intend to go to yoga classes or walk four or five times a week? Did you intend to re-start a mindfulness meditation practice this Fall? Maybe you made an intention to be more present throughout the day and take some short pauses to notice what you are thinking, feeling and sensing.

If you made intentions, plans or goals, you can check that out - gather them in - and see how you are doing. This way you can correct any lapses and reaffirm your intentions. Perhaps even logging some of them and having a friend to keep you on track.

The harvest though is really a time of celebration. So, if you didn't meet all the posts you set then you can still feel joy in knowing this is a new moment and the next and the next is also a new moment. In Beginner's mind, we start over anew - a fresh new breath in and a fresh new breath out.

Wishing you joy and wellness. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

09/29/2025

The Unnoticed
Have you ever gone for a walk and not really been fully aware of your surroundings and the wonders within and without?
Sometimes we need to be more present as we walk, talk and think, so that we can see the hidden beauties that await us.

There is joy in being aware and noticing what is before us. We may see the beauties of nature or sense the groundedness and strength that are ours as we walk along a path. With more awareness, we can notice the smile or frown on someone's face. We can be here right now.

Sometimes we don't notice those who live on the fringes or members of our own families if we are caught up in our cell phones, newspapers, TV and so on.

Let's take in the moment and all that it has to enrich and enliven our life. And, may the moment include love, wisdom and compassion.

Wishing you happiness and peace. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

Deborah Ferris Mindful Meditation & Reiki

12/08/2025

12/08/2025

12/01/2025

11/24/2025

11/17/2025

11/10/2025

11/03/2025

10/27/2025

10/20/2025

10/13/2025

10/06/2025

09/29/2025

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