Dear Mindfulness Friends,

An ocean breeze smile to you. We are very excited to welcome you to the Online 6-Week Mindfulness Course next week. We have students joining us from all around the world. It’s going to be a wonderful six sessions together.

Below are all the details for the course. We invite you to smile and enjoy your breathing as you read through them.

TIME
Monday 9am to 10:30am; Melbourne, Australia time. Check your time zone here.

DATES
April 20, 2020
April 27, 2020
May 4, 2020
May 11, 2020
May 18, 2020
May 25, 2020

ZOOM
The course will be held on Zoom. If you haven’t yet, please download the free Zoom app to create a login ID. We suggest using your tablet or laptop so you can see everyone. Alternatively, you can you use web browser such as Chrome or Internet Explorer to login with your login ID.

If you’re new to Zoom, please spend a few minutes or so to navigate and learn how to use the app before we begin the course. Here’s a link to help you get started: Zoom training.

To join the meeting, simply select “Join in a Meeting” and use these details to log in:

Meeting ID: 560 985 761
Password: smile

Or use this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/560985761?pwd=VjBvUEM4K3BXYVZKMGlxVFNrb2NSZz09

We invite you to log in 5-10 minutes before each session, turn on your video and put your microphone on mute, and practice non-waiting as we sit in meditation, getting ready to begin on time as other friends log in. This helps everyone cultivate peace as we log in.

We encourage you to prepare your practice space before you log onto Zoom, ideally a space where you won’t get distracted for 90 minutes and enough room for practicing Qi Gong and mindful walking. Here are some other tips to help you prepare:

  • Invite the pets into another room.

  • Turn your phone to silent and put it out of sight (unless you are on call).

  • Have your course materials ready (see below) and a notebook and pens.

  • Have a glass of water or cup of tea.

  • Wear comfortable loose-fit clothing ie. gym or yoga wear that covers your knees and torso.

  • You may like to use a yoga mat/blanket and your favourite meditation cushion to sit on. Sitting at a desk or on a sofa will also be suitable.

COURSE MATERIALS
1) Mindfulness Toolkit. Please download this 16-page toolkit and have it ready/open on your laptop for each session. Feel free to print it out, if you have a printer.
2) Mindfulness Self-Review. Please answer this review before the first session. Again, if a printer is available, print and answer it.
3) Peace is Every Breath (eBook) by our mindfulness teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh. We will refer to the book throughout the course. Please read at least the "Introduction" before the first session.

SCHEDULE
The content of each session may vary but the general structure is:

1) Guided meditation
2) Walking meditation
3) Mindful movement with gentle stretching or Qi Gong
4) Dharma talk about the practices and theories of mindfulness
5) Dharma sharing: sharing our experience about the practice or asking questions.

COURSE OUTLINE

Week 1: Introduction
An in-depth introduction to mindfulness: the theories, tools, and practices, and how to bring mindfulness into our everyday life right away.

Week 2: Understanding Your Mind (and Yourself)
Diving into the inner workings of the mind and using tools and practices to nourish our basic goodness such as self-understanding, self-love, compassion, kindness etc., and nourishing this basic goodness to help take care of our strong emotions.

Week 3: Nourishing Yourself with Mindful Consumption
Reflection on mindful consumption and how to actively nourish our peace, joy and love.

Week 4: Mindful Communication
The art of communication: how to practice deep listening and loving speech with ourselves and our loved ones.  

Week 5: Cultivating Positive Habits
Understanding our habits in thinking and actions, and how to transform negative to positive habits.  

Week 6: Mindfulness is a Lifetime Practice
How to actively continue to nourish our mindfulness practice, using all the tools and practices, to live with more joy, peace and ease.

We look forward to sharing the beautiful path of mindfulness with you and supporting you in your practice. Please let us know if you have any questions.

With ease and peace,
Sarah & Hang