Four Degrees of Mindfulness Retreat
with John Bruna, Laura Bartels
We are delighted to be able to again return to Waunita Hot Springs Ranch for our annual mindfulness retreat. This year, we will be focusing on developing and deepening the four degrees of mindfulness. All too often people limit their understanding of mindfulness to present moment awareness. Though extremely important and can be transformative, that is the beginning, or one can say, the foundation of mindfulness. As we learn to become more able to be consciously aware of what we are doing in the present moment, we can significantly improve our ability to be an active participant in shaping the person we are becoming, developing the inner qualities that we find meaningful and supportive of the lives we want to live. We can all develop the skills of living mindfully that reduce stress, cultivate our inner resources, build resiliency, and have more joy in our lives. The greater the degrees of our awareness, the more we are able to make healthy choices that foster genuine happiness and fulfilling lives.
While there are many different definitions and perspectives of mindfulness, we can approach mindfulness by exploring different degrees of mindfulness:
- Awareness of what we are doing. This can be described as present moment awareness.
- Awareness of why we are doing it. This relates to insight regarding motives, habits, and tendencies.
- Awareness of whether it is beneficial or not to our lives and the person we want to be. Are we in alignment with our values?
- Awareness of whether what we are thinking, perceiving, or acting upon is based in reality. This relates to cognitive distortions, projections, exaggerations, labeling, and emotional refractory experiences.
Though living with such degrees of mindfulness may seem a bit daunting, it is actually very doable and only requires training and practice. In fact, you have all experienced these degrees of mindfulness in your lives, though often for short moments. Over the course of the retreat, we will unpack methods to bring the four degrees of mindfulness into your lives in ways that are meaningful to you.
The retreat will be facilitated by John Bruna and Laura Bartels
About the Facilitators
John Bruna is a former Buddhist monk, an author, and a mindfulness teacher and trainer. John is also the co-founder of the Mindful Life Program™ and of Mindfulness in Recovery®. Drawing from his extensive training and rich personal experiences over three decades, John has led retreats and facilitated trainings throughout the country, becoming a leading voice in the field of mindfulness. He is the author of The Wisdom of a Meaningful Life: The Essence of Mindfulness and The Essential Guidebook to Mindfulness in Recovery and has presented at TEDx and other conferences throughout the country. John is known for his warmth, humor, and ability to make teachings practical and accessible. To learn more about John, see www.ameaningfullife.us.
Laura Bartels is the Executive Director and a co-founder of the Mindful Life Program. In addition to leading retreats across the US and teaching and presenting on mindfulness, Laura is the co-instructor for our in-depth training, the Mindful Learning Year. Laura’s previous professional path in sustainable building and community development, helping people and communities put values into action offered a valuable foundation and perspective on the importance of inner sustainability. Personally and professionally, the skills of living mindfully became an essential part of Laura’s life as the value of meditation and mindfulness became even more clear after a serious car accident. Laura has brought programs to diverse audiences from educators and parents to law enforcement and emergency dispatchers. Laura brings sensitivity to both individuals and groups, and she has been looked to for her calm presence and leadership, her kindness and her thoughtfulness. To learn more about Laura, see her full bio.
Retreat Details
This is a three-day retreat located at Waunita Hot Springs Ranch. The retreat fee includes lodging, meals, and use of the Hot Springs. There are options for single and shared rooms. The retreat will be partially silent, morning until midday, with a mix of meditation sessions, instruction, discussion, reflection time, walks, journaling, or simply relaxing in the hot spring.
Location: Waunita Hot Springs Ranch, located high in the Colorado Rockies at an elevation of 8,946 ft., is 10 miles west of the Continental Divide, east of Gunnison, Colorado. The ranch is surrounded by Gunnison National Forest. The main lodge and Hillside lodge include single and shared rooms, all with private bathrooms. The retreat activities take place upstairs in the barn, with views of the surrounding mountains. Fed by natural hot springs, the 35×90 ft pool is one of the largest private pools in Colorado and has an adjacent hot tub and bathhouse.
Dates: October 19 – 22, 2023 The retreat begins on a Thursday evening and ends on a Sunday around 11:30 am.
Meals: The meals are vegetarian and Waunita does their best to meet any special dietary needs. Please let us know if you have additional dietary needs and we will contact the retreat staff.
Cost: $470 per person for a shared room. $575 per person for a private room. The price for the retreat is all-inclusive for the retreat, lodging, breakfast, and dinner (light snacks midday), and hot springs and is not tax-deductible. With this retreat, the teachings are offered on a free-will donation basis. You may make a donation for the teachings either at the retreat or online below. This donation is not tax-deductible.
Travel: Waunita Hot Springs Ranch is located 27 miles east of Gunnison, Colorado. While Gunnison operates a regional airport, retreatants also fly into Grand Junction or Denver airports and travel by car to the ranch.
Register: You can register securely online with a credit card, choosing your room type below. If you prefer to pay by check, contact us at [email protected] or (970) 633-0163. Space is limited. Please inquire if you have questions.
Donations: The Mindful Life Program only charges enough to cover hosting the retreat. John and Laura offer their teachings on a free will offering basis. You may offer any amount to support their efforts if you would like.
Donate
If you have any other questions or if we can be of help in any way, please let us know. Please contact us at [email protected] or (970) 633-0163.
MLP Online Mindfulness 8 Week Foundations Course
Fridays, January 5 – February 23rd, 2 – 4:30 pm Mountain Time – Course Limited to 5 Participants
The MLP Mindfulness Foundations Course combines the practice of meditation with the application of mindfulness in daily life. Our goal is to help you to live your life with attention and intention, cultivating the skills that empower you to make healthy choices that are in alignment with your values and that are meaningful to you. The course is designed to be practical and accessible, allowing anyone, with or without a background in mindfulness, to participate. The course is also designed to be universal so that anyone can benefit from mindfulness, regardless of cultural, economic, or spiritual background.
In this time of national and global challenges such as an ongoing pandemic, deep societal divides, and grief-inducing climate chaos, basic mindfulness skills can help us to reduce anxiety, eco-despair, and fear; to live our precious lives with genuine happiness, loving-kindness, and compassion. This course is a transformative first step on a lifelong journey into our more authentic and joyful selves.
Join the Mindful Life Program Foundations Course, January 5 – February 23, 2024. Give yourself the gift of this lively and engaging opportunity to learn to live mindfully, with attention and intention, cultivating genuine happiness and a meaningful life. The MLP Foundations Course combines the practice of meditation with the application of mindfulness in daily life and guides you to develop the habits that support you. Empower yourself to integrate the four key areas of mindfulness – attention, wisdom, values, and an open heart – into your life in practical, accessible, and universal ways.
Attention – Developing attention through meditation training.
Wisdom – Understanding one’s biases, labeling, projections and pre-judgments. Increasing emotional intelligence and learning to respond rather than react.
Values – Living a meaningful life. Developing healthy habits and responses that are in alignment with one’s personal values.
Open heart – Developing healthy relationships and connections. Cultivating skills of compassion, loving-kindness, empathic joy, and equanimity.
In order to live a meaningful life and develop the freedom to live consciously, the curriculum focuses on training the mind and cultivating the ability to make healthy choices that are beneficial to the life you want to live. In this way, you can live your life with attention and intention. This course consists of lectures, meditations, small group discussions, journaling, and short video presentations. Our teachers create a safe environment for participants to explore their own values and learn to apply practices to live in alignment with them.
Enrollment includes:
Dates: Fridays, January 5 – February 23, 2024, 2:00-4:30 pm Mountain Time
Cost: $349, scholarships available based on need. Contact the instructor for information on cost and scholarships.
To register: click here – course is limited to 5 participants
Contact: Rita Clagett, Mirador Eco-Retreat, 970.216.8020, [email protected]
Facilitator: Rita Clagett
Facilitator Website
*Continuing Professional Development (CPDs) credits may be available for social workers, therapists, and substance abuse counselors.
*Continuing Education Units (CEUs) may be available for teachers.
Please contact the instructor to inquire about credits being offered for this course.
The course is offered to general audiences as well as to specific audiences such as educators, mental health professionals, recovery professionals, wellness programs, and more. Ask about bringing this course to your workplace or other groups.
Overcoming Complacency – Mindful Living Skills Webinar
The Mindful Life Community™ is excited to announce our next Mindful Living Skills webinar:
Overcoming Complacency
July 22, 4 pm MST US (Sunday, July 23, 8 am AEST)
Register today to save your spot!
The panel for this month’s webinar
Laura Bartels, Co-founder of Mindful Life Program™
Jessica Sylvanson, currently in the Mindful Learning Year Teacher Certification Program.
Dan Piquette, Mindful Life Program™ Certified Teacher
Our monthly webinars bring Mindful Life Program™ founders, teachers, and guests together in a collective conversation on key aspects of practice. Join us to learn, explore, and have a chance to ask questions during these live events.
The webinars are open to anyone, so feel free to invite friends. They are free to members of the Mindful Life Community™ and Mindfulness in Recovery® Community. If you’re not a member of either, register for just $10.
After checkout, look for an email with your personal link to the webinar.
Already a member?
Register at no charge from the Event link within your community. For ease, we’ve copied them below!
Mindful Life Community™
Mindfulness in Recovery® Community
Online Mindfulness in Recovery® with Rachel Currier
Online MIR Course with John Bruna and Rachel Currier
We are excited and grateful to be able to support you in developing the skills to cultivate more inner peace, resiliency, and joy in your life. This online course provides you with daily activities, teachings from our co-founder, John Bruna, and live sessions facilitated by Rachel Currier. With our online format, you can attend from wherever you are in the world.
This is an eight-week course open to everyone for personal development and for those working with others in the treatment field. It is experiential and focused on helping participants cultivate a daily mindfulness practice that integrates the MIR skills into daily life.
About the MIR Course
In addition to the course, participants receive:
This course begins with an opening session on Monday, August 7th, followed by weekly sessions every Monday through October 2nd. In between sessions, there are videos with instructions from John and exercises from the Essential Guidebook to Mindfulness in Recovery and the Essential Guidebook to Recovery for Family and Friends.
Everyone in the United States receives a copy of either the Essential Guidebook to Mindfulness in Recovery or the Family and Friends version of the guidebook, and access to the private course online community platform accessible by computer, tablet, or mobile phone. You are able to interact with others in the course on that platform and in the course sessions.
*If you live outside of the USA, we will work with you to get you access to the guidebook.
Course Facilitator: Rachel Currier
Course Schedule
August 7th – October 2nd.
Live Session Times – Mondays at:
Price: $349 US. There is a $50 discount for Mindful Life and Mindfulness in Recovery Community members. Contact us at [email protected] for your discount code.
Registration: Once you have registered, please fill out this information form. You will receive a confirmation email with details for the course. Look for your Essential Guidebook in the mail unless you live outside of the United States. If outside the US, we will contact you about options.
Questions: Email [email protected] or call (970) 633-0163.
Four Degrees of Mindfulness Retreat
Four Degrees of Mindfulness Retreat
with John Bruna, Laura Bartels
We are delighted to be able to again return to Waunita Hot Springs Ranch for our annual mindfulness retreat. This year, we will be focusing on developing and deepening the four degrees of mindfulness. All too often people limit their understanding of mindfulness to present moment awareness. Though extremely important and can be transformative, that is the beginning, or one can say, the foundation of mindfulness. As we learn to become more able to be consciously aware of what we are doing in the present moment, we can significantly improve our ability to be an active participant in shaping the person we are becoming, developing the inner qualities that we find meaningful and supportive of the lives we want to live. We can all develop the skills of living mindfully that reduce stress, cultivate our inner resources, build resiliency, and have more joy in our lives. The greater the degrees of our awareness, the more we are able to make healthy choices that foster genuine happiness and fulfilling lives.
While there are many different definitions and perspectives of mindfulness, we can approach mindfulness by exploring different degrees of mindfulness:
Though living with such degrees of mindfulness may seem a bit daunting, it is actually very doable and only requires training and practice. In fact, you have all experienced these degrees of mindfulness in your lives, though often for short moments. Over the course of the retreat, we will unpack methods to bring the four degrees of mindfulness into your lives in ways that are meaningful to you.
The retreat will be facilitated by John Bruna and Laura Bartels
About the Facilitators
Laura Bartels is the Executive Director and a co-founder of the Mindful Life Program. In addition to leading retreats across the US and teaching and presenting on mindfulness, Laura is the co-instructor for our in-depth training, the Mindful Learning Year. Laura’s previous professional path in sustainable building and community development, helping people and communities put values into action offered a valuable foundation and perspective on the importance of inner sustainability. Personally and professionally, the skills of living mindfully became an essential part of Laura’s life as the value of meditation and mindfulness became even more clear after a serious car accident. Laura has brought programs to diverse audiences from educators and parents to law enforcement and emergency dispatchers. Laura brings sensitivity to both individuals and groups, and she has been looked to for her calm presence and leadership, her kindness and her thoughtfulness. To learn more about Laura, see her full bio.
Retreat Details
This is a three-day retreat located at Waunita Hot Springs Ranch. The retreat fee includes lodging, meals, and use of the Hot Springs. There are options for single and shared rooms. The retreat will be partially silent, morning until midday, with a mix of meditation sessions, instruction, discussion, reflection time, walks, journaling, or simply relaxing in the hot spring.
Location: Waunita Hot Springs Ranch, located high in the Colorado Rockies at an elevation of 8,946 ft., is 10 miles west of the Continental Divide, east of Gunnison, Colorado. The ranch is surrounded by Gunnison National Forest. The main lodge and Hillside lodge include single and shared rooms, all with private bathrooms. The retreat activities take place upstairs in the barn, with views of the surrounding mountains. Fed by natural hot springs, the 35×90 ft pool is one of the largest private pools in Colorado and has an adjacent hot tub and bathhouse.
Dates: October 19 – 22, 2023 The retreat begins on a Thursday evening and ends on a Sunday around 11:30 am.
Meals: The meals are vegetarian and Waunita does their best to meet any special dietary needs. Please let us know if you have additional dietary needs and we will contact the retreat staff.
Cost: $470 per person for a shared room. $575 per person for a private room. The price for the retreat is all-inclusive for the retreat, lodging, breakfast, and dinner (light snacks midday), and hot springs and is not tax-deductible. With this retreat, the teachings are offered on a free-will donation basis. You may make a donation for the teachings either at the retreat or online below. This donation is not tax-deductible.
Travel: Waunita Hot Springs Ranch is located 27 miles east of Gunnison, Colorado. While Gunnison operates a regional airport, retreatants also fly into Grand Junction or Denver airports and travel by car to the ranch.
Register: You can register securely online with a credit card, choosing your room type below. If you prefer to pay by check, contact us at [email protected] or (970) 633-0163. Space is limited. Please inquire if you have questions.
Donations: The Mindful Life Program only charges enough to cover hosting the retreat. John and Laura offer their teachings on a free will offering basis. You may offer any amount to support their efforts if you would like.
Donate
If you have any other questions or if we can be of help in any way, please let us know. Please contact us at [email protected] or (970) 633-0163.
28 Day Daily Practice Circle
28 Day Daily Practice Circle
Connect. Practice. Thrive
Deepen and Grow Your Mindfulness Practice With Us
Bring an infusion of inspiration and support to your mindfulness practice by joining others for this new offering. It’s 28 days of focus and support for practices throughout your day. Join a supportive circle of MLP co-founders, trained mindfulness teachers, and others, just like you, looking to bring the benefits of a more consistent, fuller daily practice to life.
Program Dates
Opening Live Event, September 10, 6 pm MST US
Our 28 Days of Practice are September 11 – October 8 US
Weekly Gatherings, Sundays
Elements of Support in our 28 Day Daily Practice Circle
Opening Live Event, September 10, 6 pm MST US (in Australia, September 11, 10 am AEST)
Dedicated support and conversation space within the Mindful Life Network™
Each week we’ll introduce the theme with an article and share a new recorded meditation for that week. You also have access to a collection of our guided meditations for the 28 days.
Each day you’ll find a new practice inspiration, tip or technique
Downloadable resources such as the “Rhythm of a Daily Practice” and more.
We encourage those who join to attend the live weekly mindfulness meetings that we offer. Since we have members in many time zones, there are no daily live events.
By participating in the 28 Day Daily Practice Circle, if you did not already, you will have access to the Mindful Life Network™, our free mindfulness community. You will find additional resources there.
Register Here!