Peace Starts Within

“it’s something that we don’t want to water down.” Photo: Lesly Juarez

PARK CITY, Utah. — Mindfulness is something everyone seems to be thinking about these days. A quick Google search on the “growth of mindfulness” reveals a long list of articles with headlines like “Meditation is the Fastest Growing Health Trend in America” and “Mindfulness is not just a buzzword, it’s a multibillion-dollar industry.”

Parkite Rebecca Brenner definitely believes in the power of mindfulness. She studies and teaches mindfulness for a living, and is an author and mindfulness meditation teacher, speaker, practitioner, and author. Her essay, “Katie Calls” was featured in The Rumpus’ popular Voices on Addiction column in March 2020 and her essay “To Love An Addict” was featured in Tin House online in April 2018. Her memoir, PAPER HOUSE won second place in the creative non-fiction category of the Utah Original Writing Competition through the Utah Divisions of Arts and Museums.

Rebecca and her husband, Allan Nelson, moved to Utah in 2007. Their two daughters, Emerson and Brenner Nelson, were born here. Around that time, Rebecca’s background in movement therapy, yoga, nutrition, and meditation led her to pursue Tibetan Buddhism with a teacher in Salt Lake City. Those studies fostered the creation of her mindfulness programs.

Though “mindfulness” is trending throughout popular culture, to Rebecca “it’s something that we don’t want to water down.” For her, mindfulness is what leads to true wellness.

The working definition of mindfulness is paying attention to the present moment without judgment and with compassion. It becomes valuable when we develop the skill to such a degree that we can easily tap into our compassion, kindness, and empathy in any situation. As Rebecca says, “true wellness is always coming from a place of open, receptive awareness and open-heartedness” so that every choice we make positively impacts the people around us.

Rebecca’s work in meditation has also impacted her life personally. She shared a story of a day when her husband had had a busy day at work followed by a challenging evening on his own with a young family. When Rebecca came home to a stress-filled partner, her mindfulness training allowed her to recognize his frustrations, observe her own emotional reactions, and choose to listen to him to diffuse the stress and avoid an argument.

The real point of mindfulness training, Rebecca says, is to develop the skills within each of us first. She says that people often ask her the best way to teach their children mindfulness. The answer, she says, is to start with yourself.

As part of her own wellness path, Rebecca has pointed her mindfulness training to her upbringing. She has been documenting her journey to understand her mother’s addiction in a book that is currently in the manuscript stage. The book has helped her find empathy and forgiveness for her mother. Rebecca notes that so many of us were not raised with the skills to cope with suffering. “The mindfulness tool of being able to be with difficult emotions without getting lost in them or identifying with them or allowing them to overwhelm me” were instrumental in the process of healing.

Rebecca offers these final thoughts on mindfulness: “It’s such a doable practice when we learn it. It has to be pointed out, and we have to develop the skill. But once we see it in ourselves, it’s so doable, and it has such an impact on our overall wellness.” Visit RebeccaBrenner.com to see Rebecca’s upcoming training sessions.

Words By Melissa Garland for Neighbors of Park City