Our third month has the theme, BALANCE Now we have come to month 3, which is about the flow and energy in balance. Don't worry if you find it difficult to relax and meditate. Getting into the rhythm of creative meditation can take time, and other times it feels completely natural. Some days it goes better and others it's harder just like anything else, if you keep going you will find it gets easier and easier.  It is perfectly natural for other thoughts to come up when you meditate, think of them as clouds that pass by and bring the thought back to the here and now. I remember being asked by a student who attended the program if it had really changed my life. At first I wanted to answer yes right away, but chose to take a break for a few months before to see if it was true. It wasn't long before I was more stressed and spending more time daily worrying. Of course, this does not mean that I always feel balanced, or feel anxious. The difference is that I have many days when I can make decisions based on a calm state of mind, and that I prioritise meditating, creating and reflecting in my daily life.

Exercise 21, Imagination and movement Being curious and creative is part of our well-being. There is research from Dr. Barbara Fredriksson that shows that those who listen to their favourite music for 20 minutes per day show the same positive results as those who meditate for 20 minutes per day. Part 1, Meditation, 5 min Dance or move to a song you love. If you have time, dance until you feel like you're starting to let loose. Try to stay in the moment, be in the music here and now. If music and movement aren't your thing, do something you're curious about. Part 2, Creative meditation, 10 - 12 min Try doing something you've never tried before. Here are some suggestions: It could be something as simple as trying to draw a circle with your left hand. If you want something more difficult, draw a photo and turn it upside down. Try writing a three-line poem. Read an article about a topic that is completely new to you. Part 3, Reflection, 6 min How was it to try something new? Are there more minor things you can try? What happens when you try something new? Good Luck! Ingela

Exercise 23, Design Your Own Process Part 1, Meditation 4 min Follow a guided meditation Energy meditation Part 2, Reflection 25 min, Design your process Today I want you to take the time to sit down and have a good cup of coffee/tea. Spread out or scroll through your photos. Go through your reflections. What has worked best for you? Now make up your own process. Choose the type of meditation, creativity and reflection that has suited you best. Some examples of how others use creative meditation: One person chose to make his process focused on present walks, photography and written reflection. For a participant who sometimes has difficulty sleeping, it became a process of painting and reflection when she wakes up at night. To sum up the day at the end of the working day with a short meditation and written reflection, became the process for a participant who receives clients during the days. These are only three different examples and there are many more. Some advice for designing your own process Please have a mug/glass that you only use during the process. Choose a way to activate your senses, it could be a scent, a taste or opening the window and feeling the breeze. You don't have to do it every day, but when it works for you. This also applies to the time of day. When creating a new habit, it can help to add it after something you do every day, such as brushing your teeth. Decide what you want to reward yourself with and how often. For me it has been to once a month do a longer reflection on my process and then buy myself a bouquet of flowers. It can also be time to spend doing whatever you want. Choose something that you long for. Do you remember the advice that creativity and imagination often develop under limitation, so let it get a little boring with limited material. Decide to switch every six months or whenever it suits you. Good Luck! Ingela

Exercise 24, YOUR PROCESS Try your own process of creative meditation. Congratulations, it's time to try your own process for the first time. It is also time to give yourself a reward for going through the whole course. It may be helpful if you decide to try for 21 days and then review if you want to change your process. If I had to choose a single thing as the most important thing in this course That's how it is for me to slow down through meditation or mindfulness before I have to make a decision, perform or do something creative. When it became a habit, I started to feel an increase in self-confidence. I am extremely curious about what you think has been most important. Please write me a few lines. Good Luck! Ingela

Welcome, I am so glad that you are here. Today your course in creative meditation starts. The course runs for three months and each month has a focus area. Month 1: FLOW Month 2: ENERGY Month 3: BALANCE The exercises take between 20 - 30 minutes to complete. There are 2 exercises per week. The exercises are done when it suits you. Each exercise starts with a picture, use it as inspiration if you want. Introduction Meditation The first exercises are very much about finding focus and using all the senses. It's only natural that other thoughts come in between, try to think of them as passing clouds and go back to what you were focusing on. This is like any exercise, it needs to evolve. If you forget time for a moment and are in the moment, enjoy it. This course contains audio files with guided meditations. You can sit on a regular chair/armchair when listening. Feel free to sit with both feet on the floor and keep your back straight. You can put your hands on your thighs or armrests depending or what is most comfortable. Creative meditation For many of us, it is easier to stay focused when we are doing something with our hands, preferably something repetitive or engaging. When we have done it for a while, thoughts often come about what means a lot to us right now, and sometimes answers to questions, or a feeling of what we want. If you can manage to just draw or color without thinking about creating something specific like a leaf or a boat you will relax, and after a while be able to tap into your intuitive creativity. It can help to start from the edges, or close your eyes for a while and still draw. This practice is not about learning to draw or paint, it is all about tapping into curiosity and to be surprised. Don't worry if this takes time, once it happens you will know as you most likely will get an AHA-feeling and experience that you have learned somehing important about yourself that you didn't think about but when you saw the drawing you just knew. This is hard to explain we will talk about it in the webinars. I have highligheted it with the story below, as this is a unique part of using of this method. The surpise that my brush told, There was nothing subtle about how my intuition spoke in one of my first attempts to create with meditation. It had probably tried telling me in whispers for years, so now the text in the sky was bold and words were repeated not once but ten times. Ten times over, just as if my teacher had told me to write something down ten times in order to remember it. My inner voice whispered, then shouted, to me that if I didn’t make a decision, someone else would. I could feel the words as they connected to the energy of the waves in the painting, calm but focused with a growing determination. That is how I wanted to feel and work, making better decisions from my core. Reflection When we write by hand about the experience, it is also an exercise in being present. Try to just write down what comes naturally, think of it as your private journal or thought journal. Please date your notes. Then it becomes clearer to see your own development journey when you go back and reflect. If you can listen to yourself from intuitive curiosity, and explore your thoughts it can help you to find insights from your emotions, energy and mind. All three parts are equally important to the process, and as long as you do them in order you can be creative about how you do them and what materials you use. I have included the ArtMeditation as a pdf. It is a short introduction to the process and the illustrations are made with fluid ink as they used to be. The program that you are taking now is with pens as I have simplified the process. However, the process remains the same. I suggest that you browse the book before you start it is only 31 pages and filled with illustrations. Materials A pencil or black marker. A notebook for your reflections. Please choose one with heavy paper and glossy pages. Colored pencils or whatever colors you want. (if you have other colors at home, it works just as well) Please limit the colors to five. Choosing material that you like can make the experience more enjoyable, which is extremely important here. Optional If you like the ide of keeping time without a digital device, I would suggest a time glas. Course content The course is designed so that you try different exercises during 24 occasions. After the course, you have started a routine, and can choose to continue with the exercises that suit you best. You have also designed a process that suits you and your everyday life. Course Objectives After the course, the goal is for you to have a toolbox of exercises to unwind and recover. What has the course provided? These are some examples of what other participants have said about the course: "Starting to meditate hasn't changed what happens in my life, but it does change how I deal with what happens." Karen French "The method has given me space and a time to relax, which is set aside to listen to myself." Wendy Wong "Creative meditation has meant a lot to me. It has opened up my inner self and I am getting to know myself for who I am deep down, and what is important to me. It gives me inner peace a strength and a joy I don't want to be without. It's starting to become a part of my everyday life and I long for the moment I get for myself and what my inner self has to say. Reflections have helped me dare to open my eyes and see what I really know deep down but didn't dare to see or feel. I'm slowly getting to know myself. I don't regret for a second that I dared to jump on your course, the only thing I regret is that I didn't start sooner Those who don't take the chance don't know what they're missing I recommend everyone to try creative meditation.” Frida Magnusson

Exercise 3, Being present with music "When we are in the moment, the moment is in us." Jacyntha England We cannot hear our intuition if we cannot hear our feelings. For me, music is often connected to my feelings and art of course, but also films, theatre, series, games... Part 1 Meditation, 5 min Music is perhaps one of the most important creative tools we have to express ourselves, process emotions, enjoy and move with. For some, it has become a natural part of everyday life that we wake up to our favourite song, listen to music while doing the dishes, exercise or for total enjoyment in silence before bed with a large cup of tea and lit candles. Listen to a song you used to listen to when you were young. For me it could be soul music and "I feel good". Take a few minutes and listen, if you want to move, move. It's all about being here and now in the music. Just meditating to a song has proven for many to be a good way to train the ability to meditate. There is research from psychologist Barbara Fredriksson that shows listening to music you love 20 minutes a day can have the same positive effects as meditating for 20 minutes. Focus on movement in the music. Listen to the song 1 - 2 times depending on how much time you have. Part 2 Creative meditation, 10 min If time is important, set a timer. Choose the colors or pencils that feel right. Draw/paint without requirements, think about the movement in the music. Listen to the same song, close your eyes and let the pencil/brush follow the notes, what pattern will it be? If you want to write, write with the song playing in the background. If you were to describe the flow in the music, how does it sound. When you feel you are done, stop. During an exercise, you can make as many pictures as you want. Sometimes a picture takes a long time, sometimes you're done quickly.  Part 3 Reflection, 5 min What did you feel in your body when you heard the music? What was it like to focus on listening? Was there anything that surprised you? Good luck! Ingela

Exercise 7, The Pattern Finder In Astrid Lindgren's fantastic books about Pippi Longstocking the ”thingseeker” is described as someone who looks for valuable objects that can be found anywhere. Objects that others might see as unimportant or as junk. Now I imagine we are looking for patterns. It can be objects, colors, symbols or words that come back to us more than once. Our first step will be to be able to learn to see them and our second step will be to start thinking about what they stand for in our everyday life. Part 1 Meditation, 5 min Take a conscious walk in your home. Look around for things that have value for your development, or are connected to an important memory. Take a few minutes to look at the object, if possible hold it and recall what it meant. Part 2 Creative Meditation, 10 min Draw or write about something that has felt important to you. If you take photos, take pictures from the walk in your home.  Part 3 Reflection, 15 min Pour an extra large cup of tea or coffee, and feel free to take a little more time. Post or browse through all the pictures you've made during the week. Is there any symbol that comes again? Can you find similarities in color, shape or pattern? Reflect on whether they are related. Good Luck Ingela

Exercise 8, To build inner trust One of the things that became clear to me when I started to reflect on my own process was that I more often broke the promises I made to myself then to others. I still need to work to remind myself that I am important, and to prioritise myself. A good friend asked me why I booked cheaper hotels if I was traveling alone. When I went through my choices I started to see a pattern that they could be about any choice from financial to, time, priority, work and personal. I came last in my own list of priorities and the choices I gave myself. It was slightly better when it came to work, and even worse privately. I hope you don't recognise yourself at all. I have trained hard to reverse the trend, and prioritise my decisions and myself. If I get stressed, I need to remind myself otherwise I easily fall back into old routines. Of course, there needs to be a balance in this, but it's exciting how habits seem to connect together when you start to reflect on them. One thing I feel sure of: Every time you promise yourself something and do it, your inner trust increases. (It gives a nice feeling of calm in the stomach, and the back becomes straighter.) Another parten that I need to train on is how I think about myself. Part 1 Meditation, 5 min Listen to a guided meditation. Relaxing guided meditation Part 2 Creative Meditation, 10 min Draw or write about an event when you prioritised yourself. Part 3 Reflection, 15 min When did you feel good about putting yourself first? How important are your own promises to yourself? What is one thing you can do this week that will strengthen your Inner trust? Good Luck Ingela

Exercise 9, Understanding Your Own Choices We know deep down if a choice is right for us or not, we feel it. We can't always express or even explain but still we feel it in our bodies. When we go against the choices, we often get reactions such as pain, tension or other purely physical reactions. If we are stressed we easily override or disregards these feelings, so this is a practice in becoming aware of your own process and gaining tools to become present before making a choice. Begin to become aware of your choices, begin to see them and reflect. The first step is to begin to understand yourself and your actions. One way is to create time for thought and reflection. Time to hang out with yourself, today we will try it by experiencing taste and smell.  Part 2 Meditation, 10 - 20 min Try drinking a cup of coffee, juice or tea. Focus on the taste and aroma. If you want extra fragrance, add, for example, fresh mint to juice or tea, or cardamom to coffee. Try to focus on the experience.  Part 1 Creative Meditation, 10 min Paint or draw and use the colors that feel right. If words come up, write them down. If you don't feel like painting, do something creative that inspires you. Part 3 Reflection What happens when we allow ourselves to just be?  Can you remember when a decision felt right in your body? Good Luck Ingela

Exercise 11, Change in small steps ”Small steps in the right direction can turn out to be the biggest step of your life.” Anonymous I believe that our life develops and changes in all the small choices we make every day. I also believe that we sometimes learn and develop by listening to questions that have the power to change. They are often unexpected, simple, curious and inspiring with an inherent challenge. I remember a question in a particularly difficult period in my life. When was the last time that you laughed? A very simple question, which in that period felt like a challenge, as I was going through grief. It reminded me of the importance of having fun to persevere, to move forward.  Another question was: "Aren't you the master of your own calendar? A third one I got just about this course "Has this method really fundamentally changed your life? I believe that the reflection phase can be a great tool to answer your own important questions. In my own reflections I found that I have created a lot of changes, since I started the process of Creative meditation and they are in most areas of my life. From how I save, to personal selfceare in the morning to what I prioritise and many other things. When I go back and read about the changes that have been made, they surprise me. My memory is often remembering less things or less progress, that is why I am now focusing on how I am thinking about myself. Again I am not perfect in any area, but I have changed a lot of things in my life so that it is better in my opinion. I think that I have often stopped myself because I only saw the big change or the big dream, instead of being in able to see the small wins. So, for a month I started to write them down when they happened, and I had a certain song that I played when I had a win. This might not suit you at all. The process is much more to start to reflect how you have changed things before in your life and how change works for you. When my change gets interrupted or hit a road-block it is often due to an emotion that has lead to negative thinking. To trust that I am doing the things that I am good at and are right for me I take the time to meditate and create on the feeling of the process. It is really interesting to get to know how your own change process works, and for me it is empowering every time that I can go back and read the reflections to see the process with steps and dates. Examples of small steps: put out your exercise clothes the evening before, find more information about a course, make one call or create space for it in your calender. Part 1 Meditation, 5 min Sit or stand so you can see the horizon. Focus your gaze on the horizon and let your eyes be half-closed. Breathe deeply, keep your eyes on the horizon. Relax tension in the body. Focus on an issue that feels important to you right now. Stay focused and feel how the question feels in your body.  If you have difficulty finding a place with a horizon, focus on clouds. Part 2 Creative Meditation, 10 min Please use both words and pictures. Draw, photograph or write about one or more issues that have been important to you. Part 3 Reflection, 15 min We are constantly learning, so one way to reflect on your own questions is to make a mental decision and feel for a moment in your body how it feels when you have made this decision. Try to get into the idea. Then try choosing a different answer to the question and feel how it feels. It is an exercise in being open to our intuition. My gauge sits in my shoulders, shoulder blades and upper arms. For others, it may be an upset stomach, or a migraine. The right decision eases the tension. This does not mean that a problem completely goes away at the beginning, nor do you have to act on decisions, but just train mentally and think about what feels right for you. Write down questions that have been central to how you have developed your life? What is the smallest step (less than 30 mins) that you can take towards what you want? How was the feeling? Good Luck Ingela

Exercise 14, Energy list ”You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose.” Ghandi Part 1 Meditation in motion, 15 min Take a walk and think about what gives you energy. Does it have a color, a sound or a pattern. Part 2 Creative meditation, 10 min Paint your positive energy and paint your negative energy on two different papers. Alternatively write two lists. Part 3 Reflection, 5 min Try to be aware of what causes you to shift energy during the day, you are welcome to do it for a longer period. It is extremely difficult to change when we don't really know which factors we want to change and why. Make a list of things that allow you to replenish your energy. On my list may be items such as: Coffee with a friend Watch the sunset Take a bath Be in nature Good Luck Ingela

Exercise 15, The energy in color Energy is my first language. I understand it more than I do words. I have a painting that everyone seems to like. It took me 8 months to complete. Not that I painted it every day, but it needed to mature between each coat. Sometimes it didn't feel good and then I painted over and waited. When it was finally left, I could feel that it was finished, and so do those who see it. It's the first painting I've turned down an offer for without keeping it. Because it represents how a work can become when intuition meets canvas. Technically it is imperfect, but it has a quality of an energy that reaches out towards you. That feeling cannot be created by forcing it, as you are sometimes forced to do when you work with art as a profession. Artists, like everyone else, are not always completely in balance with themselves. It took me a long time to understand that it goes much easier and gets better if I give time to meditation and reflection.  The process of the daily creative meditation gives me space to create a moment every day just for myself, which is a luxury in itself, the other luxury is to be able to create during that moment without the need to create something fantastic. It has been wonderful for my own art and for more often being in balance to create good art. In the process, I learn more about myself and what I value. Page by page, it becomes so much clearer what I stand for, what I like and where my limits are. It's an exciting journey. After 1.5 years, I discovered that I no longer worry less often, instead the thought is more solution focused. Karen French who was one of the first to take the course usually says that creative meditation doesn't change what happens in my life but how I deal with it. Part 1 Meditation, 5 min Film with art meditation from the National Gallery. Film Part 2 Creative meditation, 10 min Paint, draw or write about today's inner energy. What color and movement does it have? Part 3 Reflection, 15 min Look through what you have written and possibly Drawn from energy week. Do the works have the same energy as you? Write down your reflections.  Often it is one or two of a week's production that stand out, and want to say something. Feel free to spend a little more time on them. Note how your energy feels at the end of the reflection. Good Luck Ingela