How we began

I resigned as a Director of the Mindfulness Association after 16 years in January 2026. The previous couple of months had been pretty stressful however, I also immediately felt a lightening of a load and a feeling of relief. For sixteen years the book had always stopped with me, which had at times felt relentless. 

When I first started talking about setting up a new venture, my sister Helen and my daughter Jenny, were both very clear and said an insistent ‘NO’. They both said that I should take some time out to rest for a while. I trust their opinions and as they were so unanimous and insistent I decided to delay. It was good to have time to reflect and process. 

When I discussed this with my mindfulness supervisor Ratnaguna, he queried whether I should take time out. I’ve never really been a looking back with regret kind of a person and have always been more of a looking forward with optimism kind of a person. I felt that starting something new would give me a new purpose and meaning.

It turns out that we were all right. Some time out was needed. As I woke up each morning, as I walked the dogs on the beach and as I meditated, lots of new ideas kept arising in my mind, which gradually formulated themselves into a vision for Beachcomber Meditation. 

To give me more time for practice and rest in 2026 I had already scheduled a week of retreat each month. Due to the flexibility of my working pattern, I am able to squeeze my work into three weeks of the month, to create the space for a fourth week for retreat. I realise how fortunate I am to be able to do this, but also, I have made it my personal priority. I have felt for some time a need for more retreat in order to deepen my meditation practice and therefore, be more able to support those who I teach. 

I waited until my February retreat week. This week I was away from home, staying in my daughter Jenny’s house, as she was away for a month digging on a Bronze Age site in The Highlands of Scotland (she’s an archaeologist). I was doing a self-directed Lojong (Seven Points of Mind Training) compassion retreat with open awareness practice alternated with tonglen practice (a compassion practice) for myself and for others. Partly, this was to support my teaching of a Lojong course for the Mindfulness Association and partly, this was to help me to understand psychologically the process that resulted in my decision to move on to pastures new. The last few pieces of Beachcomber meditation also fell into place that week. 

I got home and spoke to friends and family, who were willing to be part of the company and to lend their specific talents to this new endeavour. Everyone said a wholehearted and supportive ‘YES’, which was wonderful. You can read more about what happened then, in my next blog. 

However, I see clearly how my meditation practice enabled me to find the gemstone of this new venture within the seeming difficulty of the ending of my work with the Mindfulness Association to which I had been devoted for sixteen years. 

You are very welcome to join me on this new journey. Come and meet me at a Monday meditation or subscribe to A Year of Meditation to cultivate the habits of a happy person. 

I look forward to meeting you there.

Kind Wishes

Heather