Make a Mind Jar

We have entered the season of Lent, a time of reflection and prayer. What better time for a mindfulness activity to help settle your mind and focus in on what’s in your heart?

A Mind Jar is a great tool for making your mindfulness practice really tangible. All you need is a bottle or jar with a tight-fitting lid, water, glitter glue, loose glitter, and some optional “extras” that might include food coloring, beads and small trinkets. The instructions are pretty simple as well:

• Heat about 1.5 cups of water and mix it with about half a bottle of glitter glue (the ratio should be about 80/20 water). Stir until the glitter glue dissolves

• Pour about half the mixture into your vessel (be sure the water has cooled if you’re using plastic)

• Add your loose glitter and any extras that speak to you. Each person can even share the meaning of the colors and objects they have chosen

• Pour in the rest of the water mixture, then close the lid tightly! It should NOT be opened once it’s finished; if you’re concerned about the temptation to open it up and see what happens, you can glue the lid on

Once your Mind Jar is finished, shake it and talk about how the objects inside are moving quickly in lots of directions, kind of like our thoughts and feelings when we are stressed, overwhelmed, or just very busy. But if we hold the jar still and breathe, deeply and slowly, the jar settles – just like our thoughts and feelings.

This process can be prayerful in and of itself, or you can use your Mind Jar to help you prepare for prayer. Make it part of your routine throughout the season of Lent, and know that it is available to you during other times as well, whenever you need to settle and slow your mind.

If you’d like to watch an in-depth video about creating a Mind Jar, check out Episode 6 of the Mindful Schools online class series. And if you make your own Mind Jar, share a photo with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram!