Meditative Coloring

I signed up for meditative coloring this semester because I wasn’t doing anything related to creativity. Initially, I began meditative coloring with minimum enthusiasm because I had doubts about using coloring as a way to destress and relax. I have always lacked engaging in creative activities, even though I do occasionally enjoy participating in creative activities with my friends.

On my first day of meditative coloring, I was skeptical of the view that coloring in a peaceful and quiet environment will pave a path to relaxation and mindfulness. We were given templates to color and were given an array of crayons, markers or colored pencils to color with. I began coloring with a finished image of the template in my head but as more coloring sessions went by, I started to stray from my earlier thoughts and just colored without paying attention to which color I was using.
While spending my Monday afternoon in the library coloring, I was also able to bond with my classmates because there were five other students from my grade who had decided to take on coloring along with myself. Therefore, with the comforts of the library, I was able to color various images and have lively conversations with my fellow classmates.
Along with our individual images, we did a collaborative piece. At the end of the first quarter, I was able to complete my individual image, and we also finished the collaborative piece.
Overall, at the end of the first quarter, I enjoyed meditative coloring and was very eager to attend on Monday afternoons because it was a time of relaxation and a way for me to take my mind off any situations that are inducing stress in my life.
Since I gained a lot from meditative coloring, I decided to sign up for it for the second quarter of the semester. The location changed from the library to a classroom.
Our coloring session moved to a classroom and we were no longer coloring on paper. We were given a collection of templates to pick from and were given the same array of crayons, markers or colored pencils. We got small pieces of cardboard to color on. I chose a picture of a bear because I wanted to color an animal. I have presently completed three designs and hope to do much more!  Overall, meditative coloring is a very mindful experience and I am glad that I signed up.

Learning Outcomes
Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

• Coloring a design collaboratively as a group was not only fun but also boosted my happiness and improved my social interaction skills which helped me make new friends and get to know my peers better.

Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

• I never really thought of myself as an artistic individual but after meditative coloring, I began to enjoy doing artwork and it gave me a way to de-stress and use creative outlets as a form of meditation.