MINDFULNESS IN ACTION
Each Sunday, Shelly Tygielski can be found on a beach 40 minutes from her home in Lighthouse Point, Florida, leading a free meditation session for whoever shows up. At first, when she began in November 2015, just a few people came—and then hundreds, and then a thousand. She calls the group, now a part of her social activism, the “Sand Tribe.” A former corporate executive, Tygielski came to meditation as a way to calm herself after learning she had an eye condition that could lead to blindness. Although she calls herself “an unlikely meditator,” she now leads meditation groups full time, sharing her devotion and enthusiasm with thousands of people in some unusual settings.
Tell me about a typical meditation of the Sand Tribe.
People walk onto the beach and hear music before they see anybody. I have an interesting playlist, composed of songs that might make you think you’re back in 1969, songs with a strong message about happiness or hope.
After people find their places on the sand, I, , . The bucket says, “Take what you need.” I always like to tell people that the intention chooses you, you don’t choose it. People close their eyes and dig, and normally they chuckle or laugh.
