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Van Waffle

Writer, Naturalist, Photographer

Category: mental health

Rain droplets caught in a cobweb

The beauty of a spider web: overcoming prejudice

Posted on September 11, 2018March 30, 2022 by Van Waffle

This macro image of a spider web holds a lesson about beauty and prejudice.

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Lessons from trees

Posted on January 31, 2018March 15, 2022 by Van Waffle

There are different kinds of gratitude: spontaneous joy and the simple practice of appreciating things.

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Featured photo for article about mindfulness: a nibbled basswood leaf

Depression and the double-edged sword of mindfulness

Posted on January 22, 2018March 17, 2022 by Van Waffle

Mindfulness is a great tool for emotional well-being, but alone it can’t treat depression. Here’s my experience, and why it’s important.

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Grand River, Waterloo, Ontario

Where have all the flowers gone?

Posted on June 12, 2016March 30, 2022 by Van Waffle

Where have all the flowers gone? It’s a hackneyed question, but I needed an answer today. I found them growing by the Grand…

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The personal energy budget: recognizing limits

Posted on March 4, 2015March 3, 2022 by Van Waffle

Satisfying work is teaching me a new lesson about the need for relaxation. Some days we just need to come unplugged.

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Gratitude and the exercise groove

Posted on February 25, 2015March 3, 2022 by Van Waffle

The struggle to maintain good exercise habits reminds me of the importance of gratitude and ritual.

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Gardening promotes personal transformation

Posted on June 10, 2014March 3, 2022 by Van Waffle

This morning while weeding potatoes, I was thinking about secret growth. So much of what evolves in life is hidden, especially during winter…

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Why pain?

Posted on September 17, 2013March 3, 2022 by Van Waffle

To younger people with mental health disorders I wish I could say, “It will be ok.” Man, that is what I hoped to…

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Latest Articles

  • Information box: Where We Spin
    Handspinning Seminar will nourish your soul
    May 24, 2022
  • Discover wilderness in a small urban creek
    Apr 6, 2022
  • A photo of a great blue heron taking flight is not part of my memory of the encounter
    Improve memory and take great photos
    Mar 30, 2022
  • Mud: a poetic meditation on early spring
    Mar 23, 2022
  • A calendula in my garden on a rainy day appears to emanate its own light from within.
    Check my new photo albums
    Mar 16, 2022
  • Three beech trunks to the left on the left show white fluff indicating the onset of beech bark disease.
    Two diseases invade Ontario beech forests
    Mar 9, 2022
  • Enchanter’s nightshade
    Jul 10, 2019
  • Cottage vignettes: flora and fauna around the dock
    Jul 5, 2019

Van on Flickr

  • Peony
  • Pansies
  • Eramosa River - Late autumn dusk
  • Light and shadow - Lake Erie
  • Lake Erie winter beach
  • Crushed
  • Lake Erie, December afternoon
  • White stucco cottage
Genius Loci: The Spirit of a Place is a Flickr group curated by Van with 250 members and growing, exploring how places influence our lives.

Genius Loci

  • Close up of fallen
  • Dolphin Rock, Point Cartwright, Sunshine Coast Qld.
  • Praia Da Apulia
  • Chiesa di San Carlo dei Lombardi in Florence, Italy.
  • Dr Draw [42 sec]
  • Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery
  • Wyoming – Yellowstone National Park
  • Waterfall at Carsaig

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Van Waffle retains all rights to all content on this site, including text, images and videos, unless they are credited to another author or artist. Materials are not to be reused or distributed without permission.
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