The Beauty of EVERYDAY MIRACLES

Chris Willard shares his journey from being homeless to teaching awareness at Harvard Medical School.

INTERVIEW BY KARIN EVANS PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEPHANIE DIANI

Today Dr. Christopher Willard lives in a charming house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with his wife and two small children, not far from Harvard Medical School where he teaches—but a long way from an “epic meltdown” he experienced in college that led to drug addiction and homelessness. Now a successful speaker, book author, and educator who travels the world teaching mindfulness in schools, hospitals, NGOs, and other institutions, Chris opens up about how he discovered meaning, hope, and well-being through mindfulness. He’s spreading his message around the world, one breath at a time.

Let’s begin with the scope of your work. What’s going on right now?

I’m writing lots of books, working with schools, therapists, hospitals, organizations; consulting in the corporate and nonprofit world. It’s amazing to see mindfulness getting bigger—it’s also a little overwhelming. I do 50 or 60 trainings every year and travel a lot. I’ve been to around 20 countries to do workshops. I think I’m not the only mindfulness person feeling (ironically) very busy!

Why do you think there’s so much interest?

As we get busier and busier, doing more multitasking, becoming more wired, people are looking for a counterbalance. They are trying to find ways to slow down, to singletask instead of multitask. The way we are living is not sustainable for the planet, our communities, families, or individuals. In a secular way, mindfulness has a lot to offer that many religious and cultural institutions used to offer.

How did you come to mindfulness?

I got introduced to mindfulness when I was in my twenties. But when I look back, I realize I had experiences that were mindful before I knew the word, like going to nature camp and being told, “Let’s walk as quietly as we can.” Or, “Let’s listen for the sounds of the forest, or watch shapes in the clouds.” Many years later, I thought, Oh, that was basically mindful walking and mindful listening.

Then I went off to college and I had an epic meltdown of depression and anxiety. It’s something I’ve been more

About The Author

Karin Evans is a journalist, author, and frequent contributor to Mindful. She lives with her family in Berkeley, California.

open about recently. I was into drugs and had a significant heroin problem. I had to leave school. For the next year I was a total mess. I was homeless, living in a park, when my parents dragged me to a retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh that they were attending. That was completely transformative. Suddenly I felt calmer, more creative, more connected. I felt like life was worth living. I felt hope. Then I went straight from there to a treatment facility and continued my journey in recovery. I think, like many people, I got started through suffering.

How did you decide to focus your work on young people?

I spent the first few months of getting sober listening to Jon Kabat-Zinn’s tapes and reading Thich Nhat Hanh’s meditations. Knowing how helpful mindfulness was on my path of recovery from substance abuse—and general misery—I wished I had had this when I was younger. From there, like any recent convert, I wanted to bring this to others. I thought, essentially, how do we reach kids who are having a hard time, or who might at some point, in a way that is creative and fun and accessible? That’s what really got me fired up.

Top: Chris with his wife, Olivia Weisser, and their children Leo and Mae at home in Cambridge, MA. Four-year-old Leo has already begun learning to notice his breathing.

Bottom: Chris teaching high-school students and teachers about neuroplasticity and the power of mindfulness to rewire your brain.