Mental Health Awareness Month: How Spring Can Inspire Your Mindfulness Practice

Written by: Kaleena Quintero

Published on May 18, 2026

Last updated on May 19, 2026

Time to read 2 min

Something shifts in May. The sun starts to feel a little warmer, flowers push through the soil, and everything feels a little more alive. After months of gray and bare branches, it's hard not to stop and stare at how much color comes back all at once.

Of course, spring doesn't come without its random rainy days. It can be sunny in the morning, and as the day goes on, dark grey clouds roll in, bringing heavy rain by the afternoon. We can’t control this switch and sometimes have no idea that it is coming. Our lives can feel like this sometimes, too. When it does happen, sometimes noticing the good things, really stopping to take it in, is enough to become present. That practice of paying attention, of choosing to notice, is at the heart of what it means to care for yourself.

Man in yellow sweater holding Blackwing Pearl graphite pencils and a Blackwing Slate notebook for journaling

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we don't think that is an accident.

There's an invitation that spring sends out to tend to ourselves the same way that the world outside is, slowly and intentionally. Mental Health Awareness Month invites us to pause and engage in self-care practices that promote mental, emotional, and physical health. Life moves fast, so mindfulness helps us be present in the moment and appreciate the small joys in life.

Hand writing in a Blackwing Slate Notebook with a Blackwing Matte Red Pencil, with Steinbeck Pencil Cup and Blackwing notebooks on desk

Spring is a nudge to tend to your mental garden, using the same care and practices you would give to a flower or anyone else. This might look like a slow walk where every step moves you closer to a pretty sight, sitting with a cup of hot tea and being with yourself for a while, or opening your notebook and starting a garden of your own. Those moments of slowing down, however small, remind you that you are allowed to feel peace in a busy world.

How do you start a garden notebook for Mental Health Awareness Month?

Find a flower or plant. Plant it in your notebook by writing every detail about it. Color, shape, movement, and more. You can draw it, write poetry, or do all of the above to plant it perfectly.

In moments when a plant is mesmerizing, keep it in your garden notebook to return to the moment when you first found the special flower. Over time, your notebook will be filled with countless plants, like a real garden.

Don’t forget to plant some encouraging words or a love letter to yourself so you can go back and read it over and over again.

Hand sketching with a Blackwing graphite pencil surrounded by fresh plants, vegetables, and fruit on a table

There's no wrong way to do it, and something about the slowness of it, the looking closely, the putting it down on paper, has a way of bringing you right back to yourself. And when you find yourself there, you might be surprised by how much was waiting for you.

Spring isn’t all sunshine. But it's full of things worth noticing. And so are you.