With a shake of the glass jar, glitter swirls in liquid and sparkles in the sunlight. Slowly, slowly, it settles. With another shake it churns again, and resettles.

With a fun activity, Joshua Station residents are learning practical tools for managing stress and emotions. “It’s nice to share with them a physical reminder of the good work they are doing,” says Joshua Station Counseling Coordinator Monica Rowell. “The jars we made are pretty, and our women were really drawn into it.” (Turnout this time included moms and a grandma, plus one teen.) As the activity progressed, it opened up lots of thoughtful sharing and discussion.

The first step is a craft project. Water and clear glue go into mason jars. Next, participants pick a glitter color. Not at random, but based on prompts associated with each of 16 colors. For instance, indigo often symbolizes spirituality and intuition. It also represents both love and wisdom. An indigo mindful activity is “Breathing Buddy.” Lie down with a soft toy on your tummy. As you breathe, notice the toy moving up and down.\

“Oh that’s definitely for me,” says a mom. “I’ll go with indigo.”

Soon the colors are swirling. The jar is like our mind,” explains Monica to the group. “Can we Identify what things might shake up our minds? For instance triggering events, stressful situations, or relationship issues.”

After another shake: “With all the glitter swirling, it is difficult to see through. But what happens if we let the jar—our mind—settle? The glitter sinks to the bottom. Now we can see and think clearly again. Let’s talk about ways to settle our minds through mindfulness techniques in each of our color prompts.”

Moms leave excited to practice mindfulness and calming tools. “It’s what I already do… I go for walks!” one says. Now she’ll be thinking about why and how it helps. Some are eager to share the activity with their children.

Let’s be real about how it all rolls—it’s an evening at Joshua Station! it’s parenting life with all the chaos—hardly the serene bliss of a mindfulness video. In any such gathering, there will always be a child barging in with a need, insecurities about participating, emotional triggers of a memory, or even the chafe of a conflict. There will be a resident home with a sick child, super-bummed to miss out.

But with a simple, powerful activity, families are healing and growing. “The counseling and mental health support was one of the most life-changing parts of my time at Joshua Station,” said a recent graduate. Swirling, settling.