On Wednesday afternoons, students and community members gather together at Rinard Orchid Greenhouse for weekly group meditation.
A small group of people fill a corner of the greenhouse around 3:30 p.m., all eager to get away from the outside world.
For English professor Mai Kuha, meditation is a part of her religion.
“Our everyday busy lives call us to either be worrying about what’s happening next or worrying about what happened earlier, and it's absolutely necessary to notice what’s happening right now,” Kuha said.
In the last 30 years, self-reported stress levels have increased between 10 and 30 percent for different demographics, according to a 2012 study done by the Journal of Applied Social Psychology.
In addition, more than 40 percent of college students have reported feeling more than an "average" amount of stress in the past 12 months, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
This is one reason curator and orchid research technician, Cheryl LeBlanc, thought meditation would be a nice addition to the multiple uses of the greenhouse.
"A lot of people mentioned, you should really offer meditation in here, this is a great place for that and so I followed up on that," LeBlanc said. "One of the primary goals that I have is not so much teaching the technique, but making available the opportunity. It's definitely a stress reliever."
Kuha said during meditation, the atmosphere in the greenhouse had a "great feel" to it.
“This air has a quality to it that just has to be breathed mindfully," she said.
Some students, like freshman entrepreneur major Evan Rayburn, said the atmosphere of nature did enhance their experience. However, Rayburn said the biggest benefit for him was clearing his mind.
“We all have stuff that stresses us out, whether it be school or friends or whatever it may be," Rayburn said. "It's kind of nice to just have a time of the day to just clear my mind and get back on the right track of things."
Some people don't fully understand what meditation is, and that influences their opinion on it, he said.
“I think people doubt it on the surface because they hear 'meditation' and they think some kind of wacky voodoo," Rayburn said. "When you dive deeper into it and fully understand what it is and what it's about, then I think people give more of a fair chance”
He attended the session for the first time Oct. 7, and he plans to continue going, he said.
Andrea McDermott, a freshman undecided on her major, said she has always wanted to get involved with meditation and was “ecstatic” when she received an email advertising it.
“I don’t hear about it [often], but I’m hoping it will become a growing trend,” she said.
Thirty-nine percent of adults say they meditate weekly, according to the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey.
“If you take it seriously, I think it will be really beneficial to a healthier mind, a healthier life, being more aware of your surroundings, of yourself, of your footsteps, of your breath," McDermott said. "The little things you forget to think about."
The David Owsley Museum of Art also hosts meditation sessions during the school year.
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