About the Book
If nature is a mirror or a messenger, what is it showing us?
This contemplative collection weaves together nature-based mindfulness teachings through 56 original short stories and poems accompanied by 73 of the author's color photographs from the Upper Hudson River. Through mindful encounters with water lilies, wildlife, ice formations, changing seasons, a Superfund dredging project, a yearlong sunrise photography practice, and more, author and photographer Susan Meyer explores the practice of presence and the wisdom the natural world offers. River Time is a perfect gift for nature lovers and for anyone seeking peace, steadiness, and sanctuary in daily life.
Each piece invites the reader to slow down, open the senses, and connect more deeply-with nature, with the present moment, and with their own inner life. Whether recounting a dawn photography ritual, an evolving relationship with fast boats, or a missed shot that became a lesson in impermanence, these stories speak to the healing and grounding power of mindful awareness in nature. Steeped in both personal experience and universal insight, this book offers an intimate view of river life as a teacher of interconnection, equanimity, and awe. It's an invitation to return again and again to what is always available: breath, sensory impression, beauty, and the ever-changing water flowing just outside the door.
About the Author :
Susan Meyer (SusanTaraMeyer.com) is a meditation teacher, photographer, and contemplative creative based in upstate New York. For nearly two decades, she has lived beside the Hudson River, where she photographs the water's moods, wildlife, and changing light in all seasons. Her work explores the intersection of mindfulness and the natural world, blending poetic insight with visual storytelling.She has been meditating for nearly forty years and trained with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield, completing both their Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program and Mindfulness Mentor Training. She is an aspirant for ordination in the Tiep Hien Order (Order of Interbeing), founded by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh.Susan teaches both meditation and nature photography, offers mindfulness mentoring, and is a teacher on the Insight Timer app. She created a self-paced online course, Resource Your Life with the Magic of Mindfulness, and two inspirational card decks that pair her photography with contemplative insights. Her nature images have won multiple awards in the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor photo contest, and several are featured on kiosks along the Empire State Trail in Schuylerville, New York.Her approach to creative work is shaped by decades of personal practice, deep attention to the rhythms of nature, and a lifelong interest in spiritual development. She holds an M.A. in Education from Goddard College, a B.A. in Psychology from Ithaca College, and a Certificate in Spiritual Studies from the former Institute of Transpersonal Psychology (now Sofia University). Susan Meyer (SusanTaraMeyer.com) is a meditation teacher, photographer, and contemplative creative based in upstate New York. For nearly two decades, she has lived beside the Hudson River, where she photographs the water's moods, wildlife, and changing light in all seasons. Her work explores the intersection of mindfulness and the natural world, blending poetic insight with visual storytelling.She has been meditating for nearly forty years and trained with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield, completing both their Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program and Mindfulness Mentor Training. She is an aspirant for ordination in the Tiep Hien Order (Order of Interbeing), founded by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh.Susan teaches both meditation and nature photography, offers mindfulness mentoring, and is a teacher on the Insight Timer app. She created a self-paced online course, Resource Your Life with the Magic of Mindfulness, and two inspirational card decks that pair her photography with contemplative insights. Her nature images have won multiple awards in the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor photo contest, and several are featured on kiosks along the Empire State Trail in Schuylerville, New York.Her approach to creative work is shaped by decades of personal practice, deep attention to the rhythms of nature, and a lifelong interest in spiritual development. She holds an M.A. in Education from Goddard College, a B.A. in Psychology from Ithaca College, and a Certificate in Spiritual Studies from the former Institute of Transpersonal Psychology (now Sofia University).
Review :
"Susan Meyer has created a luminous offering-a gentle weaving of mindfulness, nature, and soulfulness. Her stories, poetry and photographs invite us to slow down, listen deeply, and remember our belonging to the living world. With reverence and insight, she reminds us that the river is not just a place of beauty, but a teacher of presence, resilience, and grace."
- Mark Coleman, Author of A Field Guide to Nature Meditation
"Charming"
- Jack Kornfield, Author of A Path With Heart
"River Time is a gift-far more than a meditation on River's wisdom, it's an embodied immersion into the solace, equilibrium and learning that proximity to water, nature and the sacred patterns within them offer. Weaving personal reflections, essays and poems, this book generously springs from the wellspring of the author's long apprenticeship with the river and those kindred creatures who cohabit it with her, and it's lucid, accessible, eloquent and a much-needed medicine for navigating this precipitous time.
- Nina Simons, Co-Founder, Bioneers and author, Nature, Culture & the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership
"River Time by Susan Meyer is a gift of beauty and peace. Take your time as you journey on New York's Hudson River with the author. A photographer, Susan offers compelling views of river life. These are supplemented with her essays and poetry on kayaking, water lilies, herons, mindfulness, and even dredging. This book is a lovely gift to give yourself or water loving friends. Whatever page you open to, you will find a refreshing, captivating experience-much like the river itself."
- Starr Regan DiCiurcio, Author of Dwelling in Wonder
