Nina Braovac has been volunteering at Gilda’s Club Madison since January 2023. She is currently a graduate student in the Child Life Program at Edgewood College, and started volunteering at Gilda’s while still an undergraduate. She shares, “After two years, I’m still always learning something new.”
She aspires to be a Child Life Specialist after graduating, and uses her skills each week by volunteering in Kid Support, part of our Family Night programming. In fact, Nina was part of an elite group of 100+ hours volunteers in 2024.
“I really love getting to see the kids and their perspectives of their situation. They’re so positive and funny, and such great friends to each other,” Nina shares.
Each week, she creates a guided meditation for the kids in Kid Support. Immediately after eating a shared meal, the kids gather down in Noogieland for a guided meditation. “We’ve found there’s a lot of big energy that comes right after dinner,” Nina explains.
Nina works to make these meditations developmentally-appropriate and accessible to kids of all ages. The hope is that they will “create a picture in the kiddos’ minds” and help them feel grounded, Nina explains. Below is one of the “fan favorite” guided meditations that Nina has created. Enjoy!
Ice Cream Dream
By Nina Braovac
Settle in and find a position comfortable for you. Take a deep breath, close your eyes, or look down at the floor, and listen to my voice and my words.
Picture yourself sitting in an ice cream parlor. You see and hear kids around your age, laughing and talking. Some are with family, and others are with friends. Imagine who is with you on this sweet adventure. You feel warm and welcomed as you find a comfy round seat, which looks like an M&M. As you look at the wide range of toppings, you don’t know how you could just pick one for your scoop of ice cream.
You begin to daydream about a sweet world, where the hills are made of giant ice cream scoops, and there are whipped cream clouds and gingerbread houses with big gumdrops decorating the home’s edges.
As you walk along a chocolate bar path, you see vanilla bean rocks speckled with little bits of big flavors. These ice-cream pebbles are resting in warm, melty fudge. Further along the path, you see a Candy Castle that is shimmering in the sun. You walk towards this castle and see perfectly frosted cookies shaped like trees with nerd cluster bushes. As you walk along the chocolate bar path, you get a closer look at a marshmallow trampoline that is in front of the castle. You walk over, and you leap into the white fluffiness of the marshmallows, which send you bouncing right back into the air. As you bounce around, you notice the door to the castle is opened. You feel curious and ready to explore.
As you enter the castle, you find yourself in a grand hall filled with soft and calm piano music. The walls are lined with shelves of colorful toppings, from rainbow sprinkles to chunks of cookie dough and brownies.
Take a deep breath in, and let the sweet smells fill your nose. As you breathe out, feel any stress melt away like ice cream on a warm day.
Explore the castle at your own pace.
Maybe you visit the Sundae Garden, where you can pick fresh fruit and create your perfect sundae. Maybe you wander through the Cone Room, where every corner is filled with different types of cones.
Maybe you go to the caramel fountain that is right up the big staircase. As you continue your journey through the Ice Cream Castle, you come across a cozy corner with a soft, fluffy chair made of cotton candy.
Imagine yourself sitting down and taking a moment to reflect on the sweetness and joy that surrounds you.
Feel the warmth and thankfulness that fills your heart as you wrap up this magical experience.
When you’re ready to leave the Ice Cream Castle, slowly make your way back along the chocolate bar path, carrying a sense of peace and sweetness with you. Take a deep breath in, and slowly exhale.
Gently open your eyes and bring your awareness back to the present moment. Feel the ground beneath you, and the calmness within you as you get ready to move on to our next activity.
Remember that you can always bring yourself back to the Candy Castle when you need to take a moment and relax.