Today I’m talking about retreats because I was supposed to be running one this weekend (it’s now moved to September) and because being in isolation has been like a forced retreat in many ways. I’ve certainly been doing lots more yoga and meditation and staying home relaxing because, well, there’s little other choice at the moment!
If you’re a parent of young kids though and your partner is an essential worker and you’re busy trying to work from home it may well be the opposite and you’re longing to go on retreat!
Either way retreats are todays subject because what I’ve found over the years (and going on many retreats across the world) is the feeling of rejuvenation, perspective and realignment retreats often bring. A feeling many of us could do with right now.
In our current climate we may not be able to ‘go’ on any retreats but what I’ve noticed over the years is this ability to cultivate a retreat within. It’s a place inside yourself where you can go when times get tough, when you need a break, to recentre, to gain perspective. It's a place that always bring calm and peace.
After years of practice I carry that place within my all the time and it’s the place I go when I need to feel all of the things going on a retreat gives us.
It’s something not all of you may know. If you’ve started following me in the last couple of years off the back of Imposter Syndrome fame you may not realise that six years ago my first book (which incidentally comes out as a revised second edition later this year) and much of my workshops and teaching centred around mindfulness, resilience and happiness.
When I left the corporate world I initially trained to be a yoga teacher but rather than the physical asana practice mindfulness and meditation became my passion, the subject of my first book and a subject I’ve taught around the world.
With a decade of study across the globe including countries like The Kingdom of Bhutan, Bali and Thailand I’ve studied with experts across the globe. Completing residential training in Plum Village, France with Thich Nhat Hanh, teaching English to Buddhist monks in northern Thailand and a decade of training in New Zealand alongside my teacher Gen Kelsang Demo.
Having lived in Ashrams across the world, built a daily practice of my own and undertaken regular silent retreats I have a unique combination of eastern teachings, lived experience and an ability to translate this to apply to our western busy lives.
It's something I’m going to be doing a lot more of, not just because revising a second edition book has reignited my passion in this space but because it’s what we need most right now in the world.
As humans we’re very good at wanting to be anywhere other than where we are. Especially when we’re technically on house arrest! What we often overlook is that that place exists within us and is accessible anytime we just need to cultivate it.
Getting still, finding your centre and being with the breath in the moment. That’s all it takes (and a lot of practice). We all have it, we’ve just forgotten it amid the busyness of life.
Is the one reason I can stay calm in the face of chaos, remain optimistic about the future and has helped me overcome the tough times along the way. It helps us find inner peace and contentment regardless of our external circumstances because sometimes, like now, they’re out of our control and not what we’d choose!
It’s time like this when we need that place the most so join me as I help you uncover your retreat within, stay calm amid the chaos and experience inner peace.
It's the subject of a few webinars I'm running over the next month. In fact a new schedule has just been realised and all places are available with a 50% discount to reflect the current times and additional support that may be required. View the events page for details and to get your spot.