One Week Journey

One of the most special aspects of our spiritual retreats is that each are always uniquely different.* This is because we are guided by spirit in every moment so that what we do and where we go (especially to power places), unfolds naturally and organically in perfect blossoming.

Below is an example* of what one day might be like...

Your day really starts the evening before, when your group learns what time you are to be ready to leave in the morning and what to bring for the next day (swim suit, towel, hiking shoes, sunscreen). But this is all you are told... You won't know your destination until you arrive. This is intentional, for when normal 'adult decision making' is removed, it facilitates the wonder and feeling of being a kid again. This takes you back to when all the world was an adventure, and a new experience lay in wait for you in every moment and around every corner. Because this is an All-Inclusive Retreat, you don't even handle any money, except for maybe a souvenir or gift you want to get for someone back home. There will be no cell phones ringing or text & emails flying around either, for we all put phones and computers down for a week (with necessary exceptions of course). This spiritual retreat is really for YOU and only YOU. What a gift to yourself.

So now it is morning and you pack your day pack with the items you were told about the night before, decide to bring a hat, only just remembering to pack your camera, and you are off to the kitchen to see what is happening for breakfast.
Someone has made everyone a fruit salad with mango, papaya, tangelos, strawberries, starfruit, pineapple and fresh passion fruit juice. There are other sundry choices like bagels, pancakes, omelettes and more. The departure time comes & everyone jumps into the vans for today's adventure.
 
This particular day begins with a beautiful hike to a sacred  waterfall, where the ferns and flowers welcome you along the path, as their vibrant greens juice up your energy (mana) with every step. You walk past crumbling walls of an old village deep in the valley, walking where ancient footsteps cleared the path long ago. The mist kisses your face as you arrive at the 80ft waterfall. You saunter in as the refreshing healing liquid cleanses your body and rejuvenates your soul, or perhaps you do a cannonball off the ledge that is clearly awaiting your playful step. You notice this place feels different than other waterfalls you have been to, there is a special healing power you can feel deep within.

After lunch, there are some 'talk story' energy transmissions from Magick which alter you in unexpected ways, open doorways and thin the veils. Somehow you feel that the stories were just for you, messages from the Island!  You lay back on a warm rock and take it all in for a while, which feels strangely like dreaming, but you are really awake... or are you?

Now everyone moves on to another sacred site, this time it is a walk down through a tropical rain forest that leads to cliffs above the ocean. There are the remains of a civilization here too, yet it is mostly under brush cover. This power place sends your imagination wild with thoughts of what life was like then and drift back to a time when things were simpler. You begin to hear chanting and drumming in the distance; are you there now?

Guided by your newly found or deepened connection to your higher self, you follow your intuition and climb to the top a lush flower filled cliff with an amazing ocean view. You are drawn to sit at a certain place that calls for you to rest for a while. You trust this knowing and perhaps even lay back as you close your eyes and immediately feel as though you are embraced in your mother's arms - a timelessness... it is beyond words. You suddenly notice how the sun warms your hair like a golden crown and some simple wisdom begins to pour into your mind. You feel so connected to Spirit through the land, sea and sky. You are one with everything and it is very peaceful deep inside of yourself, almost unrecognizable, yet comforting.  As you move in and out of this dreamy state, you find new awareness, perceptions and epiphanies abound like never before.  A little while later you feel a pull to come back and as you open your eyes, you notice the sun is beginning to set. Your tummy rumbles slightly.

Moving slowly and still feeling the bliss inside, you head toward the meeting point that was pre-determined earlier. Here you find a BBQ is underway, salad is being tossed, bread is being buttered, warm Chai is being served and perhaps you choose to open up, sharing your experience with everyone while you pull out the plates, silverware & napkins. A campfire is going and sitting around the fire, to your surprise, many others begin to smile as they tell you they have had similar experiences. A true feeling of oneness permeates everything, again.

You realize these people who were strangers to you only a few days ago, have become more like family (maybe even MORE so than your biological family, in some cases) as you all share your different, yet similar stories & acknowledge each other. So much love is present. You feel so relaxed and at home.

One shares that she feels as though she has healed a family pattern of disease when the land told her if she really let the disease go, it would simply take it away. Another realized that a big problem in his life, which was controlling him in every decision he made, no longer had its grip on him. In this quiet space, he was able to see a simple solution that would remove the situation from his life, permanently. Each experience is unique and everyone honors the beauty of each individual telling their story.

You laugh together as the smell of roasted veggie skewers and fresh seafood permeates the air, bringing the conversation to a close so that all hungers can be satisfied.
"You know the food is good when no one is talking, right?" someone manages to express in-between bites. All of a sudden, laughter moves through the group as everyone was thinking the same thought. The sunset throws amazing colors across the sky and everyone has a pink-lavender glow to them.

That night you have the soundest sleep you can remember and yet dream like never before...