I’m not really sure how to start this blog post. I just came back from a really transformative weekend. I got to know some wonderful people, enjoy the mystery and calm of nature, and learn a lot of very important lessons. What happened? I hosted my first yoga retreat.
It’s strange for me to even begin to reflect on it because I have so many different lenses I can look at it through. I can look at it through the lens of a yoga teacher and budding entrepreneur, planning and executing her first big project. I can look at it through the lens of a performance-oriented perfectionist learning to understand her anxiety. I can look at it through the lens of a human who is fed up with how disconnected life can be and is striving to create more opportunities for true connection.
I guess I’ll just start at the beginning.
I hosted my first yoga retreat.
The idea for a yoga retreat came out of several conversations with my life coach. I had the sense I wanted to make something happen but struggled to verbalize what it was. It took me a while to drill it down.
Do you know how hard it is to make friends as an adult? I’m not talking about Facebook friends or acquaintances. I’m talking about actual friends. People you can talk to about your life, not just about the weather or the latest episode of Game of Thrones. As a transplant from the state where I grew up, it’s something I notice all the time.
Sometimes I’ve been able to make those kinds of connections in yoga classes, but more often people dash in, take a class, and dash out back to their busy lives. It’s rare that people will hang around afterward to really have a conversation with you. We’re all so busy that we don’t have time to truly bond.
Students on day 5 of an Alternative Break trip in Asheville, NC
But in my work in higher education, I’ve seen students form bonds in a few days that can last a lifetime! I’ve seen people who have never talked to each other become acquaintances and then friends, and sometimes best friends, during immersive experiences I’ll call “retreats”. My first experience with this was as a student myself, attending a training retreat for my job as an Orientation Leader. After a short weekend, I felt completely comfortable and accepted in this group of people I hadn’t known on Friday.
As a professional in higher education, I’ve had the opportunity to see this in action again and again, most recently in an alternative break I chaperoned to Asheville, NC. This one was really powerful because it was organized by students. To me, it seemed like there was no real plan, no real strategy to help everyone become friends. But by the 2nd day of the trip, everyone knew and felt comfortable around everyone. It seemed like the magic came just from spending time together.
This is what I wanted to start doing. I wanted to start creating spaces for people to spend time together and start to let this connection magic happen. I was pretty sure you could do it with any activity, but the only thing really fun I was confident in doing was teaching yoga. So there you go. A yoga retreat.
I can happily say that, after all my anxiety, stress, and unforeseeable setbacks (the retreat originally scheduled for October was canceled because hurricane Michael hit us just two days before it would have taken place), the retreat was more than I could have imagined.
The magic came through. People who started the retreat having never met each other ended the first night by sharing stories of real life, real loss, real joy, and got to know each other on a much deeper level than I anticipated. The sense of acceptance and community was there. Add in a sprinkling of getting really in touch with our bodies and minds through the practice of yoga and meditation, and the sense of ease and peace became pretty palpable.
Practicing before day 2 of the retreat at Wakulla Springs
I definitely learned some logistical lessons that I can take with me into the future (like maybe not planning a retreat in Florida during hurricane season!), but I can confidently say it was a success.
Yoga is about connection, and it’s not just about connecting to ourselves. It’s also about connecting deeply to others. Acknowledging that essentially, we’re all the same. I can’t wait to create more opportunities like this, for us to take time away from our chronic busy-ness to enjoy the simple and powerful pleasure of spending time with other people, doing things that make us feel good.