HOW I TAKE A RETREAT - DAY ONE

No one said going on a retreat is easy, even though the point once you get there is to let go and ease your mind from all its stresses and voices. So after getting all the other aspects of my life cleaned and put away, washed and folded, bought and bagged, gathered and dispersed, I turned my attention to the one aspect I want to focus on for the next five days, which is writing. 

Now, one cannot concentrate on any creative endeavor 24/7, so I have a few worthy distractions when I'm not sitting at the computer or walking the Refresher Course for inspiration.  I like to lay it out - literally.  On the entry room table (i.e., dining, art, desk) at Prairie Pond Woods I have set about all the things I desire to engage in, as well as the cameras, field guides and binoculars ready to grab at a moment's notice for the big surprise awaiting outside. 

 

(As I wrote this post...a loud thump came from the patio door...I grabbed the well-placed camera and caught a juvenile titmouse that had crashed into the glass...after an hour or so it must have flown off...happy ending)
 

  There's my morning meditative reading (this month, The Artist's Rule), my 2012 and 2013 calendars for a little business and pleasure planning, a few poetry books and another book I may or may not read this go-around entitled, On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs by James V. Schall.  Also laid out is a 10-year Phenology Journal I keep (woefully neglected this spring and summer) and lastly, a few files of family genealogy, in case I really need a brain change. 

So, all the chores are done, and if there are more, they can wait.  The plan is to take morning and evening walks (with camera and notepad in hand), do some reading and journaling afterward, then write.  The goal is to continue to work on a compilation of nature poems, essays and prose, accompanied by photos, that I hope to turn into a book.

I invite you along on this 5-day journey with me online or in reality, and encourage you to take a mini-retreat of your own this week.  Maybe just a half-hour everyday to do something you love; something BY YOURSELF that feeds your soul. I would love to read your comments, as well as hear about your own experiences with taking a retreat.  It won't be easy, but as the saying goes, not everybody does the hard, but significant, things in life.

FALL SABBATICAL 2011

Monday began my week-long fall sabbatical for the year.  I try to take an extended time of solitude at Prairie Pond Woods at least twice a year in the spring and fall. I do it for two reasons; one, so that I can de-stress, write, enjoy nature, commune with God and find my heart’s desire again (like Dorothy’s journey to Oz).  The second reason is to encourage others to do the same.  I’m convinced people need, and deep down want, time to be alone, to ask themselves the genuinely important questions and to soak in the inspiration from the wonder and beauty of nature.  Our society just simply doesn’t honor these endeavors.  Not flashy enough!  Too self-indulgent!  Too scary, maybe?  

There are only a handful of people in my circle of friends and acquaintances that I know of who take intentional time away from their lives…not to go on vacation (which is also important)…but to go somewhere lovely (or a hotel if that’s all you got) to focus on their inner life and listen to what God might be quietly saying within the sound of silence. 
 

So, for inspiration, this week I’ll be posting my sabbatical experiences.  I realize most people can’t take an entire week off of work or running a household to do this.  But I’m equally convinced most folks could take a weekend or a day, if we value and plan for it.  At the end of this week, Heart By Nature is facilitating a retreat on how to simplify life, clarify values we hold in our hearts and plan a year (literally on a calendar!) that will yield the most fruit and peace.  I call it a “Personal Phenology,” phenology being the study of what happens, where and when in the natural world.  It is a principle that can be applied to our own goals, rhythms and circumstances.

I hope you will visit here during the week to catch a vision for what one can experience when there is no TV, high-speed internet, phone calls, obligations or people (even the little ones you love so much) talking at you all day. Perhaps sharing thoughts that came while walking The Refresher Course, or insights from a half-hour of listening prayer or photos from the 27-acres here at Prairie Pond Woods will encourage you to approach the new year differently…with more intention and more time spent living the call of God in your life.

Sincerely,
 
Cindy

UPCOMING 2011 RETREATS

The list of Heart By Nature Retreats 

for Spring, Summer and Fall can now be viewed by clicking on the Events Page above

A place to listen, see, smell, taste, feel and rest

Come Discover The Nature of God

Visit www.heartbynature.com for more information or call Cindy

at 937-532-6688 to make a reservation

This Week Last Year at PPW

I keep a Phenology Journal (or try to) where I write down weather conditions, species sightings, bloom times, etc. on the property.  It is both fun and frustrating.  Fun, because it keeps me in tune, aware and expectant of new discoveries.  Frustrating, because there is so much going on at this time of year, I actually forget to document it all!  

As an example, here are a few 2009 excerpts from when I was down there around the same time last year.  You may have to think about some of my abbreviations!

Thursday, March 26-Rained most of the day (1-2") Sun kept peeking out after 4pm. Waxwings on persimmon, 25 goldfnch w them-then flew to eat maple buds.  F Rose-brsted grosbeak at feeder.  Goldn-crwnd kinglet, yel-rump, yel-bel sapsker.  Juncos still here.  High 62
 

 

Friday, March 27 - Chipping sparrows seen for the first time.  Blue violets out.  Daffodils are mostly bloomed.  Saw geese in pond this pm.  Japanese beetles still thick at kitchen 

window!

Saturday, March 28 - Heard woodcock and barred owl around 6:45 pm.  Barred owl is like clockwork. Woodcock again at 8:30 - 27 "peents" before whirling.  

Sunday, March 29 - Red-spotted Salamander in pond found by B. McLaren!  Blue Violets.  Spring Azure butterfly.  Cold and Windy