The Small Things
It’s the day after and Life is back to normal. My husband has a cold. The kids are back from school. The garden needs a good weeding. It is always a striking contrast to step back into our normal reality after such a step away.
We found ourselves musing on the nature of the retreat yesterday – why was it so special? Time away, of course, is always a treat. The open dialogue & heartfelt exchange that began from our very first evening together was extraordinary. The nature that surrounded us surely helped us feel held & nurtured.
What really made the difference, however, were the unexpected small things:
1. Permission to make a mess. With a basket of fabric, threads & beads available 24 hours a day we reveled in the opportunity to begin a project and leave it out without worrying about the mess or our children playing with the needles.
2. A sense of completion. We finished our tea, our baths, our walks, our creative projects, our meals…no interruptions & all the space we needed.
3. No Responsibility. Hollyhock staff picked us up at the ferry, carried our luggage to our rooms, fed us nourishing and scrumptious meals, washed all the dishes, and made us feel like queens for 4 days. All we had to do was enjoy.
4. Oysters on the Beach. On Saturday night we enjoyed the Hollyhock tradition of grilled & raw oysters on the beach. The first time for a few of us, and well worth the bravery. They were amazing, especially with their secret recipe topping which I would Love a recipe for.
5. The Tea Nook. So simple, and yet it offered us a beautiful sense of being held. Water always hot. A bowl of chamomile flowers & mint leaves to float in our cups. An array of beautiful teas to choose from.
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And I’m jealous hearing about how much knitting Callie got to do! Don’t even know where my knitting bag is at this point in my life…;)
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Sounds perfect! A blog post suggestion…how does one ease back into “reality”? Whenever I’ve had time away I always feel extra tense when the reality hits me straight on and feel like whatever I’ve gained is being lost somehow. Let’s talk aout that sometime!
Wish I could have joined you. One day…
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Oh my, how blissful! I found myself getting excited at the thought of those ’small things’! I especially love that picture of you Sarah – it captures the energy of the weekend.
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I keep this quote from Oprah up in my home at all times: “I had to hit burnout more than once before I understood the wisdom of balance–of coming back to my center for rejuvenation.” I guess therein lies the importance and power of retreat!
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Oh my goodness – this sounds absolutely divine. Next year, I’m making ME and my trip to Hollyhock with you a priority
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The oysters were indeed DELISH!!! I still can’t believe how much of my sweater I finished knitting…
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glorious image of you relishing the oyster feast! thaks for sharing…
a picture literally worth a thousand words!!
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my heart sings at the small (and so very meaningful) things.
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What an AWESOME 4 days! The no responsibility part sounds very intriguing. I think the most stressful part of my life is feeling like I’m responsible for so much….raising a 2 1/2 + year old daughter, keeping a healthy and loving marriage, shopping/cooking healthy foods, teaching 8th graders, yadda yadda yadda….we all have it. I’d love to eat oysters! YUM!!!!
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