A Welcome and Invitation to “Soul Souvenirs” Retreat!

I come into the peace of wild things . . . .

And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light. For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

–         Wendell Berry

Welcome! We invite you to join us for a retreat amidst the glistening advent of a new year- and what better place to enter into it than near the rich red roads and yellow sandstone towers of Ghost Ranch, with beautiful Mount Pedernal purpling the background—all possibly glazed with sparkling New Mexico snow! The gathering is called “Soul Souvenirs: Walking the Divine Way in Winter’s New Light” and our focus is on renewal, the beauty of soulscape and landscape, and of course, rest and rejuvenation to prepare for the new year. Our time will include small group interactions, walking meditations based on the practice of Camino Divina, times of reflection, and explorations of our inner and outer landscapes within the beauty of Georgia O’Keefe’s luscious backdrop. Here’s the link for more information- would love to see you there!

Soul Souvenirs: Walking the Divine Way in Winter’s New Light – G17S112X

Looking through a glass, clearly

“I commit to rhythms of rest and renewal through the regular practice of Sabbath and resist a culture of busyness that measures my worth by what I do.” – Christine Valters Painter, Abbey of the Arts “Monk Manifesto”

When I was younger, “the sabbath” meant a flurry of volunteer activities, getting up really early in the morning, fulfilling church and family obligations, and then, finally, when everything was done, done, done, resting. The idea of “rhythms of rest and renewal” weren’t a huge part of the lexicon. A couple of weeks ago, I tried something. What would it be like to wake up without an alarm, when the body felt the fingertips of sun tapping the shoulders? What would it feel like to move throughout the day by absolutely no sense of obligation, but rather, the nudging of my own whim and imagination? What would it be like if the rituals I created were not only someone else’s, but also my own? What would it be like to live out a “rhythm of rest and renewal”? Sound irresponsible? Actually, it ended up sounding ultra responsible – to myself. To empty my cup, wash it clean, and then refill it with fresh water, metaphorically, sets me up, and everyone around me, for that matter, for a brighter, truer me. I can see more clearly through my own glass. That, to me, is sabbath.

Internal Rest: A Poem

Internal Rest

 

 

Like waking sleep,

it is taking inside the day,

whatever comes,

 

like the dream gleanings

of the night,

 

but open-eyed.

 

It is where wonder

is born,

 

gladly accepting

whatever comes into view,

 

whatever enters the holy space

of unknowing,

 

whatever drifts, shimmers,

draws, seeps, illumines,

 

comes delivered as

a surprise package

to your soul.

 

– Gina Marie Mammano