Why retreat at this time?
Collective Reset
I heard on the radio that the number one resolution of 2025 is 'no resolutions'. I guess this makes sense as we are slowly learning collectively about what matters most. You don't need AI to tell you that movement, real food, reflective practices (i.e. taking a quiet moment to enjoy your espresso) and deep connections with friends & nature is a simple equation for more joy. We know this intuitively and we don’t need influencers and new years marketing campaigns to remind us.
I am bucking the trend and have a new resolution called ‘no complaining’. I realize that I was trained for many years in academia and critique was an all day, everyday practice. It’s too easy to fall into patterns of ‘if only things were better’. This year I’m focused more on finding ways to connect with patterns & ideas that I adore and less on the critique. This is emerging as a way of living in the world that is more connected to my soul and less connected to outcomes that are linked with traditional ways of thinking about success.
In other words, if I was a country I would be letting go of GDP as a measurement tool and switching into a new mode of being and awareness. I’m looking to find a new measurement that is not even about measurement - that’s the thing about changing paradigms - we think we need a new way to measure but in fact we need to live in a world that doesn’t even know what measuring is. It’s hard to imagine because everything we have ever known is about growth, success and comparison. I’m focused more on somatics - meaning that I am learning to trust my body and knowing when I’m in a flow state. I spend more time connecting with wonder and awe and noticing those moments. It also means that I spend more time listening to the trees as I’ve found over the years that they speak to me when I’m really quiet. I need more time without my headphones when I walk in the forest so that I can hear these profound messages.
Organizing the Collective Reset retreat with Adrian is as part of my journey towards new ways of being and trying new things as a collective practice. I also love to laugh to the point where I can’t stop and I have found over the years that Hollyhock has been a place filled with creative humans who also enjoy this kind of letting go. It’s a trifecta for the soul - nature, collective laughter and reflection time.