Now that those of us who participated in Elite Fitness’ very first yoga retreat at Calistoga’s Mayacamas Ranch are safely home and back into our routines, I feel I must tell what is in my heart before much more time has passed.
Although I did blog at the end of the first day (at the urging of my de facto communications director), I decided that instead of forcing myself to sit down at the end of an exhausting but happy day to type this out, it would be even more valuable to reflect on the weekend as a whole when I returned home. I knew that no matter what happened, memorable gems would come to me, forever shining like lights within my consciousness.
People arrived by ones and twos the first evening and it was fascinating to watch the social interaction that was happening throughout the weekend, since at first the only common denominator among them at first was – me! At first, couples or people who knew one another just hung together, while others began conversations with complete strangers, as only out-of-their-element travelers do. By the second day, however, people who had barely learned one another’s’ names seemed to have become buddies, and like birds of a feather, spread their wings. And by the weekend’s conclusion, they were trusting one another in ways they may never have predicted — holding hands, gazing into another’s eyes, and even placing complete trust in someone else to help them to achieve handstands and backbends. This is usually scary stuff, but it is indeed is the stuff of which yoga retreats are made.
One of the most amazing moments for me came when I lay in my bed around 11:30 at night. Instead of country quiet, I heard a gaggle of voices laughing and goofing off in the lobby of our cabin as if they had planned their own party. When I realized that most of the people who came to this retreat didn’t know anyone at all, I felt as if I had unwittingly played a part in bringing together a group of souls who may have touched one another in some way. It becomes even more believable when I look at photos from the weekend and see the joy in people’s faces.
Another endearing moment for me happened when I asked people to partner up and share stories in order to emphasize how active listening is actually a gift to one another. When the time was up, no one wanted to stop! Seeing that level of comfort and connection happening before my very eyes was precisely what I was hoping for.
I know now that retreats like this are my path. I know it as surely as I know the sun will rise and set, my breath will continue to enter and leave my body, and that the place I chose for this first retreat would be perfect. You see — I felt I had no choice. I had to share the gift that was given to me. Have you ever felt that way? If so, it may be time to listen to your heart and block out all the other chatter in your life.
You see, the week prior to this weekend, I had to come to terms with the idea of “letting go.” I had to trust that I had done the work and that everything would work out exactly as it was supposed to. I had to overcome those voices nagging at me over the past six months – the ones that asked, “what if nobody comes? ; “what if I fall on my face?”; “what if they don’t like me?” I had even begun questioning the theme of the retreat – ‘embracing the gift of you’ – since opening one’s self up to his or her many vulnerabilities is not an easy thing for many people. Funny thing is: while everyone else was going through his or her transformations, I was going through my very own, right along with them.
In other words, I took that tough step of permitting myself to be imperfectly perfect. And I knew the instant I saw all those beautiful faces trusting me to take them on this journey, I was where I was supposed to be.
