The Gift of Going on a Retreat

I have been traveling these last two weeks to Bulgaria and Greece for a Trinity Retreat I lead with Michelle Goldstein and Ali Owens. In Bulgaria, I filmed 12 classes for Udaya.com which was difficult but still a blast, and then we took our group to Santorini, Greece for two practices a day, hiking, swimming, shopping, a private boat cruise, adventuring, sight-seeing, wine-tasting, meditation, and some fabulous meals. It was the kind of experience that you never forget for your entire life.

First of all, the group that we had was fantastic! They were all positive people, whose unique personalities and strengths, brought something special to the group as a whole. We laughed more than I have laughed in ages, we spoke about life, love, and had more in-depth conversation that you would typically with someone you just met or are just getting to know. We also experienced a new part of the world together, which is always incredible!

But the greatest lesson that a retreat can teach you, is that no matter where you are in the world, you can cultivate a sense of wonder and an unconquerable sense of bliss. Retreats aren’t meant to be a fantastic experience that you then get on a plane and forget all about, they are meant to catapult you into a space of knowing yourself better, deepening your practice, and to utilize a lack of distraction and incredible life experiences to guide you to a growing sense of love, happiness, and connectedness in your own daily life. While a place as beautiful as Santorini, is incredible to visit, it’s the change within you that is what is most special about giving yourself the gift of a yoga retreat.

The Trinity Retreat was certainly one of the most phenomenal gifts I have ever given myself! So until you take your own retreat ask yourself, what I am I doing for myself each day, each month, or this year? Am I setting myself up to feel that by the end of the year, I have grown, changed, experienced new things or am I just chugging along without feeding my soul? As cliché as it may sound, life is short, fill it with the kind of days you don’t ever want to end!