How was the retreat?
I had a wonderful time at the Women’s Retreat I went to this past weekend. It was at the Gainesville Retreat Center. The location was beautiful. The food was fantastic. The sense of community was much needed.
The yoga teacher did a great job in providing a class that worked for people new to yoga and those that have been doing it for years. I really liked that they showed the easy/modified version of a pose first, then would show how to make it more advanced. Their class just reinforced my decision to make yoga a regular part of my Movement practice.
Whenever I’m in Gainesville, I like to visit Book Gallery West. I’ve been going to that locally owned bookstore for over 25 years. I always try to buy at least one thing every time I’m there to help support them. I’ve found some of my favorite books and earrings there.
This time, while wandering the shelves, three books jumped out at me: The Artist’s Way: The 25th Anniversary Edition by Julia Cameron, Hope In the Dark by Rebecca Solnit, and The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf. I already own an earlier edition of The Artist’s Way but haven’t been able to find it anywhere in the house. I can’t remember if I loaned it to somebody or not. I’ve been meaning to read The Beauty Myth for a few years now.
I enjoy Rebecca Solnit’s writing. I own two other essay collections by her. I highly recommend Men Explain Things To Me. When I walked into Book Gallery West that day, I was feeling more than a bit hopeless with how it looked like Kavanaugh was going to be appointed to the Supreme Court with no FBI investigation. The first book that jumped out at me was Hope In the Dark.
That was the book I took to the retreat with me. Between that book and connecting with other women, I had my hope in the future restored. My will to keep fighting returned. One line in particular stuck with me all weekend long: “The future is dark, with a darkness as much of the womb as the grave.”
While I had a fantastic time at the retreat, I did have to be mindful of my glycerin allergy. I had to carry a bag so I could have my trio of Must Haves with me. Thankfully I only ever needed the hand sanitizer.
The food was amazing all weekend long. The cook made sure everything was labeled for various food restrictions and allergies. Nothing had mango in it, so I didn’t have to worry about that food allergy of mine.
If you did get hungry between meals, there were snacks of fruit and various cereal and fruit bars. I’m glad I read the ingredients lists of the bars because all the ones that listed the ingredients had glycerin in them. And I don’t eat anything packaged that doesn’t list the ingredients. I was very sad when I saw the fig and raspberry bar had glycerin because that one sounded yummy.
So that’s why I haven’t been posting recently. I’ve been doing some much needed self-care. It was nice to get away from my usual chores. I love my girls, but it was lovely to not have a cat head butting me at 4 in the morning to be fed. I also got to fit in a visit to my mother.
