I’m off to meditate at Spirit Rock for a week. I’ll be sitting in meditation, like so many others have before me. Silent retreats are a great way to really let go and go inward.

After several days of physical discomfort and mental chatter, I usually find a peaceful quiet state of mind. This peace emerges out of the chatter and compulsive thinking we all experience in daily life. Know what I’m talking about? If you’ve ever been on retreat, you do 😉

Retreats are also a great way to look at our relationships; with ourselves, our work, others, and food. It’s a way to take a breather away from the things and people you love and get down to the bare essentials.

One of the many things that are different are the meals. You eat what is served and while the meals are delicious, it can be hard for some to adjust to not having control of what one eats. This gives us the opportunity to look at our relationship with food. One of the meditations taught at Spirit Rock and other places around the globe is eating meditation. It’s a fantastic way to become more aware of your behaviors, attachments, attitudes and habits around food. Here’s a snippet taken from the Spirit Rock website:

Eating Meditation:

“An awareness of food, and the mindful understanding of the entire process of nourishment and eating is included in the practice at retreats. Retreatants are encouraged to bring the same calm, focused attention to eating as is brought to sitting and walking. Mindful eating is a wonderful context for the arising of insights. The simple, mindful eating of an apple connects us to the orchard far away from our dining table, to the sun and rain and earth that nurture the tree, to the grower, the picker, the trucker, the grocer, to the truth of the interconnectedness of all existence. On retreat, carefully prepared vegetarian meals are served…”

It’s common to crave certain foods while on retreat, and it’s also a great time to go inside and look at the deeper desire(s) underneath. I’ll share more about that later …

So, have a great week! I will by sitting, walking and eating as mindfully as I am able in the moment. Retreats often leave me with such a deep sense of Joy! Being silent for a whole week may sound lie a challenge, but I’ve done it many times and it’s amazing how good I feel during and after this week of solitude.

And, I feel so lucky to be so close to Spirit Rock. It’s truly one of the most amazing retreat centers on earth.

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I also offer free webinars where you can experience Acupressure (TAT) to help with your food cravings and you’ll be notified first when they are offered.

Be well!