A True Adventure in Healing Part One

 “and i said to my body. softly. ‘i want to be your friend.’ it took a long breath. and replied ‘i have been waiting my whole life for this.”― Nayyirah Waheed 

It took a diagnosis of breast cancer for me to realize that self love and self care are not selfish acts. They are necessities.  If you want to be around to care for those you love, you must first take care of yourself. The price of putting yourself on hold is often a dear one and may eventually come in the form of "dis-ease", either mental, spiritual, physical, or all three.
Here's my advice:  Start loving yourself now.

And what better way to give yourself some self love than by taking yourself on a nurturing vacation?

Give yourself permission to get away from your day to day life and go on whatever adventure is within your means, however big or small, near or far from home.  You are worth it.

In my case, I joined some friends last September at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado for a yoga and nature retreat. We immersed ourselves in three nights and two and half days of yoga, meditation, hiking, self discovery, friendship, and more.  Here is the story......

Kismet

Some things are just meant to be--call it Destiny, Karma, Kismet, or God's will.  Last August, when I questioned myself about whether or not to attend the Rhythms of Nature Yoga and Nature Retreat facilitated by my friend, Laura, I received an answer loud and clear.  (Read about my friendship with Laura in my previous blog post Looking For An Open Door).

I was on the fence about treating myself to something like this.  It was something I had never done before.  Was I worth it?  I hadn't been on a vacation without my husband and kids in over 18 years!  But I had spent the past two years recovering from cancer.   "Yeah", I thought to myself, "I deserve it."

However, I was still a little hesitant when I mentioned it to my friend, Hilarie, during a telephone conversation, she immediately repsonded,

"Girl!  How do we sign up?  We're both going!"

So with Hilarie now on board, I registered for the retreat.  To my surprise, immediately afterwards, I found that the balance of my credit card's cash back reward program had accumulated to cover the cost of my trip almost to the dollar!    Further evidence of the Kismet of this trip!  And that was just the beginning.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles!  

Excitement began to build as I planned my trip. I packed up my yoga mat, yoga block, yoga clothes, hiking shoes, hat, sunglasses, and all the other things on the packing list that came with my registration confirmation.

I decided to include a visit with my parents as part of this trip, so I flew to Nebraska for a few days before the retreat and spent some time with them.   From there, I got on a train to Denver in the middle of the night.  Yes, you read that right....IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT!  Amtrak's California Zephyr stopped in central Nebraska around 1 a.m.   My dad drove me to the train station and I climbed on board with my backpack, suitcase, a pillow, and a blanket.  I found my seat, got as comfortable as I could, put on my headphones and listened to some soft music.

I managed to get a little bit of sleep, and when I woke up, I looked out the window of the train and I could see the mountains ahead in the distance.

Soon I saw the warm glow of the sunrise reflected on the glass of the Denver skyline!

I arrived at Denver's Union Station just in time to grab a bowl of oatmeal and a  cup of coffee before hopping on the commuter train to Denver International Airport where I met Hilarie.

The two of us then rented a car for the week, threw in our bags, and joyfully headed north to Estes Park.   It felt a little like "Thelma and Louise"!

Arrived

It was Hilarie's first time visiting Estes Park, so we walked along the Big Thompson River that flows through the downtown area and enjoyed a nice lunch at Mama Rose's restaurant before we headed to the YMCA for check in.   The room that we shared in the Wind River Lodge was spacious and had a balcony with a view of the mountains.

View from our balcony

Soon, a note and two jars filled with lavender scented bath salts were delivered to our room from Laura, my friend who is the yoga instructor at the YMCA.   The note told us to "relax, enjoy dinner at the dining hall, and then meet at 6 p.m. on the front porch of the Administration building".

Hummingbirds and flowers abound on the YMCA grounds

Rocking It

The labyrinth and one of the many elk we saw at the YMCA

We introduced ourselves to the small group of friendly women who had come from various parts of the country for the retreat, and then we headed as a group to the labyrinth, located on the grounds of the YMCA.

Laura had us line up in single file while she stood at the entrance of the labyrinth holding a box.  As we each entered the labyrinth, Laura instructed us to close our eyes, reach into the box, and select a rock.  "I know you are going to Rock It!" Laura said to us.  We were told not to look at the rock until we got to the center of the labyrinth.

I must admit that I caught a glimpse of my rock before I got to the center.  It was a vivid pink color and shaped roughly like a heart.  It was smooth and felt good in my hand.  It made me feel powerful and strong.  I held it against my chest, where the cancer had been.

Holding the rock, I felt so alive and well in the company of those wonderful women.  All I kept thinking about as I worked my way through the labyrinth was LOVE.  My entire being radiated with LOVE.  

Written in the Stars

After the labyrinth, we headed over to the Leggett Youth Building for an orientation, followed by a star gazing program led by a YMCA volunteer.  The night sky was filled with stars, and we could clearly see the Milky Way glowing above as Laura instructed us to "cactus" our arms and do a little yoga backbend.   As we gazed upward at the heavens, I felt my heart expand just a little, and I sent my love out to the universe.

Hilarie's rock (left) and mine (right)

 On the walk back to the lodge, someone started singing, "This Little Light of Mine, I'm Gonna Let It Shine,"  and Laura told me something peculiar about my rock.  She said that when she placed that particular rock in the box, she wondered if perhaps it would be the rock I selected.  "The rock seemed to fit you," she said.  And so it did....yes, I knew what she meant.  If I needed further proof of the kismet of this trip, there it was!

 I most certainly was ready to ROCK IT!  And I was loving everything about this retreat.

To be continued..................