As has become tradition around here, we end the week with the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat (or something like that!).
Let me just start by saying that retreat was wonderful. Amazing women, amazing learning, amazing food, amazing hot springs…. Did I mention it was amazing?
I returned on Saturday afternoon, and after my beloved husband threw all my clothes into the wash I immediately packed them all right back into the suitcase (with only minor adjustments) for a week at the Y camp with his extended family.
We had a blast, and I am so happy to be back in my own house, sleeping in my own bed, and slowly digging out from under the piles of stuff that didn’t happen for two weeks.
So there’s the backstory…
Do-Overs:
I need a retreat after the retreat
The sudden shift from retreat to family vacation was quite a lot. We spend a week peeling back the layers of encapsulation to get at the deeper places of the self. By the end of the week, folks are pretty wide open, and inevitably processes are started that aren’t fully resolved by the time we have our closing circle. Today I finally got that I still had some integrating to do. For next time: schedule a few quiet days after a retreat.
Speaking of which…
Is there ever a good time to be gone and essentially out of email/phone range for two solid weeks? I knew it was going to be rough, but so many things simply didn’t get done in a timely way in August. And some still haven’t been done. Nothing earth shattering, but I had a way bigger set of things to tackle than I could handle. School still hasn’t started- so I still haven’t made it all the way through the list! And (recall item above!) I’m still needing those few quiet days… Maybe next week?
A near miss…
I’m not exactly sure whether to file this in ‘do-overs’ or ‘high-fives.’ We have in town a ‘semi-marching band’ that plays in the various parades and community events we have around here. One of the members has been bugging me to join since he found out I was once a clarinet player. I dodged him for a year or so, but when he asked again this year, I agreed. He sent me the rehearsal schedule, which truth be told, is not that much of a commitment, but I got a funny little feeling in my stomach when I imagined my husband’s reaction.
I could just hear him… “You signed up for WHAT?” And then I realized he would have been right. I have a whole workshop on “Saying NO” where I talk to women about how our default answer is so often ‘yes’ before we actually consider what is involved. Once I woke up to that, I emailed the guy back and told him that I was sorry I was going to have to back out, but I was about to get myself over-committed (again!). Maybe someday this will be a little higher on the priority list- but for now, I can see that it could have become something I’d regret having agreed to.
So the ‘do-over’ is to think before I agree to something else… and the ‘high-five’ is that I uncommitted myself before I was in too deep.
High-Fives
R&R
Retreats are a wonderful thing. Every mom needs some time to rest, relax and rejuvenate. I don’t realize how exhausted I really am until I’m on retreat. For the first two days, all I want to do during break time is sleep. By day three, I’m down to a short nap, and for the rest of the week, I don’t nap at all. This time, I remembered this pattern and didn’t give myself a hard time when I fell asleep during our meditations. Fortunately I wasn’t the only one! And I’m sure my naps were enhanced by the guided meditations.
Glass Fusing
One of my highlights from the Y camp was glass fusing. The Y has a great craft center where kids and grownups can go and do everything from paint pottery, do leather crafts, make dreamcatchers or sun-catchers, and lots more. This year I did some fused glass pieces. So fun! So easy! And SO COOL! One of my five lives (a la Barbara Sher) is now officially a glass artist.
Getting my ducks in a row…
I’m just so glad to be home again. We’re getting organized for the start of school. I think we have what we need for AJ. I made him try on his jeans to make sure they still fit. We got some new shoes, and a couple new shirts. I’m getting all the dates from school, violin, classes I want to teach, etc. into my calendar. And we have plans for a couple of fun things this weekend to end the summer in style.
All in all, life is good.
How about you? Got anything you’d like to do-over from the week? Anything you’d like to celebrate with a high-five? Share in the comments!
p.s. Know any crafters who need a website? The lovely and talented Kerrie Lee (who designed this here website) is running a great contest. Check it out here.
