Greetings to our community of movers and witnesses,
On October 21, the autumn retreat at Aldermarsh began after a 3 year hiatus of meeting in person. The gift of return to the beauty of Aldermarsh and the Marsh House was deeply sensed. And to find ourselves sitting in circle once again for a 3 day retreat was truly remarkable.
Many of us had chosen to arrive on Thursday in preparation for our beginning at the Marsh House on Friday morning at 10. As we made our journey to Aldermarsh we were driving with masks on in our vehicles as we drove through the “worst air quality in the world “ that very day. The AQI was 200 due to the fires in the Cascade mountains that had been burning for many days. As we tucked into our sleeping places the rains began to fall and we awakened to fresh, clear air! It is/was quite a way to begin the retreat. Many of us stood outdoors inhaling and exhaling fresh air, for the first time in many days.
To gather in circle and to remember the gift of being part of an embodied collective is not to be taken for granted. Eleven of us attended the retreat. Nine participants as Lee and Lynn held witness throughout the week-end. We have 3 women who were arriving from different collectives, and had not been part of our previous Aldermarsh retreats. It is wonderful to welcome new energy, and to remember that each of us can presence the new at any time. In this newness and familiarity we open to ourselves and one another deeply through our practice and presence.
Our work engaged our awareness of the internal witness. We notice how the awareness of the internal witness is developmental. The clarity and presence of the outer witness supports the development of the compassionate witnessing presence in each of us as we travel in and through our human experience. With cultivation of the internal witness we get to see where there are gaps in our attention to self and other. We explored the ways disassociation and compartmentalization can keep us from being a fully embodied presence, and how often the constructs of the mind can fill in for true embodied awareness.
The collective body was enlivened and engaged in and through the dialogue between mover and witness. A theme that emerged was working at the edges within ourselves and in the form. It offered a reflection of the edges we are living with and into in these times of many collective crises and how important our awakened presence is to the forward movement and evolution of consciousness.
Another emerging theme was the sacred quality of women’s mysteries: How ancient and archetypal these experiences are. How participating in these practices is best expressed through our presence rather than attempts at logical explanations.
Our dialogue strengthened what was emerging in and through our bodies. Drinking at the wellspring of this relational practice in an embodied collective reminded us of the gifts of this practice, here on retreat and beyond as each of us take the seeds and energy that is moving in and through us out into the larger collective field of our daily living. Can we continue to see and sense with expanded integrated hearts and minds? Can we perceive while experiencing the galaxies within and amongst ourselves and the earth body? As these words come to the page there is a felt sense of aliveness and gratitude!
We are sending this to all the people we have worked with to bring a taste to those who were not able to attend. And also to let each of you know that the Spring Retreat Dates are March 3,4, and 5, 2023. Mark your calendars and we will be staying in touch with news of any other offerings that may occur.
With Love and Gratitude,
Lee and Lynn