THE EXPERIENCE:
Please join me for a deeply nourishing day of reflection, renewal, and regeneration with a small group of women who, like you, yearn to feel more vital and alive, more present, and more deeply fulfilled.
Taking time for ourselves to pause, look inward, and learn new ways of seeing and being can feel hard to do, but doing so is critical to creating a life of meaning and connection. It's not only essential that we to do this for ourselves, but also for those we're in relationship with. When we give ourselves the time and care that we need to feel safe, nurtured, seen, and loved, we naturally, effortlessly offer the same to others.
Joy is your birthright: it is that feeling of ineffable belonging, of easeful openness, of creativity tapped and flowing. Joy is clarity, it is freedom; the aliveness that heralds awareness of who you really are, beyond the vagaries of self. As Eckhart Tolle puts it, "the joy of being is the joy of being conscious."
To experience joy is to feel your connection with--your expression of--source-energy. When joyful we don't feel anxious; circumstances may be challenging, yet we feel equanimity. Creative powers come easily and our minds feel clear and crisp. Loving feels effortless, while gratitude and forgiveness replace resentment and rumination. Confusion gives way to intentional action that's in alignment with our values.
But many of us, especially women, feel true joy is just out of reach or, at best, elusive and fleeting, a matter of luck or luxury. For many, fully inhabiting joy generates guilt, fear, even shame: we feel damaged or flawed. The heartbreak we've experienced, the trauma, the grief, the regrets we carry--they render us ineligible for unhampered joy.
Or joy seems like an affordance of privilege, a selfish indulgence: "how could I feel joy when there is so much suffering around me?"
Or perhaps we learned long ago that our joy is a liability, "too much," something to be tamped down lest it drive those we love away.
During this retreat you will learn to identify, heal, and rewrite your relationship to joy.
You will discover that your darkest hours are not an impediment, but rather the gateway to a life of genuine presence--the essence of inviolable joy.
You will learn tools and practices that enable you to meet all of life, especially the most challenging parts, with curiosity instead of resistance, freeing yourself from resentment and rumination.
You will learn how we become addicted to unhappiness, and how to transform this addiction into self-compassion, curiosity, passion, and courage.
You will experience depths of being that you've lost touch with. You will release negative emotional energy. You will open and heal your heart dramatically. You will experience deep relaxation and clarity. You will feel connected--to yourself, to others, and to the totality of being.
You will leave the retreat feeling profoundly refreshed, with a wide array of concrete tools and simple concepts that will allow you to cultivate joy on a daily basis. You'll feel energized, more confident, and bonded with other women.
A SAMPLE OF WHAT OTHERS HAVE SAID ABOUT MY RETREATS:
"I’ve been a mental health therapist for over twenty years. And with that comes a great dedication to my own personal growth and well-being. Traditional personal growth modalities were helpful and necessary, but something was missing...I went to one of Kirstin’s retreats and I was honestly blown away by her skill set. And believe me when I say I was skeptical. I gained so much from just a day with her coaching that I could not stop thinking about it."
"My introduction to Kirstin as a Life Coach was through attending her 1-day Women’s Retreat. The day was full of new ideas and ways of thinking about one’s “full potential” through presentation, group process, and several creative expression activities. I left feeling a renewed sense of inspiration, but more importantly, a clarity regarding my life’s work and a plan of action to begin living a life that supported my goals. I have attended many retreats, and Kirstin’s was superior in its method to draw out deep desires, and also leave with a plan to achieve them. This was no “woo-woo” event."
"I met Kirstin in one of her one-day retreats (September, 2017). I was invited by one of my good friends and it happened just at the right time. It was an amazing experience to be there with a group of great women and Kirsten as our facilitator/leader/coach. She created a very comfortable environment for all the participants, and even though not all of us knew each other, we felt good to be there sharing. At that time, I was going through a transition in my life, and I knew that changes were coming but did not know how to deal with them. I was overwhelmed, overthinking and going in circles in my head. Kirstin tailored a perfect retreat for all participants. She took into consideration our one-on-one conversations with her prior the retreat and prepared something very special and just for us."
"This retreat helped me to put things in perspective, create a plan, and work on real goals. Also, it helped me to think on the balance sometimes we need in our lives in order to let things happen naturally. Kirstin is an amazing coach; she makes everyone feel important and she really cares about what her attendants are going through."
WHAT TO EXPECT:
As the earth softens and new life emerges from the dark of winter, so too something deep within us yearns for growth, clarity, and unhampered expression. There is no better time than springtime to step into your own becoming!
Our day will include guided meditations, heartfelt conversation, carefully-crafted exercises and activities, skilled teaching & life coaching, quiet writing, solitude and reflection, and time outdoors in nature.
If you're compelled to this daylong retreat, I urge you to join us. It will be one of the best things you do for yourself in 2019.
The retreat takes place at the beautiful Ewing Cultural Center in Bloomington, Illinois.
In order to cultivate a strong sense of community and to ensure the kind of individualized attention that sets my retreats apart, space is strictly limited to 10.
Your ticket to the event includes a delicious vegan lunch and beverages.
INVESTMENT:
Your financial investment for this retreat is only $148. This event will sell out, so I encourage you to reserve your ticket now. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to email me at info@kirstinhotellingzona.com
I hope to see you in April!