RONDA WOLFE
UNCLES
through a path over fifteen years when I heard a woman share her experience retreating to a monastery and the transformative experience that she walked away with. I would visit that image through the years when I felt life piling up on me. And I believe that life offered me this opportunity when it was the time to cash in. I found people who knew people who had knowledge of places that would help me through what I saw as a spiritual crisis, that only spiritual interventions and direction could help. And hark, by divine intervention, another story to tell at a later date, I was pointed to a monastery about two hours away from home. I jumped right on the opportunity. The retreat house, run by the monks in the monastery is nested in the beautiful hills of Virginia and backed by a glorious river. The scenery and nature around the property was stunning. Life stood still. It did not matter that I walked out the door to get to the retreat, with 2 totes and forgetting my luggage. Yep, walked right out the doors with just the two totes that I had in hand. At first, I felt like a tornado transcending this beautiful serene scene. Yet within a few days, I was able to find calm. Worth noting here that if you are one of us who have difficulty with transitions I might suggest practicing increased amounts of, in this instance, silence and peace, before going. It is not in my nature to go from chatter and noise to silence and back again. Titration would have helped me a bit more, but hindsight is 20/20. I found a spot by the river for journalling, meditation, and reflection. I communed with other travelers in silent lunches and dinners, attended daily vespers, helped create a flower garden, met with monks, and studied religious and spiritual literature. I walked in nature and felt the beauty of her wonderment. I edited and I created my own version of a poem that I memorized in 1986...“When my faith is running low, and I do not understand why things are so, I walk among the nature that grows. It's through nature I can see life’s maybes and mysteries. And as I stand in silence and reverie, the joy of faith comes back to me”. Spiritual literacy was revived and refreshed as began to arouse spirituality in everyday life. My body and mind began to soften and melt into this spiritual being who fell into the lion's pit of being of the world and not in the world.
Dear Life. Uncle!
For those who are not familiar with the expression “Uncle”, it is American slang and means to give in, surrender and admit defeat. Like many American idioms, they do not make sense, yet making sense or not, I was pleading “Uncle”. It felt like the bumps in the road, in just the road, were running amuck. Among these bumps were things like losing my identity, I mean my job, getting scammed out of money and the shame that goes along with that, being unemployed yet not ready to find work, having my phone stolen (another thief of identity) along with some other doozies in between, I felt burned out. Exhausted in mind and body and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was overdue for a layover of renewal, refreshment, and rejuvenation. I found just that because I believed I had manifested it
HOLA SOBER | MADRID
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