My First Silent Retreat with Ava
By Kate Morris
When I joined Spanda and Ava told me I would have the opportunity to support her as the Silent Retreat coordinator in exchange for free attendance, I felt I had won the career jackpot!
My very first Silent Retreat with Ava was 5 days in Denmark, early April 2022. ..an excerpt from the full ‘Why Silence?’ blog.
The Retreat Experience
Each day was a beautiful routine of movement, meditation, learning tools, learning Ava’s Functional Spirituality 3 part method for meditation and self inquiry.. And eating.. And enjoying the environment.
The food was nourishing, nurturing and plentiful and became such an integral part of our day… hearing the caterer’s approaching truck which signalled our meditation would be ending and breakfast or lunch was soon to be enjoyed. Even the process of eating leisurely, with nothing else to do and helpers who would wash your dishes… I felt totally cared for and able to completely focus on my meal. This act itself brought with it a new found appreciation for, and enjoyment of, the spaciousness of mealtimes – simple and yet profoundly beneficial.
In this manner, each day unfolded with early morning yoga & meditation, breakfast, listening to Ava’s talk, practising tools, restorative or Yin yoga, lunch and a luxurious break for exploring, resting, writing or reading, returning for another talk, more tools and Yin before dinner and then a final restorative yoga with meditation to close out the day.
Many challenges and questions came up throughout – noticing how I related to people in silence, the conversations going on in my head, my tendency to want to do something (like explore) rather than just be and do nothing but rest.
Q&A
Having the opportunity to journal/write, draw, express in a creative way the feelings and thoughts I was experiencing, and Ava reading poetry and reading out and answering questions that people had written… were all such welcome tools and allowed additional perspectives to be considered.
Sharing accommodation
Another unexpected joy was living with 5 other ladies I didn’t know, in a house for 5 days (in private and shared rooms). We weaved our silent flows around each other effortlessly, sharing the bathrooms, sitting in company by the fire or watching the dazzling night sky bursting with stars whilst rugged up and sipping hot tea. On the final night, after coordinating by notes, we shared cacao – sitting in silence…collectively reflecting and appreciating the support and friendship that had developed in this most unexpected way.
Venue
The Cove sits in a little pocket of Denmark on the inlet, on the side of a small hill, surrounded by the trees…so many BIG trees… It’s quite a large property with the Bibbulmun track running through it and so much space to explore. And did I mention the trees… and the birds!
I felt a little like we’d stepped back in time to a highschool camp in the 80’s…simple but beautiful wooden dwellings – not very modern or flashy which made it feel homie. Owners Illya and Susan just added to this homely feel as they guided us to the various accommodations and patiently showed me how to light the fire.. They were so welcoming – just lovely country people!
(read the full version ‘Why Silence?’ here )