Happy winter solstice!
2023 has been another beautiful season at Eco Retreats, connecting with guests old and new and spending lots of time in the forest, feeling her changing moods throughout the spring and summer and autumn.
We always adopt a slower and more home-based rhythm for late autumn and the winter months, and focus on family, rest and reflection.
As always, there’s much to reflect on. And yet again, the media is full of horrific reports of shocking events, fuelling division instead of unity, when deep down what we all want is peace.
We don’t have a TV and have very limited exposure to media and social media. It’s not escapism, or turning a blind eye to what is happening in the world. I have lived and worked in the Middle East and many other conflicted regions of the world; and still work year-round to stand for small-scale African farmers who lack a voice in the debates that shape their lives. But energy matters, and a fearful and depleted energy serves nobody.
While we can sometimes feel helpless in the face of global events, I strongly believe that challenges in the wider world reflect both what is going on inside ourselves, and what is happening in the microcosm of our own lives and communities.
Where can we each heal division today? Is there a conflict in our home, in our workplace, in our school? Can we put peace first in our own lives and seek harmony before ego and the need always to be right? Are we grappling with some inner conflict that we could turn our attention to in these longer, darker days?
Can we live the world we want to see into existence, from the inside out?
Time in nature is so healing and taking some days away from media to reconnect with our own essence and those we love can be more powerful than most people realise. This is why each year we dedicate ourselves to providing a unique, off-grid experience at Eco Retreats. Our goal is to provide a sanctuary which becomes much more than a holiday to our ever-growing community of return guests we welcome time and again to experience the magic of the forest.
Wishing you all peace and happiness this winter solstice.