In the age of multitasking, full immersion can feel like a luxury.

To be fully immersed in something can feel like a luxury. I know with my schedule I feel like I have mastered the art of multi tasking.  Never really giving my full attention to any one thing at one time. However, I have been attempting to shift this pattern in myself over the past few months by journaling, reading more, and really slowing down when I am talking and being with family, friends, and clients. And it has not only made me more efficient in my work, but also more aware of what is happening with the people that I care about.

I have also noticed that I have been allowing others to hold space for me. To be the lead on embodied practices that make room for more growth, reflection, and empowerment around how I want to show up in this world. This is the intention of a retreat. Katrin, Tiago and I are constantly cultivating this practice of full immersion in our retreats together. Because to be fully immersed is to be fully present with ourselves.

Yes, a retreat can also be a place where we don’t have to worry about cooking, cleaning, commuting, work, and other aspects of life that can begin to bog us down.  But a retreat is also an opportunity to really get back to listening to yourself, getting to know yourself again, and breaking the pattern of multi tasking that, while useful, can take us away from the present moments that actually define how we are living our lives. I always joke that I really only teach at retreats for the food (and the food at Casa do Limoeiro is delicious), but in reality I teach, and attend, retreats because it encourages and nurtures connection to self and reconnection to the world through mind, body, spirit and being.

The invitation is to consider the last time that you were fully immersed in something, where you felt held and connected, and if it has been a while, consider how you might be able to support yourself in immersive practices as the year winds down.