9th - 12th grade
March 8-10, 2019
This weekend we gathered away from our chaotic lives to be together, here and now. We explored themes such as
• what it means to be grounded,
• what helps us connect to the present moment, and
• how mind fullness can strengthen our relationships.
We savored every precious minute of our time together and practiced various forms of re-centering ourselves.
On Friday night, we arrived to new friends and old and enjoyed a delicious meal together. Next, we broke off into session and used art to visually express what happens when we are not centered. After we had finished our chaotic masterpieces, we settled into silence and focused on grounding ourselves. Then, we created a new piece of artwork representing how we felt in that moment. After discussing this experience, we scattered into free time and took time to catch up with our friends. We once again settled into silence for News Of Me, where we heard from one another about we as individuals were coming from. Through joys and hardships we supported one another, and, after some additional free time and story time, we went off to bed.
Saturday morning, we groggily roused ourselves for breakfast and then circled up for session. We played Leader of the Orchestra, then set off as a group for a walk in meditative silence. The cool air and snow beneath our boots brought us serenity and connectedness.
After our moving meditation, we once again enjoyed some free time featuring wink’em, a game where we expressed our Quakerly love for one another through wrestling.
Once we had eaten a fabulous lunch, we broke into silent work projects. We practiced non-verbal communication, being mindful of including everyone as we made sushi, baked cookies, gathered firewood, planted flowers, sorted the library and pruned vines. After feasting on the spoils of our labor, we had a group check in and massage. We participated in a guided meditation, rested and then enjoyed some self space. Many people showered did homework or went on walks. All of us cared for ourselves.
After a supper and a fantastic apple crisp dessert, we had another wonderful and centering session. This featured contact improv, where we practiced non-verbal communication through partner movement. We did yoga and then a peer lead us in the mantra meditation “I am loved, I deserve love.” We had a hilarious cabaret filled with improv and cuil theory and fantastic MCs. Once we had laughed ourselves silly, we broke into more free time. Many of us ventured out to a bonfire. While it was initially difficult to light, we were able to set it ablaze by using extra scrap paper and chanting “OM”. We enjoyed snack and a dance party. After our wonderfully hectic evening, we gathered as group of lovely, sleepy people for story time and bed.
Sunday morning came all too quickly as we rose and made our beds. We cleaned up our space, then enjoyed a final group session. We played Primate Bellows and Molly’s game to affirm a member of our group. We had singing and worship in silence, and once again brought ourselves back to the present moment in that silence.
We had lunch and then said our good byes. Each of us left feeling more centered and ready to return to our busy lives. This weekend we truly escaped into now and enjoyed every second of our time together.