From Summer Camps to Retreats
Why They Can Still Change Your Life
The July before my sixth birthday, I spent a week at Camp McCumber, a dusty but pine forested campground a few miles west of Lassen Volcanic National Park in far northern California. It was there I learned to swim in the mucky bottomed Lake McCumber, sing “Boom Chicka Boom,” paddle a canoe, put a worm on a hook, weave a boondoggle bracelet, play ping pong, and build my first s’more. The week was like a portal into another world, one of danger, possibilities and fun that weren’t accessible in my home.
Blue Birds, Campfire Girls, YMCA, Ecology, church and waterski camps. Camps offered a magic formula: time away from my tense home life and opportunities to learn new things, make new friends, sleep under the stars or in a rustic wooden cabin, and immerse myself in nature. In a few days I saw a bald eagle roost, learned to build a fire, watched a brown bear lumber across a nearby path, caught my first fish—a rainbow trout, and fed chipmunks from my hands. A suspension of disbelief was also possible. At one Shasta Lake camp, at dusk we were called by sudden yells to the shore, so we could catch a glimpse of Bigfoot who had been spotted moving behind some manzanita across the way. The leaders warned it was out foraging as it was nocturnal. Exciting stuff for a nine year old.
Between my first and second year of college, I even worked as a night janitor at a summer camp that I had attended in high school. At Hume Lake, in the Sierra Nevada Foothills, I cleaned innumerable toilets, but I also learned to drive a stick shift and a giant van, operated a buffer to make the grocery store floor sparkle, rappelled for the first time, jumped off Roaring River Falls, and met Darren, Jamie and Janet, friends that I followed south for college.
Over the years, the name changed: residency or retreat instead of camp, but I still have found them to be a turning point or conduit for transformation in my life. When I was struggling as an isolated single mother of Harrison, my autistic son, a 10-day silent meditation retreat in woods helped me heal my negative thought cycles.
Unlike camps, retreats generally have less dust, better food, more desirable locations, and a common goal or theme, built around a facilitator who pulls you in. I’ve attended literature retreats, falling in love with Neruda, Rumi and Marquez. Writing retreats where I’ve met life long friends who equally love writing poetry and essays. After a poetry retreat, I once gave the leader, poet Sharon Olds, a ride to the airport. On the drive up Highway One, we saw a California condor and talked about poetry in films, as she had just recorded some of hers. At yoga and surf focused retreats, I was able to breakthrough my own limiting ideas and barriers to try seemingly hard things.
At a Gateless Teacher Training retreat, I was blown away by a breathwork session that put me on the path to become certified not only as a Gateless Teacher, but as a Pause Breathwork Facilitator. Retreats have really shaped my life.
“Travel, which is like a greater and a graver science, brings us back to ourselves.”
― Albert Camus, Notebooks, 1935-1951
How do I choose a retreat to attend?
I’m normally pulled in by the itch to get away, the locale (time in or next to water is big), and the activities or skills I’ll learn or the people who are leading or attending. I love bringing a friend or two or three!! Or even if I go alone, making new friends is always a plus. The other big shift that occurred for me at retreats is that I grew closer to other women, building friendships that felt timeless and centered on wellbeing rather than the shared misery of a job or some other difficulty.
After attending so many camps, residencies, and retreats, it felt natural for me to offer my own. Along the way, I fell in love with the magic of it all: who will be pulled in to attend? How can I curate an experience that will make them feel nurtured? How transformed will they be by the experience? It is like the perfect amalgamation where I can combine my 30+ years of teaching with my love of mindfulness, Costa Rican nature, fun and opportunities for healing. And now that I live in one of the most scenic spots in the world, I can offer all of this near my home.
Camino Adentro: The Way Inside: A Somatic Healing Retreat
February 21-25, 2025 Aves Hotel and Retreat Center, Montezuma, Costa Rica
I am excited to share the healing magic of this corner of Costa Rica while offering practices that have been transformative for me and so many others: Gateless Writing, Breathwork, morning yoga, sound healing, rest, beach time, and options for Brainspotting sessions, spa appointments, and much more. My own version of summer camp!! All the modern comforts: ac, wifi, natural bath products, in-room coffee and tea, organic local cuisine, and quality linens mixed with an immersion in nature (see scarlett macaws, capuchin monkeys, and iguanas) and connection with the local community who will be providing retreat support and fun surprises.
You will come away feeling open, nurtured, and ready to take inspired action in your life. Click on the link above for more information, including payment plans. Or book at call or send me a note if you want to know if Camino Adentro is a good fit for you. If you put a deposit down by October 15th, you can save $200 with the code BREATH. The video below captures the beauty of the Aves Hotel and Retreat Center.