Day 30

Day 30 05/23/10 -

Hi again All,

How time flies: today is day 30 in our count-up to the next PaB
RL retreat, in Nova Scotia.

So far we have five participants: Eliza, Eos, Maxine, Wol, and me.
I've heard from several of you that you were thinking about possibly
attending. If so, please do let Eos know ASAP, since that will help
him in arranging the logistics for transportation, meals, etc. Even
if you're not completely sure that you will attend, telling him that
you're considering will allow him to count you for half a person,
and will help to streamline the organization. See our web site
http://playasbeing.wik.is/PaB_Retrea...07_Nova_Scotia .

No matter how many or few people will attend, I'm sure it will be
a fascinating experience. So far we have had four RL retreats,
in the one year that we have started doing this. The number of
participants has ranged from 5 to 9 to 10 to 12. And I must say,
I have thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. With the larger
numbers of people, the group's energy and variety of voices have
been stimulation. With the smaller numbers of people there were
more opportunities to delve deeper into particular topics. So
it has really felt like a win-win situation, each time.

In addition, the natural setting of the Nova Scotia retreat will be
splendid. To give you a small vignet of the atmosphere of the place
where we will be staying, Windhorse farm, here is a quote from Jim
Drescher, co-founder of Windhorse Farm, who will be present while we
are there, and who is leading silent walks through a forest that has
been sustainably harvested for 150 years, the longest such experiment
in Canada. Quoting Jim, in the "Little Book of Practice", p. 13:

    As a longtime naturalist and meditator, he says that during the
    first years he was eager to tuni in to the subtleties fo teh forest
    -- the invisible energies and secret lives of all that lived there.
    At some point he realized that all he really needed to do was make
    himself available, to "show up" and be seen rather than struggling
    to see.

(the "Little Book of Practice", authored by Susan Szpakowski, will soon
be published; for those interested copies will be available for
purchase at the Windhorse Farm during the time of the retreat).

Cheers,
Pema