Jonah on the Camino
Jonah on the Camino

One afternoon early in the retreat at Flores, a mysterious piece of driftwood appeared on our prayer table. The piece of driftwood looked just like a whale … and tucked inside of it was a small carving of Jonah. No one fessed up to being the one who brought this beautiful natural portrayal of Jonah and the whale. It simply remained there on our prayer table as a delightful mystery and prayerful presence throughout our sacred retreat week at Flores. On the morning we were to begin walking the Camino, a note was propped up alongside the driftwood whale that read…

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Creating Sacred Space
Creating Sacred Space

Rather than spending hours writing and rewriting a blog post, I am going to run with the assumption that a picture tells a thousand words! So, here are a few thousand words to share with you about how our retreat community co-created our sacred space together in the beautiful chapel at Flores…

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Easing into the silence...
Easing into the silence...

This morning we enjoyed time in gentle silence until after breakfast as a way to ease ourselves gently into this sacred space. What a beautiful breakfast spread the hospitality team at Flores had prepared for us - fresh bread, eggs, yogurt, fruit, cereals, pastries, jams, juices, tea, coffee and more! Wonderful nourishment for body and spirit to start the day!

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Cobblestone Streets as Spiritual Practice
Cobblestone Streets as Spiritual Practice

The cobblestone streets around Flores are simply gorgeous - like taking a miraculous little step back in time! They have tremendous character and a lovely old-world charm! Part of that old-world charm; however, is that from the moment you enter the town, you are forced to slow down… that is unless you want to blow out a tire or twist an ankle! I had not previously though of cobblestone streets as an invitation to spiritual practice, but they actually are a powerful and beautiful reminder (both literal and metaphorical!) of the importance of slowing down and opening our eyes to God’s presence with us.

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Sharon Garner Comments
Arrived!
Arrived!

Basia (my co-retreat leader) and I have been planning this retreat via Zoom for 9 months now - including weekly calls for hours at a time over the past 3-4 months.  We have discovered that we are truly kindred spirits and have developed a deep friendship/sisterhood in the process.

Today, when I arrived at Flores after almost 24 hours of travel, Basia and I met in person for the first time.  What an indescribable joy! 

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