Announcing monthly email care packages! This is an excerpt from the April 2021 care package to email subscribers, just in time for the sloooow transition to spring. Contains anti-hate resources for supporting the AAPI community, reflections on the one-year anniversary of the pandemic in the US, and more.

This 5-minute guided meditation by Quinn Corte allows you to take a breath in the morning before you hit the ground running. Just 5 minutes of mindfully checking in will change the trajectory of your entire day.

One year ago today, as we hunkered down to brace a global pandemic, I started The Retreat Space.

It was Friday the 13th. Most Boston businesses—including the museum where I worked—closed their doors that day.

How is 2021 going for you so far? Not in the casual “oh, I’m hanging in there” sense, but in a deeper, self-reflective way. What is your energy and mood like? Does it feel like a new year? How is 2021 meeting or not meeting your expectations? I ask with no judgement; just total curiosity.

I spent the month of January in a tug-of-war between setting goals and finding inner peace with where I am. Today, I am emerging triumphant (and a little banged up), holding two truths: that I am enough, and that I also feel stuck.

The month of January is named after Janus, the Roman god of beginnings and endings. Janus was the gatekeeper of the heavens. He is depicted as having two heads--one to look into the past and one to look ahead to the future. The image of these two heads is a powerful representation of our divided attention.

Happy New Year, friends! I would love to share a few highlights from 2020. In our inaugural year, The Retreat Space...

• hosted 19 free events

• published 22 free videos and meditations

2020 was a big one, you guys.

I left my job of 12 years, lost my young friend to a heart attack; narrowly escaped a money-draining; self-help cult; landed an exciting consultant job; and got divorced. And then it was March.

We are in a big collective transition right now. Tonight is a full moon eclipse in Gemini (kicking off eclipse season). In the US, we are winding down an unusual Thanksgiving week and witnessing the formal transition of power for our next president, Joe Biden (hallelujah!). And of course, we are about to welcome in the LAST month of 2020 (double hallelujah!). 

A lot of us are super-duper emotionally invested in the US election, and it feels very personal and very triggering. Whatever you are or aren't feeling is perfect. You aren't alone and you are doing great.

Here are 10 gentle suggestions for how to care for yourself and others this week (and always).

This is a 10-minute guided meditation by Quinn Corte to help you ground and surrender when your mind is overly active or worrying about what you can't control. We practice rooting into our body and the earth and gently releasing the tension in our bodies and minds.

In this post, I share techniques and resources that helped me transform my worry this past year. I talk about moving worry through the body, making worry into an offering. taking intentional action, reframing worry as trust, and offering acts of self-kindness to the world. Audio version available.

There is SO much to worry about right now, collectively and personally. Instead of numbing out, berating ourselves, or feeling completely panicked and unhealthy, let’s explore the meaning beneath worry. Once we understand it, we can learn to work with it.

How do we stay grounded when the world is spinning?

How do we help when there is so much suffering?

How do we find peace and joy when we carry so much heaviness?

The Retreat Space is 6 months old!

Thank you all for your feedback and participation in our first season. It was deeply experimental and so much fun. I've learned so much, and have gained greater clarity around how I can serve you during this challenging time.

Thank you SO much to the amazing guides, healers, and facilitators who contributed to Season 1 of The Retreat Space. These amazing women donated their expertise, time, and wisdom to this space for free.

We are delighted to feature our first guest blog post, written by Paula Jones for The Retreat Space.

A couple of springs ago I found myself at the end of a magical week, sitting on my hotel bed, biding my time before departing for the airport. The hotel was grey and sterile. And the Monday morning light caught me suspended in time between two worlds. 

Do you trust yourself? Or do you consistently doubt, critique, or dismiss your desires and instincts?

Maybe things are so chaotic right now that you can't untangle your inner wisdom from the voice of your inner critic, your nosy neighbor, or your family?

The Retreat Space is taking an unplanned summer break. Isn’t that nice? I didn’t know we were going to do this, but somewhere between losing my job, Month 3 of the pandemic, and George Floyd’s horrific murder, I just…lost steam. I don’t need to tell any of you that this has been a really hard time.

When 2020 started, my dream was to open a magical retreat center in the woods. I planned to spend the year testing ideas and building community for that dream. I envisioned visiting retreat centers around the country and facilitating gatherings in beautiful places.