Finding Peace

Make a Smilebox slideshow

This past weekend was a time for me, nature and God. I attended our church's women's retreat near Harper's Ferry, WV. It was suppose to be for 3 days, however, being the non-camping, fear of spiders in a cabin kinda gal, I did the Saturday only option. It was a wonderful multi-generational group of 19 sharing stories, walks, quiet moments and meals. Surprisingly, there wasn't a lot on the agenda except to talk independently about the bible verse for the weekend (below) and then meet as a group to discuss how it reflected on your life. What came unexpectedly, was the 1 1/2 hour break inbetween these sessions (we had 2 breaks aside from dinner) where we were to just spend time doing basically nothing! At first, when the pastor said that, I thought - my gosh, I really don't know how to do that - without a TV or computer or cell phone (guess that really isn't doing nothing, is it?). The first break, we could walk the trails, do prayer stations, scrapbook or lay in the grass. I chose to scrapbook some pages as gifts for the boys. I sat quietly in the room without a sound around me - clipping pictures, drawing, reading. The second break was to be in silence. Another concept I struggle to understand. But I took a short walk with a friend and then we sat in a gazebo on a glider and just stared at the trees and rocked. I will honestly say, that for the first time in my adult life, I experienced peace. Peace of mind. Peace and quiet. Peace within the soul. When leaving that evening, I strongly wished that I had overcome my fear of that hidden spider and stayed the whole weekend. Next year.

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to dance; a time to throw away stories, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.