Hi,
I’m happy to write a few lines, but 2 nights weren’t exactly packed with experiences 🙂
I went into the dark for three reasons
I wanted to find out what it’s like, to have a rest and to see if I could do it. Unfortunately I didn’t have much time or holiday from work, so I chose a weekend stay. I know that darkness and solitude affect everyone differently. I was pretty confident. I can keep myself entertained brilliantly on my own, but in the dark?
Sleeping and waking
On Friday Tom welcomed me warmly and explained how the retreat works. The first night I slept beautifully and the next day was much the same. When I was awake, everything in the dark flowed with an interesting touch of ease and calm. In absolute darkness your eyes don’t adjust, so there was nothing else to do but feel my way around the inside of the place and pace it out without thinking, which was fun. The stay narrowed down to stretches of sleeping and waking that alternated throughout the day. When I was awake I did stretching exercises, ate lightly, drank tea and water, had a shower once a day and thought. I was cleansing myself.
I savoured the food
Because I wasn’t moving much, I didn’t get hungry either. I only ate a little, but on the other hand I really savoured Lenka’s excellent food in the dark. The next night, carried along by my subconscious, I slept right through again. The following day went like the one before, and then Lenka was already knocking to tell me the retreat was over.
Two nights are not enough
Today I know that 2 nights are great for a rest and a partial cleanse. But you don’t get to the heart of a dark retreat – the phase of proper wakefulness, which comes roughly after three days. I’m already looking forward to my next retreat, which I’ll definitely plan for a whole week.
Great place, great people, great food. I recommend it 🙂
– So that’s it in a nutshell.
Have a lovely day
Jakub
