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Quiet mind, happy heart

It’s a rainy, damp Thursday night and I am comfy, cozy and quiet in my cute, little cottage: “A Room of One’s Own” – a personal retreat center on the shores of Lake Superior owned by my friend Marcia Hyatt.

At 8 pm, I have donned my Victoria Secret thermal red and pink striped P.J.’s (pretty cute) and sip a cup of African Autumn herbal tea as I listen to the pounding waves of Lake Superior outside my window. Except for the loud boom of the waves as they hit the shore, it is quiet. I am quiet…and still. Aaahhhhhhh.

My personal retreat on Lake Superior started yesterday afternoon after a delightful massage at Waves of Superior Spa. I decided a massage was the perfect way to ease into my respite, after one of most hectic and demanding work weeks on the shore in some time.

Quieting the mind can be a challenge

I arrived at “A Room of One’s Own” for orientation and a cup of tea with Marcia mid afternoon. It took me the entire first evening just to get settled, unwind and begin to let go. I started thinking about all the things I wanted to accomplish in this short respite – all the things that had piled up on me in personal life. I made a list of personal retreat “to do’s” and it was a long list. Definitely not doable in a few days!

Finally, by about 7 p.m. I shut down email, signed off Facebook, practiced mindful meditation and rocked in the chair with my favorite book – Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. And I fell asleep. This was my body telling me it really need this.

There is no TV here. No phone (other than my cell). Just an adorable, intimate space located just feet from Lake Superior. It is the perfect place to quiet your mind and tune out the outside world. And even though I came here to write – blogs, speeches and articles – I decided last night that what I needed more than anything was quiet. Simple quiet. A quiet mind. A chance to reconnect with my inner most thoughts about how it’s going, how I’m doing, and what next.

Be still, be silent

And so, I embarked on a 24-hour silent sabbatical. No people. No talking. No Facebook. No Twitter. No texting. And it has been challenging… and delightful. Today, I awoke to my natural rhythm not the buzzing cell phone alarm. It was raining so I stayed in my PJ’s (did I mention how cute they are?) and sipped morning coffee and read. I let my spirit move me, and my spirit wanted to think, read, and journal rather than work on major writing deadlines.

When the rain let up, I went for a fabulous hike at Cascade River State Park, tackling Lookout Mountain Trail for 1.3 miles up from Cascade River and back and exploring the side trails that were well marked as I have a tendency to get lost out there! I was all alone in the mist and fog of the forest, climbing a mountain. My mind was free. I was in my element! I vigorously hiked and trail ran for about two hours at Cascade, then meandered around the lovely town of Lutsen, had coffee at Moondance Coffee shop where I proceeded to not talk to anyone except to order coffee. And, another victory, I spent nearly 10 minutes in front of a huge case filled with scrumptious sweets and said – “That doesn’t appeal to me. I don’t eat refined sugar anymore.”

The rest of the day was easily filled with some writing, journaling, reading and getting drizzled on taking in the waves during a short stroll along the gorgeous shoreline. It was a simple day. A quiet day. And I needed that. I am in my equation.

Quiet mind, happy heart

Today taught me that sometimes it is critical to just be still and quiet my mind. In these moments we feed the soul, get in touch with our true needs, and become more creative, more intuitive, and I venture to say, happier at the core.

I have been whacking at moles of late. Leading a crazy busy and hectic life these past few months. While I was still in my equation, I was even doing “in the equation” in a BIG way. Everything felt big, demanding and every spare moment was filled.

Today was quiet…still…and simple. I am grateful. And I wonder what tomorrow’s rhythm will bring?

Lori

NOTE: Thank you Marcia (and husband Tom) for this beautiful retreat center. It is the sweetest place and the energy was great. For those of you that have not had the pleasure of knowing Marcia Hyatt, she is a life and leadership coach – and one of the best I know. Her husband Tom Christensen is an local sculptor and artist and they own the beautiful Last Chance Gallery in Lutsen. If you are thinking of a getaway to quiet the mind and/or a personal retreat, all I can say is, wow – this is the perfect place. 🙂

 

 

 

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  1. Julie #

    This place sounds great, Lori…too bad I wouldn’t be able to bring Hurricane, though! I am happy for you and smiling, though, as I picture the joy on your face as you were hiking and running in the fog and midst–something surreal about that vision 🙂

    October 19, 2012

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