Retreat, Day One

So, part of my project proposal for my grant was that I would blog about the process. I've posted a few things through the year (most notably when I was in Provincetown for the workshop), and now that I'm actually on retreat I should post! I arrived today in the late afternoon and got checked into my room. Clifty Falls State Park is lush and green and wooded, and the southern edge of the park sits on a high bluff that overlooks the Ohio River. It's really lovely.

I had the tiniest of fender-benders on my way out of town, which I think was meant to put me on notice that mindfulness is necessary. I think that may become one theme of this retreat.

The other theme is to listen to myself and give myself what I need in order to be productive and creative. That means eating when I'm hungry (and not when I'm not), going to sleep when I'm sleepy, et cetera. Sounds simple, I know, but it's not how many of us live on a day-to-day basis.

To that end, I decided that what I needed tonight was an evening of relaxation, to set up sort of a buffer zone between "retreat space" and everyday life. I had a nice dinner, after which I sat at a picnic table outside overlooking the river and wrote in my journal & read for a bit. Later on I took a long soak in the tub, which is something I haven't done in goodness knows how long. I am very relaxed indeed. And tomorrow will be for sufficient caffeination and some good productive focusing. When I walk out of here, I have to have a submittable manuscript in my hand. That's the goal, and I will meet it. "No retreat, baby, no surrender!"