THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 5

Early the next morning as you gaze from your verandah to the ocean, a shimmering humming bird hovers inches before you. You smile, seeing it as your new reflection—light, beautiful, trusting.

A sweet, clear melody wafts your way. "Since when do humming birds sing?!" you wonder . . . until you notice a woman, dressed in white, sitting at a distance on another 'tree house' verandah. She is playing a large wooden flute. The sound draws you out and down the pathway in her direction.

Closer up, you recognize her as Elspeth, who will be guiding the Kundalini Yoga and other activities for the retreat. Her eyes are closed, so she doesn't notice you . . . but you feel 'seen' anyway, as something about the sound of the flute touches a deep part of you . . . a part that hasn't yet awakened for the morning . . . in fact, it hasn't awakened in years . . . if ever?

A tingle runs through your body and you know that this is truly the beginning.

(To be continued . . .)

To find out more and register for THE POWER IN YOU Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Castara Retreats, Tobago, (28 August - 4 September 2018) please visit this link http://www.thouartyoga.com/power-in-you-2018-retreat.html

THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 4

The Power In You: Chapter 4

With another day to yourself before other participants arrive, you take time to explore Castara.

You start early that morning on the beach, watching the fishermen pull seine amidst clouds of hungry laughing guils. Along with other bystanders, you begin to help the men, laughing as your hands grip the wet, sea-scented net of jumping fish.

You've never pulled seine before . . . you've never been to Castara before . . . you've never invested in yourself and attended a yoga retreat before . . .

All of these "first time" experiences and you only just got here! Already your life is becoming the new beginning you've been dreaming of . . .

(To be continued . . .)

To find out more and register for THE POWER IN YOU Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Castara Retreats, Tobago, (28 August - 4 September 2018) please visit this link http://www.thouartyoga.com/power-in-you-2018-retreat.html

(Music and video: Elspeth Duncan)

THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 3

You fall in love instantly upon entering the "luxury tree house" (as you like to call them) in which you will be staying for the 7 nights of the retreat. You have opted for solo accommodation, even though you know the shared options are more affordable and still offer privacy.

Perhaps you would have shared a 'luxury tree house' if one of your friends had wanted to come with you, but . . . cool early mornings, twice daily yoga, three vegan meals a day (a tough one for your die hard meat eating pals), lots of options for outdoor recreation and relaxing . . . those things don't appeal to many of your friends.

"Hmmm . . . Wow. Time to meet some more like minded people," you think as you flop onto the large bed which gazes onto the ocean through the open verandah.

The crisp, cool white sheets kiss your skin. The welcoming support of the mattress invites your body to release its tension. You sink in . . . you begin to drift . . .and, for the first time in a long time, you allow yourself to let go of the story—that someone, something outside of you needs you more than you need yourself and your own peace of mind & body right now . . .

(To be continued . . .)

To find out more and register for THE POWER IN YOU Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Castara Retreats, Tobago, (28 August - 4 September 2018) please visit this link http://www.thouartyoga.com/power-in-you-2018-retreat.html

THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 2

(Music & Video: Elspeth Duncan)

THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 2

You have packed light for this retreat—swimsuit, cool white cotton clothes for Kundalini Yoga, a few tops, shorts, a sundress, underwear, toiletries, a book.

Despite the lightness of your bag, the friendly man ("Porridge") who greets you upon arrival at Castara Retreats offers to help you to your cottage . . . or your 'tree house', as you prefer to label it. What else would you call these rusticly luxurious wooden hillside structures, nestled amidst thick, verdant trees, with wide open verandahs gazing over the ocean and huge windows framing pictures of fishermen's boats, soaring birds and clouds that gently morph into new shapes . . . in the same way that you anticipate you will transform within the promise of these seven sacred days.

Maybe everyone is down at the beach or trekking to the waterfall . . . but no one else seems to be there yet—except for the humming birds. You observe them with a smile, aware of the message they bring in the world of animal totems/symbology: "The sweetest nectar is within."

Indeed. You are about to experience this . . .

(To be continued . . .)

To find out more and register for THE POWER IN YOU Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Castara Retreats, Tobago, (28 August - 4 September 2018) please visit this link http://www.thouartyoga.com/power-in-you-2018-retreat.html

THE POWER IN YOU: Chapter 1

THE POWER IN YOU: CHAPTER 1

As you approach the place where you have chosen to spend seven precious days of your life, you take a deep breath. It's not what you thought it would have been from the photos . . . in fact, it's more. A wave of relief runs through you and something falls away . . . quite like a large chunk of sand collapses unexpectedly from a beach embankment when the sea rushes in to claim it.

Of course. Letting go makes sense. You're here, finally . . . in a new place, about to meet new people, have new experiences and—according to the retreat brochure–connect with a Power that will move you forward in exactly the way you need, so that you come away with a 'renewed and radiant sense of self.' There's no need to hold on to anything you've left behind.

At the very least, you can already tell you will leave as a different person. You can feel it . . . in the way your lungs seem to have expanded to receive as much as they can of the fresh country air . . . the way your shoes automatically slip from your feet as you step from the taxi . . . the way your bare soles connect with the warm earth and feel like they belong . . .

(To be continued . . .)

To find out more and register for THE POWER IN YOU Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Castara Retreats, Tobago, (28 August - 4 September 2018) please visit this link http://www.thouartyoga.com/power-in-you-2018-retreat.html