We just finished another amazing Energy Medicine Retreat out here on the west coast of Vancouver Island, and I am happy!! We have been offering this retreat since 1995, and I never get tired of sharing this stunning area and all her treasures with new people, as well as with all those who come back for another opportunity to connect with Nature in our Pacific Westcoast rainforest. Retreats by definition are designed to take us out of our regular routines, to provide us with an opportunity to reflect upon where we are and consider where we might want to be.
I love seeing people evolve as the week unfolds between slideshows and outdoor adventures and quiet time and connection time. It is a joy to be ‘far from the madding crowd’ and our everyday lives, as we take care of ourselves for this moment in time and nourish ourselves in the heart of Mother Nature.
This year, an eagle joined us every day when we practiced qigong out on the patio of Craidelonna Lodge. He was like our guide, giving us new vision of who we are and who we could possibly become. Our field trip to Botanical Beach was perfect - I never stop being thrilled by all the beings inhabiting the tidepools and all the beings clinging to the edge. Plants like Sea Palm and Staghorn Algae, who live at the lowest tidemark and are battered by waves all day every day.
Part of the field trip to Botanical Beach is a visit to the Mother Tree. While her surrounding environment has changed dramatically over the years, the Mother Tree is always a special and unique experience for me every time I meet her. Watching the expressions on peoples’ faces as they meet her for the first time is a joy to behold. She is deemed to be at least 600 years old and while she herself is dying, the new life she supports is astronomical from other plants to fungi to insects.
And I love watching people meet the first plants that called us to make them into Essences – Blue Lupin for focus and attention, Fireweed for revitalization, Plantain for cleansing and detoxing our thoughts and feelings, Salmonberry for physical alignment, Goatsbeard for immunity, Salal for forgiving, Snowberry for acceptance of what is and living in the moment, Ox-Eye Daisy for perspective, and Pipsissewa for making better choices. Every single one of these plants fills me with the same joy and respect and curiosity as when I first met them in the early '80s and this journey of co-creating Pacific Essences began.
And I guess the pièce de résistance (major highlight) of the retreat is when we go into silence for a few hours and each person connects with one plant and makes an Essence. The look of gratitude and wonder on each person’s face is a sight to behold. I realized long ago that people come to the retreat somehow thinking that Michael and I were special or had some kind of special gift. When they discover that maybe a plant can communicate with each of them, it is truly like opening a new channel in their awareness.
A few weeks ago, one of the students who came to the very first class in ‘95 said, “I always talked to plants but I had no idea that plants would talk to me until I came to your class.”
Based on the fabulous experience of the past two years of live retreats post-COVID, we have already set the dates for 2026. The upcoming retreat dates will be May 15 – May 22, 2026. Stay tuned for more details and early registration opportunities very soon. And remember that for those of you who, like me, practice TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) you will receive 50 CEUs for giving yourself this amazing gift of time and immersing yourself in Mother Nature.
Finally, I want to thank our three facilitators who joined me on this latest retreat: Maryanne Campeau who shared her vast knowledge of working with Essences and animals, Vivian Hulley-Bittencourt for offering us qigong every day to help integrate the knowledge of the five elements into our own Body/Mind, and Dimitri Tkachenko who offered us deeper insight into using the Gem Essences. It was indeed a full agenda and a fabulous celebration! Thank you 🙏
