“Sometimes we don't need to step away from our lives. We simply need to create enough space to come back to ourselves.” NATAMIRI RETREATS
There are times when we all need to step away from everyday life. Not necessarily because anything is wrong, and not always because we need a holiday. Sometimes we simply need a little distance from the constant demands of everyday living to realise how busy we have become.
For many of us, life can feel like one long list of things that need doing. There are emails to answer, work to finish, school runs, appointments, meals to organise, washing to put away and people who need our attention. Even when we finally have a moment to ourselves, it can be tempting to fill it with something else. We pick up our phones, catch up on messages, scroll through social media or start thinking about what needs doing tomorrow.
And before we know it, another week has passed.
I think this is one of the reasons we can sometimes feel tired without really understanding why. It isn't necessarily that we haven't had any time. It is that we haven't had much space.
Why stepping away can help
When we're in the middle of our usual routines, it can be difficult to see things clearly. Something that feels overwhelming on a Tuesday morning can seem much more manageable after a good night's sleep, a walk outside or an honest conversation with someone we trust.
Sometimes we don't need to find an answer straight away. We simply need enough quiet to hear our own thoughts again.
Stepping away from our normal environment can give us that perspective. It allows us to temporarily put down some of the responsibilities we carry and notice what has been happening underneath all the busyness. We might realise that we're craving more time with our family, that we've been saying yes to too many things, that we miss seeing a particular friend or that something we once enjoyed has gradually disappeared from our lives.
None of those things necessarily require a dramatic life change. Sometimes they simply require us to notice them.
We don't have to wait for a retreat
There is something wonderful about leaving your normal surroundings for a few days. Having somebody else prepare the food, stepping away from your usual responsibilities and being somewhere beautiful can make it much easier to slow down.
Unfortunately we can't live on retreat every day.
Real life is where we spend most of our time, and that's why I think the most valuable part of stepping away is what we bring home with us.
Perhaps it's the realisation that you actually enjoy starting the day quietly, rather than reaching for your phone the moment you wake up. Perhaps it's remembering how good it felt to go for a walk without listening to anything, or how much you enjoyed sitting around a table talking to people without constantly checking the time.
It might even be something as simple as recognising that you feel better when you make time to see your friends, or that you need a little more time alone than you've been allowing yourself.
These aren't huge changes, but they can change the way an ordinary week feels.
Making space for what matters
One of the questions I think is worth asking ourselves from time to time is: what would I make more space for if I stopped waiting until I had more time?
Perhaps it's your friendships. Perhaps it's exercise, reading, being outside, travelling, creativity or simply having an uninterrupted cup of coffee.
The answer will be different for all of us, and it doesn't have to be something particularly worthy or productive. In fact, I think some of the things that bring us the most joy are often the things we don't consider productive at all.
A long conversation with a friend. Going somewhere just because you fancy it. Sitting in the garden. Cooking something you enjoy. Taking the dog for a walk when you could have done a quicker route. Laughing with your children. Reading a few pages of a book before bed.
These moments can easily get pushed aside when life becomes busy, yet they are often the very things that make us feel most like ourselves.
What I hope Natamiri can offer
This is at the heart of why I created Natamiri Retreats.
I didn't want to create somewhere that felt like an escape from real life that you would inevitably have to leave behind. I wanted to create an experience that gave women the opportunity to pause, reconnect and perhaps notice something about themselves that had been difficult to hear amongst the noise of everyday life.
The yoga, mindfulness, manifestation, good food, countryside, conversations and laughter all play their part, but the real value is the space they create around them.
Then you go home....
...Back to the school runs, the work, the laundry, the family, the shopping and everything else that makes up your life.
Hopefully you take a little something with you.
A different perspective. A new intention. A reminder to make time for someone you love. Or simply the knowledge that you are allowed to pause before you reach the point of exhaustion.
Afterall wellbeing has to work in real life.
We can't always disappear for three days. We can't always switch everything off. But we can sometimes take ten minutes to sit quietly, go for a walk, call a friend, write something down or simply stop doing anything at all.
Those small moments matter.
Perhaps we don't need to wait until we're completely overwhelmed before we give ourselves permission to have them.
A little Natamiri reflection
What would you make more space for in your life if you stopped waiting for the perfect time?
Take a few minutes to think about it. You might be surprised by how simple the answer is.