What if she retreated
Without feeling defeated
Or pulling back
But rather stepping into familiar darkness
Where her soul bears the likeness
Of the self which she projects
The self she tries to protect
But she wants to be free
For the first time
In a long time
She feels free
©Ashley Castle Barnes
We’re so often taught that pushing ahead is the way to get ahead.
Yes, we’re told to have self-care too. But even that is often more of an exercise, rather than a truly nourishing activity.
One more thing to achieve something.
What if we truly retreated from time to time?
Truly unplugged and went inward?
Let go without feeling guilty or unproductive?
I am never fully not doing something.
But I can at least do something nourishing and – gasp – unproductive.
It may feel like entering darkness to even think about that, but darkness is where often get our best growth.
Remember, the seed grows in darkness.
We need the retreat of familiar darkness to reconnect with that part of us that holds the knowing, the joy, the depth, the stillness that we crave and that is part of us.
How are you finding freedom in retreat today?
Leave a Reply