We came in a little HOT. A once-in-ten-years party.
Jubilee Retreat- our 10 year celebration of Boreal Bliss
For our 10 year shindig we pulled out all the stops. Friday morning was a full-blown ice storm on the north shore. Stacy and I had a later start than planned because, well, we didn’t want to slide into the ditch while pulling the sauna.
(I get to ride to retreats with Stacy. She pulls the sauna and honestly, I feel pretty cool when we roll into gas stations in the big truck hauling the barrel sauna.)
The drive was gorgeous, with each tree along the way coated in ice and some dangling dangerously close to power lines. We drove slow and steady. When we arrived, Bryana looked a bit sweaty, wild eyed, and frantic.
Stacy and I were very grounded and calm. We suggested Bryana go chill for a bit while we finished setting up.
It didn’t take us long to see why Bryana had overexerted herself. She had set up all our retail for the non-profit, which involves hauling dozens of heavy bins, the entire yoga space, and had created a full-blown 90s party in the dining hall complete with crafts, games, and chaos.
When folks arrived, our rather ambitious itinerary started with a denim/90s/loon mocktail party with said 90s games in the dining hall. Jami with her Just Juice mocktail bar out of Nisswa, literally knocked it outta the park - once again!
Now, for the 40 of us celebrating our 10 year anniversary this was all good. For the 20 or so folks joining us for the first time, we had to laugh because we were coming in a little HOT.
Friday evening we settled in to our first yoga class, and ended the evening with some oracle cards with messages from the season we were leaving (Imbolc) and a message from the season we are entering (Ostara).
On Saturday morning, everyone had the choice of sleep and slow wake ups, a sunrise tower hike + mindfulness trail, and morning meditation.
After morning adventures on Saturday, we all came together for the main event of the day- a throwdown class with Lindsey and Tiana. Lindsey, Tiana, and Bryana were dance buddies together in high school. Their reunion was joyous in and of itself!
We wore neon, side ponies, scrunchies, and slap bracelets and busted a move. To be honest, I was pretty impressed with how well we all did with the coordinated dancing, which is of course only possible because Tiana and Lindsey were excellent teachers. Tiana called it a party without the hangover and it delivered.
We all took our alter egos out and shook it like a polaroid picture. If you are ever in Mankato, you really need to check out their classes:
Tiana’s classes are on Sunday evenings 6-7pm at JPJ Productions (sign-up with the link)
Lindsey’s classes can be found and signed-up for at Ember Wellness Studio
After brunch, some of us headed out for the annual radical snow gear fashion show and dance party. We did some of our dances with Tiana and Lindsey and walked a cat walk. I know this is honestly not for everyone, but I have to tell you it is really liberating to dance outside in radical snow gear.
I have to say, I kind of like to go a “sexy” route and let my alter ego shine a bit. And by sexy, I mean as sexy as you can be wearing vintage snow gear??
This year I wore a leopard print fur coat I inherited from my beloved Great Aunt Martha with a swimsuit and leggings underneath.
Of course, many retreaters chose to opt out of this activity and did more relaxing things like read, hike, make art, drink tea, etc.
Some folks who hiked to the bog were lucky enough to see a porcupine in a tree. Some folks took on the rock wall. Some folks took afternoon yoga classes.
All of us relished the delicious spring sunshine on the backdrop of icy, stiff snow crunching underfoot. Although we are still in late winter, we can all feel the return of the light and heat.
In the evening, we came together for a special Chakra Workshop. This Chakra Workshop came to be at a retreat at Wolf Ridge in 2017 or 2018. It was the first time we realized we could tap into our own talents to create something special, not just teach what we’d learned in our YTTs. We wanted to bring this workshop to our Jubilee retreat as part of our celebration of how far we’ve come. A mixture of reiki, poetry, sound bowls, and live music had us all feeling wildly aligned and relaxed before dinner.
After dinner, we came back to the dining hall for a gratitude ceremony followed by a 90s music singalong led by me and Katie.
Katie is Bry’s sister-in-law. I first played music with her at Bryana’s wedding when we played “Take Me The Way I Am” as Bryana walked down the aisle. (Sometime by the fire ask me about the shoe fiasco I had as a bridesmaid at Bryana’s wedding… let’s just say hot glueing the shoe together 20 minutes before the ceremony didn’t work….)
Since then, Katie and I have played together at retreats over the years. We have a joke that we are “not the band we want but we’re the band we have.”
Honestly though, I am really proud of how far Katie and I have come musically. We used to be SO NERVOUS to play one song together. We’d practice and practice, me on the ukulele, her on the flute. This time, we built the set list together, but never even had a chance to practice. We sang together, played ukulele, guitar, and even harmonized a bit. We sang Sublime, Jewel, the Backstreet Boys, and more. It was sublime.
As I sang with my friend and looked out at a room of friends singing along working on their art projects, I just felt immeasurably blessed and thankful.
Sunday morning at our closing circle many people shared funny haikus, beautiful poetry, words they wrote, and memories from the weekend, and from the past ten years.
The real magic of Boreal Bliss is the relationships. Women bond at a retreat, don’t see each other again for years, then bump into each other at a retreat again and make new, fun, outrageous memories together.
It is brave and bold to attend retreats, whether coming alone or sharing with friends. It is a radical act of self care and claiming time and space for yourself to have fun and go on an adventure.
Because there are often so many of you at retreats, it is hard for us to properly express how much we like you. I meet women at retreats and I just am wowed by their sense of humor, their dance moves, their hidden talents. I genuinely am so thrilled when retreaters return and we have a chance to briefly interact once again.
Jubilee was really special because so many of you came back to celebrate with us. Deepest gratitude to all of you. We’ve watched as you’ve moved through grief, divorce, career changes, life changes, choosing sobriety, falling in love, and so much more.
I have to share that there are often times I don’t feel very optimistic about the world. At retreats, I am always reminded of all the good that is happening, all those that are choosing small acts of courage day after day to make the world a better place. Spending time with people like you gives me hope.
I am humbled and grateful for every weekend spent in the woods with you. If it weren’t for Bryana, I would have given up after year two. She is the engine and driving force behind all that we do and I’m so thankful for all the fun weekends she cooks up. If it weren’t for Stacy, I don’t know what I’d do because Stacy is a rock in my life and always a source of insights and humor. I love you both immensely.
And to all our other teachers, I am incredibly proud to work with women like you. You inspire me every time we are together.
Ten years ago we had no idea what this would become. Jubilee was a retreat of radical optimism and joy. It was a once-in-ten-years party. Wonder what we’ll cook up for our 15 year anniversary…..????
Love, gratitude, and awe, Amanda
Enjoy a relaxing lakeside retreat with us this May!
We’ve got two uniquely beautiful options for you.
