Thin places
Today, we woke up to a beautiful day!
We started the day early with meditation and Reiki to help deepen our connection to the divine, and then were treated to a delicious breakfast which included porridge with homemade berry compote and softboiled eggs among other delicious things.
After breakfast, we all gathered in the studio again for a discussion about Celtic spirituality by Susan. She described the Celtic concept of a thin place, where heaven and earth are closely connected and invited us to explore how it felt today to be in this beautiful thin place. After this, some of us took walks, others went to Catholic mass in the nearby town, and some others attended yoga class in the beautiful studio where we explored on the mat the concept of the connection to the divine and the inherent courage required to set out on a spiritual quest.
We continued to be delighted by our vegetarian food with a yummy lunch, and then we all embarked on a hike to St. Brigid’s well. This is an ancient site from the 5th century which has deep importance in the Celtic spiritual tradition and also in the Ireland of today. Before we were going, we were instructed on the local tradition by Dearbhla, who works at the retreat center. This instruction made our time at the well that much more meaningful. The well was at the end of a grotto, filled with prayers and statues and petitions. Inside the grotto, there was a small nook where we lit 5 candles on an iron grid representing the 4 directions. Susan repeated a prayer as the candles were lit. As Dearbhla had instructed, we walked up the staircase to look down into the well and up to a cross, where Susan led us all in a Celtic ritual of blessing she learned just this morning at the church!
After St. Brigid’s well, some of us returned to the retreat center and others of us continued on to the shore, where Scott taught us about glacial till and one of our party took a swim!
We all had some free time before dinner. I myself cannot stay out of the yoga studio, which is the most amazing building - the large glass wall makes you feel connected to the landscape which looks somehow even more beautiful through the glass. At different times, I am joined by different retreat attendees, which is a joy!
Dinner was great, of course, and now some of us are in town, others enjoying the retreat grounds, and others are up at the cliffs to see the sunset.
We look forward to a nice night’s sleep after having walked approximately 8 miles today, and we hope that you, wherever you are, might explore in your own hearts the concept of a thin place and how you might be able to create connection to the divine in your life.
Copyright 2019 Nancy C Murray
