Retreat...

So.. what does a person who is not wealthy do to create a retreat within the four walls of one's home?

I never understood how that could be done. Fortunately, I've since learned.

My living space is mainly two rooms. I have a den and a bedroom which is exclusively my part of the house. We share the kitchen, laundry room, back yard and so on. It's definitely a little community here.

Yet there are times I need to retreat, even from my housemates. One of the things I did in my den is install a refrigerator, a microwave, a toaster oven, coffee maker.. all the appliances that allow me to cook within reason. It's a galley kitchen without an oven or a sink. I bought the stuff from Craigslist and called it good.

Both housemates still work and one has an office here at home. There are people in and out all day, phones ringing, noise, conversation and music playing in the office. V. takes endless calls on his cell phone which has a ring tone that would grate on the nerves of the Dalai Lama. He's a hyper, active, pumped-up kind of guy and there are times when his energy is just overwhelming. My other housemate is not hyper but still can spread her own share of bad energy around when she gets aggravated about some small inconvenience. She considers me to be readily available as a listener.

There are times when I must close the access doors to my area of the house and literally block them out.

My two rooms look almost like a little Thailand. There are all sorts of Thai artifacts, arts, accessories, cookware, wall hangings and so on. I spent a fortune on eBay and bugged friends in Thailand to send me things. If I cranked up the heater as high as it would go and turned the humidifier on full tilt, it would almost feel like I am in Khon Kaen!

My housemates might object to that and I wouldn't blame them. :)

I created this space because there are times when I simply can't cope with the outside world. The noise, the chaos, the bombardment of marketing, the bombardment of the constant hustle of those trying to make their way in this culture, hunting and gathering. I start to feel crushed. Not emotionally crushed. Physically crushed. It starts with a headache and ends with full-fledged body aches.

For the next week, I am going to spend a lot of time here with the doors closed, the TV off, the newspaper unread and I'm going to limit my Internet browsing to blogs only. I will surround myself with good thoughts, good food, goodness ... clear energy. The spa didn't get rid of my physical aching. It's running rather deep this time.

Ba and I had a very good lunch yesterday. He gave me lots of language materials to study. In spite of his horrendous work schedule, he still found time to create these for me. It's some amazing stuff! It was also great to sit a few hours with someone whose thinking is similar to my own. I didn't have to explain or justify, didn't have to "mark my words" for fear of being misunderstood or be overly cautious of the content of my conversation.

I need to restore, get back into balance. It would be very interesting to know what others do to create "mini-retreats" for themselves.


Peace,


~Chani