What I Learned From My Retreat: Lessons From A Creative Convent Stay

Well, I’ve been out for four days now. I’m still not really processed things yet. I am going through what I accomplished, the lessons learned. Let’s start with a list of the big stuff.

-Words written: 19,017
-Blog posts: 20
-Card ideas sent: 40
-I published my first novel, How To Survive A Minor Alien Invasion, on Createspace, making it now available in paperback on Amazon
-Completed Goodreads giveaway. Twelve lucky people walked away with a free copy
-Television watched: none
-Facebook accessed: none
-Books read: 4
-Books started: 3
-Developmental editing has begun
-Reviewed three months of journaling and made goals for the next three months

Those are the numbers, and I’m pretty proud of them. Was it perfect, no, it wasn’t. I wasn’t, but I’m learning that that’s alright. When I do this again, though, I going to make a few changes. Notice I said when, not if, I do this again. We all need self-time. Anyone who tells you different does not have your best interests at heart. Anyway, I really like the idea of setting an intention before you start of what you want to accomplish while retreating. I also will need to have figure out both an opening and closing ritual for my next one. Hey, you can only burn your childhood journals once. I might even try for a group retreat. I will have a menu figured out for the entire thing well in advance and I won’t put so many goals on it. Most of all, I’ll let myself dream more. I was so focused on productivity this time around, and that’s fine. Next time, I’m going to concentrate on getting rid of the distraction of feeling like I need to be accomplishing something big during this time as well as turning off the television and social media. Am I a super freak or what?