'Awakening Wonder 
in our Everyday'
 

Reflecting on a weekend retreat
led by
Ruth Joy 

(16 - 18 October 2026)

Awakening Wonder:  I was at Holy Rood House this weekend where we were gently led through a series of art activities, photography and gentle meditation; we slowed down and viewed what we can see but don’t look at. We brought the wonder back, the inquisitive child that didn’t need to know the answers but was fascinated to feel, look keenly and delight in what nature offered.
We listened to music with our eyes closed, and drew what we felt; we pushed a pebble around a sheet of paper with a pencil, soon realising we were following the pebble’s path not our own.  It turned corners according to its shape rather than the ones we thought it would take ... then we filled in the patterns these lines had made creating our own meanings and feelings in a riot of colour, blending and merging these squiggles into meaning.  I painted some of my lines thick representing the safe paths that I know and follow without thinking and others branching off them, thin, the little paths that head off into the unknown.  The ones you forget to explore as an adult, or simply can’t find the time to explore.  I remember them though, the tiny paths through woods half hidden that led to the fallen tree that was our pirate ship and the ones the waves made in the sand that my granddad said led to the mermaid's treasure.  I grew sentimental for the days when little paths led to such adventure.

I learnt how to use my phone camera in ways I did not know and we went off into the garden and around the house, photographing the same thing from different angles several times.  We went on a treasure hunt looking for photos that represented the list of words we’d been given and we made earth mandalas from items we gathered in the garden. We were amazed at our creativity and how mindful we became at placing our forages carefully on the ground.
We were well fed and cared for by the Holy Rood team, they are amazing - and we left after Sunday lunch feeling refreshed, ready to take on board what we learned and a phone full of photos of seeing the beauty in what the ordinary has to offer. A beautifully gently led restorative weekend I feel privileged to have been a part of. 

with thanks to Val for her beautiful sharing and photos