At 9.30 am, on an autumnal rainy day a couple of weeks ago, Trishna, Nimo and I were adding the final touches in preparation for the InnerService One day retreat, "The Journey from your Head to your Heart." As I added the finishing touches to the centrepiece in the retreat room, I looked around at the various vases and pressed flowers for the "right size and shape" green leaves to add to the beautiful display of stones and rose petals.

Just then, two people, Nisha and Anil, whom we had not met before, arrived. Saying hello, Nisha placed in my palm, some leaves saying, "I saw these leaves on a tree in front of your house, and thought they were so unusual and beautiful so thought we may be able to use them somewhere" ... yes, they were exactly the right size and shape, were what I'd been looking for. As I placed each leaf around the stones, my heart smiled wide and the feeling of nervous excitement I'd been feeling all morning dissolved into a feeling of fullness knowing that the day would unfold perfectly. :)



20 noble friends, most of whom were meeting each other for the very first time, gathered together for a heart-opening day, nourishing each other's journeys by offering their whole-hearted presence. In the opening circle of sharing, each person's share on how each of us have traversed from our head to our heart was deeply moving, coming from a space of openness and authenticity.



Planting seeds in our lives, rooting ourselves in personal practices that allow our journey to continue effortlessly was what followed Nimo singing "Planting Seeds".   After enjoying delicious offerings that people had graciously placed on the dining table for lunch, we set out to sprinkle the local neighbourhood with sparkles of love and kindness, exercising those muscles that rotate the lens inwards which open our hearts further.

 

Some reflections from the activities we had planned:-

Holding Positive messages on boards at a busy junction...
"I went into it hesitant, not sure how p

"I wasn't sure how the police would respond. But when they were at the stop light i waived to them once, twice, kept on waiving....Finally they broke into a smile and waived back :))"



Sweeping autumn leaves from pavements...

" It was interesting for me to clean the leaves off the sidewalk, because i wasn't sure if i felt like i was really doing anything...but then something inside me transformed and i just began becoming more mindful for each leaf i was cleaning off the ground and it started feeling really good..."

"We started cleaning at the pre-school, but then we decided to go onto someone's driveway and start cleaning....it felt like we were doing something wrong, like trespassing or something...but the man living at that house actually came out and the first thing he did was ask us if we wanted to drink chai :) We accepted and 10 minutes later we were all drinking chai in his front yard sharing stories."



With every thread of our individual journey that had brought each person there that day, be it, through the Awakin community, through Rev Heng Sure, through watching Nimo's Being Kind video that an aunt had forwarded from South Africa, through college, through a colleague at work, through Manav Sadhna ... every moment of our time shared that day had intertwined, weaved, and united, collectively to create a seamless tapestry of oneness that was beyond beautiful.



With every step taken as we closed the day with a pilgrimage of 3 steps and a bow, time seemed to have ceased and my heart overflowed with gratitude for every-thing, every-body, every being and every force that had allowed the day to take place.  Holding hands in a final circle, we sang the lyrics of Grateful with our dear friend Nimo.

Some beautiful images captured by Trishna of that memorable day:
One Day Retreat in London: Journey from Your Head to Your Heart