Wise Woman Retreat

I spent the weekend of August 3-7th in Albuquerque, NM at Amaya's Wise Woman Retreat. I'd first heard of the retreat some years ago and it just seemed that I could never get the time and the money in the same year in order to attend. This year it worked out magically and I found myself half a continent away from home with a room full of strangers having one of the best weekends of my dance life!

The weekend is designed to bring together dancers who are ready to venture into the professional arena or professionals looking to bump up their game. It's also designed to give dancers an opportunity to form relationships with other women who are dancers in a peer group. All too often we are all busy teaching and performing - but how often do we get to spend a weekend talking about our dance love in a stress free environment with others who love dance as much as we do?

There were women from all over the world there. The guest instructor was from Canada, several ladies from the local area and several from Texas. One from New Orleans and one from the Washington, DC area, one from Sweden, one from Kansas, one from Germany, and then myself. A total of 15 women - the max Amaya allows to attend. Her husband was kind enough to help in shuttling folks around, but otherwise it was just us ladies. The weather was great and we were off and running......

Wednesday evening was the orientation dinner, Thursday was a trip to the Pueblo to see the annual Corn Dance ceremony. It's a religious ritual and so while spectators are allowed, no image reproduction of any kind - including sketch books is allowed. We watched one visitor ignore the rule and the Reservation Police took her camera and deleted her pictures and escorted her off the reservation. This isn't a performance and it's a shame that not everyone could respect that. I've a history of attending Native American Pow Wow's on the east coast, but this was the first Southwestern event of any kind that I'd been too. It was not a Pow Wow and that changed everything. A truly special event and I'm glad I was able to attend.

Friday began the first day of dance classes and they were taught at a higher level - no beginner stuff here and it was nice to take class at my level of experience. It was also nice to take a dance class and not a drill you till you drop class. Don't get me wrong - drill are very important to dancers to achieve and maintain a certain level of technique. But drills aren't dancing! So I just love it when I get to take dance classes that allow me to dance. For two days we took dance class. We worked hard in class, but had nice built in breaks so that it wasn't stressful or too much. I was able to learn so much in this environment. Luscious!

Friday night we had the treat of attending a local dance show where Mardi Love and Amaya were performing. I've never seen a dance show in another region of the country and it's really nice to see how the dance community dynamics are different in different areas. I enjoyed the performances that night.

Saturday night was our own private Wise Woman Hafla and we all danced for each other. It was great fun to see everyone perform after getting to know them over the weekend. Afterwards we ended our weekend with a talking circle where lots of important sharing went on.

I flew out at the crack of dawn and in the process lost my cell phone at the airport. Low and behold someone found it in the middle of the road and mailed it back to me! I'd recommend a visit to Albuquerque any time!

I spend my days busy - running too and fro taking care of things that have to get done and doing things I love, but it is really nice to step away from it all, recharge and relax. We always tell ourselves we dont' have the money or the time to do this, but don't believe it! Find a way to be present in the moment and rejuvenate. Find a way small or large and come back refreshed and ready to take on your life and accomplish more! You can not feed people with an empty pot. You may be standing there and scooping out air, but it's not nourishing nor is it good for them!

Until Next Time,

Halleyah :)