Deepening Into Silence
Week-End Retreat
January 31 – February 2
at The Martha Retreat Centre, Lethbridge
Sit quietly and listen for the voice that says “Be deeper still…”
Have you always wanted to try a silent retreat but weren’t sure? This is your chance.
Join Vickie for a pilgrimage into Silence, as you discover Silence as a companioning presence within, guiding you in your life and spiritual journey. This is an opportunity for those who might be new to a “mostly silent” retreat, as well as those who want to deepen their experience.
Cultivate the capacity to “be still and know” as you learn how to ground your body, and calm distracting thoughts as we take time to listen deeply to our bodies, our minds, our hearts, our souls. Receive gentle guidance for this inner journey through practices of presence: gentle yoga, meditation, journaling, relaxation, music, poetry, or whatever creative practices call to you in the depths of Silence. Slow down and follow the rhythm of your own soul.
Cost: $360 Live-in,
$270 Commute (includes all meals)
Friday, Jan 31, 7pm to Sunday, Feb 2, 1pm
Register Online at the Martha Retreat Centre
or Call: 403-328-3422
Cultivating Equanimity in an Ever-Changing World
Saturday, November 16, 9:30am – 3:30pm
Online and In-Person at the Martha Retreat Centre
Join Vickie for a full day of teachings and practices to cultivate inner balance and equanimity as you respond to the demands and challenges of your personal life, and the world we live in.
Through gentle yoga, breathwork, and meditation, and inspired by the elements of nature (earth, water, fire, air), we will learn how to find a “calm, clear space inside.”
Cost: $77.00
More Info and Register at The Martha Retreat Centre
Love Letters From Mother Earth
One Day Retreat
Saturday, June 8, 9:30am – 3:30pm
at the Martha Retreat Centre
Take time to commune with nature, as you walk, and sit, and reflect in the beautiful surroundings of the Martha Retreat Centre.
Be inspired by the beauty of nature in all her myriad forms. Listen deeply for “Love Letters from Mother Earth,” as you cultivate a deeper love and connection to the earth and all creation, and to yourself.
This full day (mostly outdoor) retreat will be facilitated by Vickie and will include practices of gentle movement, breath awareness, meditation, journaling, deep relaxation, and walking the labyrinth, interspersed with poetry and music and silence to quiet our minds, and inspire our souls.
Cost: $77.00 (includes lunch)
Register through The Martha Retreat Centre
Day of Mindfulness:Spacious Mind, Inclusive Heart
Saturday, March 9, 9:30am – 3:30pm
at the Buddhist Temple of Southern Alberta
Facilitated by Vickie MacArthur &
Val Kunimoto
What does it mean to have a spacious mind and an inclusive heart?
Join us for a full Day of Mindfulness. Slow down…Create space in your body, mind & heart…Cultivate loving kindness towards yourself and all beings. Together we will practice gentle movement, sitting meditation, walking meditation, and deep relaxation to help shed the layers of over-doing and stress. As your mind clears, and you tune into the wisdom of your body, you’ll deepen your understanding of yourself and your place in the world. With more understanding we can grow the capacity of our hearts to be open and more inclusive to all we encounter. The world so needs your kind and compassionate attention.
Schedule
9:30 Welcome and “Be Here Now” Meditation
10:15 Gentle Yoga with Val Kunimoto
11:30 Walking Meditation
Noon Lunch (please bring own)
1:00 “Including All” Meditation and Reflections
2:00 Deep Relaxation (Yoga Nidra)
2:30 Dharma Circle Sharing
3:30 Go in Peace
Cost: By Dana/Donation (split between the temple and the teachers)
Suggested Sliding Scale
$20, if you are on a limited budget
$40, to sustain the teachings and the temple
$60, if you would like to also support others to attend
Awakening the Heart:
Learning to Love Beyond Boundaries
Saturday, January 27
9:30 – 3:30pm
One Day Retreat at the Martha Retreat Centre
Cost $75 (includes lunch)
Register Here
What does it mean to awaken?
How do we sustain a “hopeful heart” during difficult times?
Join Vickie as she guides you through an experiential understanding of the “heart center,” and all its subtle layers through breath practice, gentle yoga, reflection, and meditation.
One Love, One Song, One Heart:
An Evening of Music & Readings
From A Lotus on Fire
With Vickie & Doug MacArthur
Weds, December 6, 7 – 8:30pm
at the Martha Retreat Centre
Join Vickie and Doug MacArthur for One Love, One Song, One Heart: “An Evening of Readings and Music” from Vickie’s spiritual memoir A Lotus on Fire.
Weaving together readings from A Lotus on Fire, with simple music and chants from different spiritual traditions, you will be invited to listen, to sing along, and to become part of the story of awakening together in sacred community to the One Love that lives and moves, and breathes through all.
The event is a fundraiser for the Martha Retreat Centre.
Registration is by donation: Pay what you can, Be generous.
Nurture Your Roots
Rooted….Growing…..Connected
In-Person One Day Retreat
Saturday, May 27, 9:30 – 3:30pm
at The Martha Retreat Centre,
Lethbridge
Cost: $75 (includes lunch)
Join Vickie in the beautiful surroundings of the Martha Retreat Centre for a day of meditation, gentle yoga, music, and poetry centered around trees. Tune into their wisdom, as together we sense our oneness with the earth and all creation.
Register Through the Martha Retreat Centre
Day of Mindfulness:
Rest, Reflect, and Awaken
Saturday, April 29
9:30am – 3:30pm
The Buddhist Temple of
Southern Alberta
With Vickie MacArthur
Take a day off to slow down and nurture awareness in the peaceful surroundings of the Buddhist Temple of Southern Alberta. Inspired by the practices of Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, experience a mindful day of sitting and walking meditation, gentle yoga and breath work, journal writing, and deep relaxation to nourish body, mind, and soul.
Vickie will also be reading a few passages from her new book, A Lotus on Fire, to inspire your day.
(Please bring your own lunch to eat mindfully together.)
By Donation ($30 suggested, or pay what you can)
Register with Eventbrite
A Lotus on Fire
Book Reading and Signing
with Vickie
Weds, March 22
7 – 8:30pm
Come celebrate the release of Vickie’s new book.
Be Still…and Know…
and Welcome All
One Day Retreat
Saturday, Jan 28
9:30am – 3:30pm
With Vickie at
The Martha Retreat Centre
Set aside a day of sabbath and rest, online or at the Martha Retreat Centre, to listen to yourself and to the deeper whispers of Spirit. Take a pilgrimage through your inner world, as you are guided through breath work, meditation, gentle embodied movement, and stillness. Learn the Welcoming Prayer and “welcome what is,” so you can “welcome what is possible.”
Sink into deep relaxation, as you release fatigue and hidden tension from your body and dip beneath the surface of your busy life. Rest in God…
$65 In Person (includes lunch)
$55 Online
Register at The Martha Retreat Centre
Listening With Love:
A Nurturing Silence Retreat
October 21 – 23, in person
Samish Island, WA
With Jon Prescott
and Vickie MacArthur
In this weekend retreat of deep reflective listening, we’ll explore how to listen in a way that integrates body, mind, and heart, into a loving and compassionate whole. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the ocean and Samish Island, we’ll slow our momentum, cultivating a silent space to receive the healing balm of contemplative practices:
- sitting and walking meditation
- gentle yoga, breath, and embodied awareness
- mindful eating (nourishing plant-based meals)
- deep rest and relaxation
This retreat calls upon diverse wisdom traditions and is open to all levels of experience.
All-Inclusive Cost: $275
Nurture Your Roots:
Rooted, Growing, Connected
Saturday, May 28, 10am-3pm
at Martha Retreat Centre
A day of meditation, gentle yoga, music and poetry centered around trees, guided by Vickie MacArthur.
Using the metaphor of trees as inspiration, learn how to stay rooted during difficult times, while connected and growing in community. Spend time outdoors with trees to learn what they can teach us about life.
Cost: $75 (includes lunch) Register through Martha Retreat Centre
Schedule:
10am-10:30am Welcome and Meditation
10:30-11:30am Gentle Restorative Yoga: Root to the Earth, Stretch to the Sky
11:30-12noon Walking Meditation Amongst the Trees
12-1pm Lunch (included with registration)
1-1:30pm Poetry and Trees
1:30-2:30 Tree Bathing: Spending Time with Trees
2:30-3pm Closing Circle: Sharing our Tree Whispers
Yoga Nidra: Listening to Your Ancestors
Online, Wed, April 13, 4-5:30pm, MTN
Sign up free through Creating Connection West
In this yoga nidra practice session, you will learn how to tune into your body’s wisdom, so you can listen to the stories of your ancestors, embedded in your cellular memory. Acknowledging stories of both courage and suffering in the past, we can bring healing and hope to our life, right now, in this moment. Bring pen and paper to write the messages your ancestors whisper to you.
Writing into the Sacred: Speaking to Light invites us to tell our stories in holistic ways that support truth and beauty, solitude and community, action, and contemplation. We begin by asking, what happens when we unearth what’s been forgotten, or when light falls on what is lost? What shows itself when we then speak freely, in our own true voice? Using gentle exercises in fostering silence, writing, speaking, and collective listening, we will reacquaint ourselves with the luminous link between silence, stories, and the sacred.
Cost: $25 All are welcome. No previous writing experience required.
Register through Creating Connection West
Be Still and Know (Cancelled as Vickie recovers from her accident)
Saturday, Nov 20, 2021
9am to 12 noon
Cost: $50
Presented by The Martha Retreat Centre
Learn the art of “moving into stillness” so you can listen to the whispers of Spirit. You will be guided through breath work, meditation and gentle embodied movement to connect to your body in a loving and accepting way. Sink into stillness as you release fatigue and hidden tension from your body, and dip beneath the surface of your usual thoughts and worries to “Be still and know.”
“If you’re silent, you can hear the forest breathe, the holy hush of the tree’s limb.” Felicia Morrell
The Zen Of Rest:
A Nurturing Silence Retreat
Oct 23 – 24
Presented by Nurturing Spirit
(Sadly, Vickie is not able to teach at this retreat as she recovers from her accident. Please check out the rest of the Nurturing Spirit team.)
Take time out to relax, slow down and savor life exactly as it is. Rest your body, quiet your mind, and listen to those sparks of inspiration that arise when you take time to nurture a quiet listening presence. In this retreat, you’ll have time to let silence seep into the depths of your being, learning core practices to help sustain awareness while sitting, moving, walking, eating, working, resting, or whatever you’re doing.
Cancelled due to Vickies accident.
The Sabbath of Rest: Practices to Renew and Inspire Our Souls
Wed, Sept 22, 4-5:30pm (MST)
Online with Vickie MacArthur
“Sabbath is about rest, about laying down our burdens, about unhooking from the compulsions of our to-do list.” Mirabai Starr
The COVID-19 pandemic has been an invitation to slow down, take stock, then move into creative solutions for ourselves and our world. Sadly, not all of us have taken the time to listen before leaping back into the busy activity of our lives. In this experiential session, you’ll learn simple practices of integrating “the sabbath of rest” into your daily life, to renew your body, calm your mind, and inspire the creative urge of your soul.
Another Creating Connections Event to Inspire Your Life
Sign up on Meet-Up
Spiritual Life Story Writing
How To Dismiss Your Inner Critic
With Lana Cullis &
Vickie MacArthur
Wednesday, July 21, 5 – 6:30pm MST (Online)
You have a story that’s personal and powerful.
– Reflect on your life
– Discover hidden truths and patterns
– Get to know yourself
– Connect to other writing friends
Nurture your writing practice in a welcoming online community, with simple, yet effective writing exercises.
Cost: Just your precious time
Sign up for on Eventbrite
Sponsored By Awakening Spirituality
Awakening the Heart:
Practices to Heal Yourself and Our World
Wed, June 23
4-5:30pm MST
Online (Free)
“The heart of the mystic has become a place of divine presence.”
Llewellyn Vaughn-Lee
What does it mean to “Awaken the Heart”? or simply “Live from the Heart”?
Join Vickie as she guides you through an experiential understanding of the “Heart Centre” , and all its nuanced layers. Tune in to your physical heart, your emotional heart, and the great Universal Heart of Love that holds us all. Learn about the meaning and the transformative power of the Heart Centre from different spiritual traditions: the “Anahata” in Hinduism, the Sacred Heart in Christian mysticism, the Sir (or secret) in Sufi mysticism, and the Lotus Heart in Buddhism. Practice the Prayer of the Heart in Christian and Sufi mysticism, and awaken your heart to the Love beyond the boundaries of religion or culture.
Join Meet-Up
or Email Vickie for link
Nurture Your Roots: Rooted, Connected, Growing
Full Day Virtual Retreat with Vickie and Trees
Saturday, May 29, 9am-4pm (POSTPONED)
“Come back to the forest, where time slows down and breath is mellow.” Janice Tann
A day of meditation, poetry, gentle embodied movement and music centered around trees, both online and outside.
Using the metaphor of trees as inspiration, join Vickie as she guides you in practices to stay rooted during difficult times, while connected and growing in community.
Spend time with trees to learn what they can teach us about life.
Schedule:
9:00 Welcome: Entering the Forest
9:30 Meditation: The Secret Life of Trees
10:00 Gentle Yoga: Root to the Earth, Stretch to the Sky
11:30 Walking Meditation with Treesc
12:00 Eating Meditation: Nourished By Trees
1:30 Tree Poetry and Inspiration
2:00 Tree Bathing: Breathing and Being With Trees
3:00 Break-out Groups: The Wisdom of the Forest
3:30 The Music of Trees, and Closing Meditation
Peace in Ourselves, Peace in Our World:
Plum Village Mini-Retreat (Online)
Wed, May 19, 4-5:30pm (MST)
Come and receive the gifts of mindful breathing and awareness. Join Vickie as she invites you to experience what it’s like to attend a meditation retreat with Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh at Plum Village in France. After a spiritual awakening with this gentle Buddhist monk in 2011, Vickie has attended many meditation retreats across North America and his monastery in France.
Vickie will show pictures from Plum Village, and read passages from her upcoming book “Love Letters To My Teacher” How A Buddhist Monk Ignited the Love In My Heart.”
Sponsored by Creating Connection B.C.
To receive link: Join Meet-Up
Or Email Us
Rest, Renew and Rise: Practices for Living A Resilient Life
Online Retreat: Feb 26-28th
Join me and my good friends from Creating Connection BC for a week-end of practices for living a resilient life. Connect and share in a supportive online community.
– 5 Rhthyms movement meditation with Kat Goheen
– Journaling with Jeri Mortimer
– Wonder and Mental Healthy with Lana Cullis
– Listening For the Soul with Shannon McAdam
– Yoga Nidra with Vickie
– Satsang: Singing Into Silence with Doug & Vickie, and special guest Mary-Jean Belrose for a drumming meditation.
Cost: Just a $20 investment in yourself!
More Info and REGISTER HERE
Living Buddha, Living Christ (Online):
8 Week Spiritual Practice and Discussion Group
Thurs, Feb 18 – April 8, 7 – 8:30pm
“Compassion is where the rivers of Christianity and Buddhism meet.
In the Christian tradition, we learn to live in the presence of God. The Buddhist equivalent is the practice of cultivating mindfulness, living deeply every moment with the energy of the Holy Spirit. If we change our daily lives; the way we think, speak and act, we begin to change the world.”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Using Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s classic book “Living Buddha, Living Christ” as a guide, join Vickie to explore the connections between Christianity and Buddhism through both contemplative practices and lived belief and experience.
Cost: $65.00 (please purchase your own copy of Living Buddha, Living Christ, by Thich Nhat Hanh)
Register through The Martha Retreat Centre
Online Tour of Plum Village and Mini Retreat
Thursday, January 28,
Cancelled, Will be rescheduled to later date.
Join Vickie as she shares Plum Village pictures, practices, and memories of Thich Nhat Hanh’s monastery in southern France.
How To Breathe During A Pandemic (Online)
Wednesday, January 13, 4 – 5:30pm
“Learn to breathe well and you will live a long life.”
Chinese Proverb
Breathe….Connect….Move with Awareness
Learn breathing practices to expand your lung capacity, soothe your nervous system, and boot your immune system, integrated with yoga postures to stretch and strengthen your respiratory muscles.
Sponsored by Creating Connection B.C.
Join Meet Up group
or Email Spirit in Motion
to receive zoom link.
Take time to sign up for “Spirit in Motion” Yoga’s email list to stay up-to-date on all Vickie’s yoga and meditation classes and events.