Hold the space
Many people these days
say they are a little busy right now
and they might believe that things will,
just by themselves,
soon start to slow down.
Hint: They will not.
Henry David Thoreau said:
“Let your life be a counter-friction
to stop the machine.”
Contemplative Retreats
for Activists and
Community Builders
Contemplative retreats
where there is time and space
for collective care,
to rest, reflect and reconnect,
to self, nature and purpose,
to share stories and
reconsider strategies,
to start over.
Sometimes we just need to reclaim
the real, the analogue, the physical,
meeting others in person.
Community organizing starts
from making connections
and strengthening relationships.
We need hubs for community building and we need to practice
being participants and co-organisers,
rather than merely
customers or providers.
We need to break the productionism-consumerism cycle,
that constantly pushes us
to make, sell and buy
– products, ourselves as products, and other humans, animals and nature as means to goals and better results.
Unless we rest, and start over,
we fall apart
as individuals and as communities,
and ecologies.
If we don’t hold sacred the space
where we can collect ourselves,
there won’t be a foundation
for getting together
to get organized.
So, we hold this space together.
To get it together, stay in touch:
retreat@existentialtourism.com
Work Spaces and
Residencies for
Authors, Artists,
Activists & Academics
Silence. Quiet time. Seven work spaces for writing, reflection and contemplation.
Possibilities to organize writing retreats to create the right balance between focused creativity and the exchange of ideas, with individual work space, small group text seminars and collectively chosen topics for dinner conversations. This is a place to dive deep into explorations of the power of narratives, worldviews and ideologies.
These days, there is seldom
enough time,
to follow a conversation,
all the way to the end,
to the beginning of a new one.
Or long enough segments of distraction-free silence for uninterrupted thought processes
to do their thing.
But this place, is right
in the middle of now-here.
Are you working on some project related to the climate crises, democracy, social & global justice, human rights, animal rights, environmental ethics, peace & conflict resolution or other matters of life & death on this planet? (Academic writing, poetry, fiction, short story, debate, essay, grant proposal, project, art etc…)
Schedule a visit or apply to become an author/artist/activist or community organizer in residence. There are work spaces for weekends and spots for long term residencies – up to three months.
retreat@existentialtourism.com
The Saga Sanctuary,
Shared Stories
and a Spiritual Home
“Blessed are the cracked, for they shall let in the light.” – Groucho Marx
When you need a break, or have finally broken, or need time and space, to listen to untold stories and say what needs to be spoken.
The mini pony Saga is in charge of a sanctuary, currently home to a blind gentle horse rescued from a horse market, a neurotic tinker pony who needed a new home because she used to kick other humans and horses to get her way, four previously homeless kittens from the Gothenburg-based organization Frusna Tassar, and a rehomed middle aged lady dog.
We all need a sanctuary,
or at least some kind of spiritual home,
in the world of ideas, to return to.
As human animals we definitely
do not need spiritual practices that make us blind to the world,
but means to live in the world
with compassionate understanding.
And perhaps an idea
of what role we play
in our shared story.
While here, take a step back
to contemplate
the story of your life.
Ponder your life patterns
and those upon whose lives
your choices have an impact
– not the least your own life.
The area is a non-violent zone
and a vegan zone. If you do not respect these rules, Saga will chew on your shoes. She probably will anyway if she gets a chance. Saga does not follow rules. Neither do stories.
Want to volunteer? Then get in touch.
retreat@existentialtourism.com
If staying for a while,
you may want to borrow a book,
and read for example…
… also good reads if you happen to be
taking Your time
traveling by train from some more distant part of Europe.
The Commons
This space is a place for re-creation.
We, as visitors, as existential tourists
on this planet,
are collectively responsible for the place
and for the content of co-organized retreats.
We are responsible for us,
for our food, our waste,
the place and the space,
and for the planning of reoccuring events
if they are ones that should reoccur
– if you found your first stay a treat,
then get involved to make it a re-treat,
available to someone just like you too.
A camp ground in the horse pasture
can provide a common ground
for explorations of the practices of commoning.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commons
Källans tomrum & trädgård
In the prospects of a garden, rests a small house.
The house holds a sauna and an empty space for contemplation, stillness, reflection, meditation and existential dialogue. In spring time there is the sound of water in a tiny creek behind the house. In Swedish “källa” is the word for both “source” and “spring” or “well”.
At the bottom floor of Källhuset, we will create a small public library with more books like this…
The garden and small area around Källhuset
is an analogue zone – no digital devices.
Visitors and residents can make changes and additions to the schedule,
but a basic schedule when spending a week at this space might look like this:
You may just want to be in charge of your own time,
and there is plenty of opportunity for seclusive focus-time.
Or you may want to collaborate or coincide with others,
and then you may want to join or pull the strings for a co-organized retreat.