We gather with gratitude for the materials that make our homes and clothes,
for the food that nourishes our bodies and our loved ones,
for the animals, plants, and elements that create an interconnected web of life.

We dance to remember that our eternal spirit
has found a temporary home in an earthly body.

Our bodies are made of the earth and
return back to the earth when our spirits leave.

This experience of life would not be possible
for our spirits without this alliance with Mother Earth...Gaia.

On Earth Day, we say thank you for this precious gift of life embodied
and offer ourselves as stewards to protect the earth for the next 7 generations.

In some cultures, your birth mother and father keep you safe
and introduce you to the ways of the world until you are ready to become independent.

Then they do a ceremony to remind you that wherever life takes you,
the earth is now your mother and the sun is your father.
The moon, your grandmother, and the stars, your brothers and sisters.


The most powerful examples of healing are found in nature.


This retreat is an opportunity to deepen your intimacy
with Mother Earth on this Earth Day weekend.
 

To make offerings to her, 
to listen to her, to learn from her, 
and be in communion with her consciousness. 

All of our transformations are perfectly mapped out for us
in the cycles of the seasons as a way to honor our emotional cycles.  

Being cleansed, purified, and restored by water.  
Being warmed, inspired, and powerful like fire.  
Being steady, patient, resilient, and loving like the earth.  

You may feel you need a weekend in nature to rest and rejuvenate. 

You may remember that every time you slow down and take time for yourself to deeply connect to yourself, conscious community and the earth, you feel inspired for what is to come.

You may simply know that you need this weekend,
but not know exactly why. 

 


Let your body guide you towards the people, places, and experiences that will honor your embodied spirit.


QOYA

Qoya is a movement system based on the idea that through movement, you remember. You remember your essence is wise, wild and free. Wise, wild and free also refer to the movements we practice in a Qoya class.

Wise - the wisdom of yoga
Wild - the expression of dance
Free - the freedom of feminine movement

Qoya can be practiced by all ages and movement levels. There is no way you can do Qoya wrong, and the way you know you’re doing it right is that it FEELS GOOD. More than feeling good, though, that it feels true. In the Qoya movement sessions on this retreat, we will focus on feeling the physical sensation of truth in the body and following it, locating our intuition as an actual feeling in the body.

ABOUT ROCHELLE

Rochelle Schieck is the founder of Qoya. Since its inception in 2009, she has trained hundreds of Qoya teachers, taught thousands of Qoya movement classes, and led dozens of retreats in the most sacred places on earth with one intention in mind: to remember, and to help others do the same.

Qoya is designed to feel how the body and movement are a portal to remember our essence, to feel our perspective shift from going through the motions to savoring life as sacred. Qoya does this through classes, workshops, rituals, retreats/pilgrimages, teacher trainings, free videos online, a blog, and Rochelle's book, Qoya: A Compass for Navigating an Embodied Life that is Wise, Wild and Free in hopes that all that feel the call to remember can be supported on their journey. There are no levels, and it is a movement that people of any age or ability level can do. It has been featured in outlets like New York Magazine, Oprah.com, The Telegraph, and Psychology Today. 


ITINERARY

Friday, April 21st
6:00pm: Welcome Dinner
7:45pm: Opening Ceremony

Saturday, April 22nd - Earth Day!
7:30am: Optional Crystal Meditation and Breathing Exercise
8-9am: Delicious Breakfast
9:30am-12pm: Transformational Qoya Class focused on Earth Day!
12pm-2pm: Lunch and Lounging
2:30pm: Making Earth Altars and Offerings to the Water
6pm-7pm: Delicious Dinner
8pm: Fire Ceremony and Labyrinth of Light

Sunday, April 23rd
7:30am: Optional Crystal Meditation and Breathing Exercise
8-9am: Delicious Breakfast
9:30am-12pm: Transformational Qoya Class
Blessings on your next adventure!

OPTIONAL INITIATION TEACHER TRAINING

Friday, April 21st, 1:00pm-6:00pm
Sunday, April 23rd, 1:00pm-6:00pm

This retreat will complete your Initiation Teacher Training requirement if you are currently pursuing Qoya Teacher Training. Simply add it to your retreat tuition in the shopping cart to register.


ABOUT MENLA

Menla Mountain Retreat Center is one of our favorite places to hold retreats. It's deeply sacred land, and was commissioned by the Dalai Lama himself! The land is the oldest known meteor impact crater on Earth, and the local Native American peoples, including the Esopus and Mahicans, regarded this valley and region, with its enormous first-growth hemlock trees, as especially sacred, a place of the spirits. We love their supportive staff, delicious food, cozy rooms, and beautiful landscape, and it is the perfect healing setting for our time together.


PRICE + REGISTER

Pricing is per person. This retreat is for women ages 18 and up.

Your all-inclusive retreat includes 3 days and 2 nights of:

  • cozy eco-luxury accommodations at Menla Mountain Retreat Center 
  • retreat tuition
  • delicious nutritious vegetarian food

What’s not included:

  • Transportation to Menla. It is easily accessible from New York City and Boston by bus or car. Check out the full directions here.
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Register today to claim your spot.

Cancellation Policy: If you need to cancel for any reason and we can find a person to take your spot, we will refund the amount paid minus a $250 administration fee. If we cannot find a person to take your spot, there are no refunds; however, you can transfer your paid spot to someone else, so you can send a friend or family member to the retreat in your place.


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We do not inherit the earth
from our ancestors.

We borrow it from our children.
— Native American Proverb