The Restory Retreat Centre

  Buttoning and Unbuttoning (1/2) The "smallness" of life can sometimes feel heavier than its great tragedies. A life needn't be "full" of tragedy. If it's "empty" of meaning, that emptiness can eventually become a crushing weight bearing down on the one living that life.  The Conversation Elements From The Conversation In contemplative spirituality, the "buttoning and unbuttoning" is resolved not by ignoring or sidestepping the task, but by changing the nature of the button. Instead of an obstacle to be overcome so that life can "begin," the act becomes life itself. Music ABBA's song  describes a life where the "buttons" are done perfectly, but the person inside is sleepwalking. Lord, We are not blind to the burden of the repetitive . The same plate, the same path to work, the same buttons, the same masks we put on. Please help us with the discouragement for “the next thing.” We know deep down that a task that is ...

  Knoop en Losknoop (1/2) Die "kleinheid" van die lewe kan soms swaarder voel as sy groot tragedies. 'n Lewe hoef nie "vol" tragedie te wees nie. As dit "leeg" van betekenis is, kan daardie leegheid uiteindelik 'n verpletterende las word wat neerdruk op die een wat daardie lewe leef. Die Gesprek Elemente Uit Die Gesprek In kontemplatiewe spiritualiteit word die "knoop en losknoop" nie opgelos deur die taak te ignoreer of te systap nie, maar deur die aard van die knoop te verander. In plaas van 'n hindernis wat oorkom moet word sodat die lewe kan "begin", word die daad die lewe self. Musiek ABBA sing hier van 'n lewe waar al die knope perfek vas is, maar die persoon daarbinne is 'n slaapwandelaar. Here, Ons is nie blind vir die las van die aanhoudende nie. Dieselfde bord, dieselfde pad werk toe, dieselfde knope, dieselfde maskers wat ons opsit. Help ons asseblief met die moedeloosheid vir “die volgende”. Ons weet ten ...

  Advent: Peace “Will you not revive us again,  so that your people may rejoice in you?  Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,  and grant us your salvation.  Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet;  righteousness and peace will kiss each other.” ‭‭Ps 85‬:‭6-7‭‬, ‭10‬ NRSV‭                                       ‬‬ The Conversation   Elements From The Conversation   Music With our love. George & Matilda

Photograph by George Angus “God is not found in the soul by adding anything but by a process of subtraction.”                                                                                          Meister Eckhart This past week we’ve started renovating the kitchen. It has been very hard work, ironically not so much renovating but taking down, breaking open, stripping. This morning I stand in the empty shell and look at all the patched cracks, the open rafters, all the wiring and pipes exposed and I ask Matilda: “Will it ever look better aga...

Notes from a different drummer Learning the unforced rhythms of grace I will give you treasures from dark, secret places;  then you will know that I am the LORD  and that the God of Israel has called you by name.                                                             Isaiah 45:3 (Good News Bible) The practical How . The notes from the drummer have reached your inner ear. You are waking up and gradually you realise something is being born. There is no reason for panic. But it can still be a very confusing experience. And it can be made all the more difficult if you are not introduced to some strange companions that will accompany you on the journey. You are sure to encounter them and should you not be told that they are to be expected, their presence can indeed lead to anxiety and fu...

Barrowfield night sky Photograph by Frans Marais On settling here at Barrowfield, there were quite a few boxes that were on our initial wish list that we could mark off: silence –check; nature –check; workshops – check; beauty – check; gardening – check; definite change of seasons - check. These were all elements that we regarded as important when we started searching for a place to establish The Restory. Often based more on instinct than knowledge, we knew these things to be important factors in helping people to get in touch with God, themselves and life in general. Nothing mind-blowing or extreme. Actually very simple, but also very basic to being human living on this earth. In the years preceding our eventual scouting and exploring I often talked to Matilda about another element on the wish list as well – darkness. I often said to her: “Wouldn’t it be nice to live somewhere that is absolutely dark when you switch off your light at night.” Once, on travelling at night fro...