Spring Awakening: An Awareness Retreat in Nature with Marjolein Janssen and Liz Powell

As winter thaws and the high peaks awaken with new life, this springtime retreat invites you to explore mindfulness in the living presence of the Rocky Mountains. Informed by the teachings of the Burmese monk Sayadaw U Tejaniya, with whom the teachers have studied, our practice emphasizes a relaxed, natural awareness. We are invited to cultivate an attitude of openness, curiosity, and ease that can meet each moment just as it is.

Rather than striving to achieve special states, we will cultivate a steady, spacious awareness in the midst of nature’s rhythms. Meditation will unfold in all postures – sitting, walking, resting, and being with the land – allowing awareness to flow as naturally as the season’s renewal.

Together, we’ll explore how to:

• Develop a relaxed, continuous mindfulness supported by the natural world
• Recognize the quality of mind with gentle interest, not pressure
• Let go of striving and rest into awareness itself
• Allow nature to be both teacher and companion in practice

This retreat offers a rare opportunity to deepen practice in a setting that mirrors the teachings: vast, spacious, and alive. Come prepared for silence, simplicity, and the nourishment of being fully present with yourself, with others, and with the unfolding of spring in the Rockies.

Weather permitting, we will be sitting outside in cool spring temperatures. Early morning, when it is coldest, sitting outside is optional, as you can also opt to sit indoors in the meditation hall. Later in the morning we might sit outside as a group in temperatures ranging from the high 30s to 60s.