Fall Spiritual Retreat

 

Hello Blog People!

This past week has been crazy busy, filled with a lot of travel and sightseeing. But before any of that, I got to go to Poppi, a little town in the Tuscan mountains, for a spiritual retreat with the whole school. 

I left last Friday (Oct. 13) with a small group that was going early to set up. We had to bring some sound equipment and instruments and get everything set before all the students got to the convention site. For the weekend, we were at what I can only compare to a summer camp, and maybe that's what it was. The drive was about 2 hours away, and I was grateful to be in a car because the roads were very narrow and curvey. 

The grounds were beautiful. the whole campus was on a hill. There was a tent area where we held meetings and a nice two-story lodge where we ate food and played some games. There was a sand volleyball court and a soccer field. Since the campus was on a hill, you could see some of the surrounding towns if you hiked a little ways, and you got to see all the beautiful mountains. The hills were covered in trees, and the leaves were starting to turn a little bit. It made me feel like it was actually fall. And then 20-something little bungalows, each with about 6 beds and an attached bathroom. I stayed in a bungalow with Natalie, Fabi, our friend Jesa, and a girl who was working in the cafeteria. It was a nice group, but I never went to bed before midnight while I was there.

I make note of the hill because since I went with the smaller group, I got to ride in a car to the campground. The roads in the hills were too narrow for the bus to drive up, so a majority of the students had to walk a solid 30 minutes to the camp. I felt very lucky to be involved and not have to walk. 

After everyone got situated on Friday, we went and had dinner all together, and then had a vespers-like service to bring in the Sabbath. The Volunteers were in charge, and about 4 of them talked about the theme of the weekend, which was The Hidden Joy. It was nice to have everyone together, and that evening I spent time with some of my girlfriends. We got to just laugh and talk together, and I felt really close to them afterward. I started to feel like I have found some girls who are similarly minded, and we could all get along. I know that if I needed something, I could go to any one of them with a problem and they would help me. We ended the night looking at the stars around midnight, and they were much brighter than you see in Florence. 

Saturday started with breakfast and Sabbath school discussions about joy. Then we had some free time and I went for a little walk. I really felt God's presence on that walk as I looked out onto the mountains and just felt so moved by how beautiful our world is. There is something so magnificent about nature, that it moved me to tears. I'm so grateful for the world God created for us to live in and explore. 

We had a commune service for our church that morning. It was similar to communion services back at home. The biggest difference was that we got to eat the extra bread and drink the extra grape juice afterward. AND ACA has glass communion cups. It felt fancy to drink from them. 

In the afternoon, we had free time. I decided to rest and work on my sermon for Sunday. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that. I volunteered to give a sermon at Poppi, along with two other ACA students (Asher and Ryleigh). The week leading up to Poppi, I had been thinking about and preparing a talk on the Sabbath, a topic that is close to my heart. But the day we were going to give our sermons changed, and the Sabbath topic didn't feel right. So Friday night (2 days before I was supposed to speak!), I changed my mind on my topic and started to prepare again, this time on the hidden joy of community. So Saturday afternoon, I *kind of* prepared and thought about my talk. But I primarily took a nap in my hammock. It was very restful.

The evening had two parts. There was supper and a worship service that was very nice. Then I and the other class officers organized a "game" for everyone (mainly ACA). Our class president gave us the idea to do a speed-dating event (but for making friends), and it was a huge success. Everyone had 2 minutes to answer one of the 35 prepared questions, and then they would rotate 1, 2, 3, or 4 people, depending on what Anna called out. People were a little sketched out about it at first, but once we started the timer, everyone started talking. It made my heart happy to see people enjoy getting to know each other and talking to people they may not have talked to before. I was very happy with how it went. Then we had a bonfire and just sat around and talked. However, after the speed dating event, some people kept the music going. So after about 45 minutes, we heard loud Latin music coming from the tent. We went up to the tent again, and everyone was dancing and singing to the music. It was great, and the party continued til around 11:45. The surprise dance party turned out to be pretty fun. 

The last day we were there was Sunday. I woke up early to watch the sunrise (which was a little disappointing ngl) and then got ready for the day. I'll be honest, I was STRESSED about giving my talk. But I prayed about it a lot. I didn't feel prepared, but I knew that gave God space to work through me. I had my friend here and at home praying for me. I gave the talk at the morning meeting, and it went wonderfully. I felt comfortable, spoke clearly, and the point was communicated in an understandable way. The people who listened told me they enjoyed it, and I know that God worked through me to help me with that talk. So all the praise to Him. After that, I took a nap (because I was sleep-deprived from the days and nights before), and then packed up my things. Again, since I came with a smaller group, I didn't have to leave as early as everyone else. I also got to stop with my group at the castle in Poppi and take a few pictures. The view from the castle area was absolutely gorgeous and took my breath away. 

We drove back to campus and worked quickly because the next day we would be leaving for another trip. I unloaded my bags, packed breakfast for the next day, switched out my laundry, and ate supper. Then I unpacked and repacked for the next 5 days and went to bed. The next morning, I left early in the morning for my weeklong school trip in the Amalfi Coast. But that's a whole other post :)

I really enjoyed the spiritual retreat. It was nice to spend time with my people outside of a school setting and just get to rest away from the business and stress of classes. I am also glad that I get to be involved and help make sure things run smoothly. 

Thanks for reading this. Soon, there will be a post about the Amalfi Coast Trip :)

Ciao, 

            Ellie