--It's held in the main gathering place, the huge Faith Center. Every quilter gets two tables, which leaves room for quilters to bring other things they might need, like a table for a sewing machine, stackable shelving units, bins of fabrics, and such. There's a power cord at each work space. There's lots of wall space and floor space for figuring out patterns. This photo gives you an idea of the set up.
--The most important aspect of the Lutheridge retreat: we can make it be what we want it to be. If we need a nap or a walk, wonderful. If we want to lose ourselves in a project and be left alone, that's fine. If we want to walk from table to table and chat, great. If we need help assembling/figuring out a project, we've got lots of folks who are happy to pitch in.
--We're here for three full days, plus an evening beginning and a morning ending (Wed. afternoon arrival with an evening start through Sunday morning). It's great to have that much time. Much of that time is unstructured.
--I have always had online work that had to be done while I was there, and it's fine to sit at my work space with my laptop. I love doing grading or working on a seminary paper surrounded by my quilt squares and gorgeous fabric. Sew a little, grade a little, and wow, I can be productive!
--This year, we're taking an afternoon yoga break, a 20 minute session of chair yoga led by a friend of the retreat who is certified. Wow! I hope we figure out a way to do this every year.
--Every retreat offers a focused learning opportunity or two. This retreat, we learned a pillowcase pattern and some techniques for binding. Some retreats, when there hasn't been a hurricane six weeks ago, we have a local expert come in to lead a workshop. The learning opportunities are optional.
--We eat our meals in the dining hall. It's amazing to have camp stuff there to do the cooking and the clean up and to make decisions about the meals and the shopping. When I'm on a retreat, I realize how much of my time each week goes to food. Don't get me wrong--I love cooking and shopping and eating. But it takes more time than I realize until I'm not doing it for a few days.
--Because it's a retreat at a church camp, there are some spiritual aspects. They are ecumenical, since we come from a variety of faith expressions, and not participating in evening devotion time is an option too. On the last night, there is a worship service with communion. To me, it feels very non-proselytizing, and the view of God is an expansive one of a creator full of grace and love for all of creation. Each quilt retreat has a different Bible passage to focus our devotion and worship time.
--We often do a service project. This year, we made pillow cases for displaced people, and we brought quilts we had already made. You can see the quilts in a pile above, and below, spread out across the chairs in our evening space for gathering:
--We brought 22 quilts to give away. We also give money to camp for summer camp scholarships.
--We have show and tell every night, where each quilter is invited to bring a project, either completed or in progress. At the last night, we have wine, cheese, snacks, and a quilt walk where we display projects at our tables.
--But the most important element of this retreat is the fellowship and support. In some ways, we are all so different from each other in terms of family, background, career, upbringing, beliefs of all sorts. But we love fabric and we love quilting and we love each other, even if we've only known each other for a few days. Many of us return year after year, and it builds a beautiful community--one which leaves me hopeful for the future.
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