Circle Retreats and the Art of Reconnection

This past week, I am grateful to share that I hosted a Circle retreat in Charleston with the women from my very first cohort. Seven years ago, we stepped into this experience together for the first time, and in the years since, there have been babies, cross-country moves, new careers, and countless life transitions.

And yet… within minutes of reuniting, it was as if no time had passed. The conversation flowed so easily. We started the retreat with a boat tour of the surrounding islands. Around us were dolphins playing as the sun set over the Atlantic.

Our guide said something I’m still thinking about: “The marsh is where all the magic happens.”

She was talking about the stretch of tangled wetlands, what she called “quickmud.” It’s not the most “beautiful” part of the water. It’s messy, but beneath it all, the soil is rich with nutrients, anchoring the grasses and feeding the life that thrives there.

We were preparing to enter a space that, like the marsh, might look unassuming, but holds something essential. Circle is where the magic happens. It allows us to be fully human. Mess and all.

The Value of Real Space

We talk a lot about the value of stepping away, but this retreat reminded me what it actually means to do it.

This retreat was a change of place that allowed for a change in pace and presence.

We walked the beach for two hours. No agenda. Sometimes in conversation. Sometimes in silence. Sometimes with PQ reps. Just being fully surrounded by the sounds, the breeze, the feel of water on our feet. I remember that moment clearly: the rush of cold, the grounding feeling of being fully there.

What made it Circle was the structure underneath it all. They didn’t have to plan the meals or the schedule or negotiate decisions. That weight was mine to carry, intentionally, so they could simply arrive and receive.

We had conversations about their work, their businesses, their needs, their challenges and wins. They asked for support and offered it to one another. They showed up to reflect and be with each other.

What I'm Still Sitting With

I won’t pretend I’ve tied a neat bow on this retreat. I’m still processing.

But what I do know is this: We need these pauses to reconnect with ourselves and the world around us, to gain a new perspective on the world outside of the retreat, and to make moments for the joy that often gets missed in the day-to-day. 

I’m just grateful for the reminder that slowing down is not something we earn. It’s something we need.

And when we let ourselves do that, even briefly, so much more becomes possible.