Simone Ford runs meditation classes in her beautiful home in rural Kent. She kindly invited me to her Divine Mothers Meditation that she holds every year in advance of Mothers Day. It was such a fabulous day and I was very grateful to have been invited.
I arrived, as instructed, with my journal, pen, socks and blanket and was warmly greeted and taken into the kitchen for refreshments in advance of the class starting. Once all 9 ladies had arrived and the informal, relaxed introductions were done to an intriguing and diverse group of women, each who knew Simone from different walks of life and we’re all at different stages of both motherhood and their meditation experience, we were invited into a large but very cosy room. As we walked in we were invited to be ‘smudged’ (a ceremony practised by some Indigenous people of the Americas, involving burning sage whilst cleansing and blessing a person) and then chose our seat.
The meditation day consisted of guided journal writing, meditation, visualisation, a poem and a couple of very thought-provoking talks by Simone. It was a very individual, private experience but with occasional shared moments that only benefitted the whole group and an immense energy that came from the circle of women itself. The safe environment with a roaring fire, beautiful lighting, comfy sofas and blankets as well as paper, pens, colours, heart-shaped sweets, a gifted plant, plenty of mint tea (and other refreshments) and a beautiful spread for the lunch break showed a lot of thought and effort by Simone. I certainly found myself crossing emotions and thoughts from love, openness, a deep meditative state, a sneaky 40 winks snuggled in the cosy sofa and I learnt more about myself as a mother and the journey of motherhood as well as letting go of judgement and expectation that motherhood can bring.
I am already signed up for the next day and looking forward to it. Thank you to Simone for a wonderful thought-provoking day of meditation, love and self-care. For more details on Simone’s meditation classes email her at simone@thebarnretreat.com or telephone her on 07738 008652
