The Slow Page Retreat: A Day for Creativity, Nature, and Nourishment

I use my journal as scratchpaper for my conversations with nature, allowing things to fall on the page perfectly imperfectly!

This past Sunday, fourteen of us made a conscious choice:

to create space inside our very full lives and answer the craving for time for ourselves, creativity, nature, and community.

So we gathered for The Slow Page Retreat.

Arriving Into Beauty

Our drive into the St. Francis Retreat Center felt like passing through the threshold into a quieter world. We traveled through tree tunnels—the morning sun rising ahead of us, sending golden light beams, 'komorebi', through the leaves and branches of old walnut trees and oaks. This put a smile on my face and the nervousness of "did I forget to bring anything" dissolved.

The air was cool and fresh.The crisp autumn morning warmed us as we stepped into the garden, welcomed by:

• the ginkgo tree's golden leaves,

• clusters of bright red toyon berries,

• wine-colored grape leaves overhead,

• lavender and crimson native flowers,

• and the gentle gwa-gwa-gwa of four resident ducks.

A majestic oak towered in the center of the upper garden, its branches stretched wide—an invitation to soften and arrive.

Letting Go So We Can Fully Be Here

We began our day by setting intentions for how we wanted to BE, not just what we wanted TO do.

To help us arrive, we took a moment to “drop our baggage”—all the worries, tasks, and responsibilities that tug at us. We wrote them down on paper for safekeeping, giving ourselves permission to set them aside so we could be fully present.

Messages From a Sycamore Leaf

That morning, as I was pulling out of my driveway, I noticed a scattering of fallen sycamore leaves. Something about them stopped me. I picked one up… then another… and another. Each one felt like a little nudge.

And suddenly—I got an idea.

I brought those leaves with me to the retreat, sensing they had something to offer us.

Later that morning, each of us chose a sycamore leaf—the one that sparked a flicker of curiosity or drew us in with its shape or color. We explored its unique beauty and perfect imperfections, letting ourselves slow down long enough to truly see it.

Then we listened for the message that this leaf might be mirroring back to us:

• Go with the flow

• Letting go of...

• Be present

• Be perfectly imperfect

We wrote our leaf’s message directly on it, holding it as a gentle reminder for the day.

Creating with Intention: A Hand-Bound Book

Our hands became the focus of the day as we created a journal from scratch, infusing it with intention, care, and gentleness.

We made a shared commitment:

to slow down, savor the process, loosen perfectionism, and allow our journal to show evidence of being made by real hands—not machines.

We then “planted seeds” on the second page (we always skip the first page!). We each chose seeds, the qualities we want our journal practice to nurture, like

• gratitude

• creativity

• self-care

• nature connection

• spaciousness

• ease

• slow and flow

Wandering the Garden

During one of the breaks we took a short wander, a stroll without a defined direction. We just followed what sparked our attention, whether a hummingbird, tree, birds or mushrooms, and stopping to sit with what was calling our attention. By sketching it, we could slow to see and notice more, and get curious it. We journaled what we encountered and recorded any other insights that showed up.

Reflections From Participants

Tina W., one of the participants said she would definitely come back to this venue.

She appreciated the gentle pace, spacious breaks, and the feeling of being supported—and would even invite a friend who doesn’t feel artistic for this experience.

Another shared her delight at watching simple materials transform into a real book she made with her own hands.

Someone else mentioned the surprise of how much she discovered in nature during our simple five-minute noticing practice—that deep connection can happen quickly when we pause.

Create Your Own Mini Retreat (From Home)

If you weren’t able to join us in person, you can still join us in spirit.

You can create a simple, mini retreat at home to make a journal and begin your own Slow Page practice.

Here’s how:

1. Gather your materials

(Here’s my list.)

2. Get the Self-Paced Course

Start with Bookbinding with Coptic Stitch — everything you need to make your book is right there. You can purchase the self-paced course on the Courses page here.

3. Create a quiet space

Set up a cozy place where you won’t be interrupted.

4. Set your intention

Just as we did—choose how you want to be as you create.

5. Follow along in the video + PDF

Let your hands take the lead and let the process unfold gently.

And when you finish, I’d love to hear what you decide to use your new journal for!

Let Your Journal Walk With You

May the seeds you planted in your journal continue to grow.

May your perfectly imperfect book become a companion on your journey—holding your nature encounters, reflections, sketches, gratitude lists, stories, and questions.

Whether you use it as a nature journal, writing journal, art journal, or a mix of everything…let it be a vessel that supports your slow, spacious, creative connection to nature and your inner nature.

Sign up for Bookbinding Self-paced course!