19 years old and from Uppsala, Sweden, Henrietta Kindmark participated for the first time in Acem International’s Young Retreat last summer. A week later she spoke about it in warm terms.
- The social part of the retreat was what I enjoyed most, says Henrietta and mentions ”Walk and Talk”, the sauna, and the shared meals.
- I was quite nervous before setting off, but once there I realized that Lundsholm is a great place to be.
Henrietta learned Acem Meditation on an online course. She found Acem through her mother who in turn got to know about Acem from a friend. Before that, Henrietta had tried breathing meditation for one year. She describes it as a concentration technique, where you sit down for ten minutes to get a relaxing effect. To meditate using the meditation sound, which is a part of Acem Meditation, was something completely different, she says. The thoughts should flow freely, unlike her previous technique.
- To meditate with Acem using a non-directive approach gives you a totally different relaxation. Each session lasts longer, and I contact deeper levels within myself. Besides recuperation, I notice that I have become more creative.
The long meditations during the retreat were a special experience for Henrietta.
- I found it a bit strange that I could fall asleep during the long meditations because I was neither tired nor used to sleeping during the day. However, it gave me a deep rest and I understood that sleep can be a way of processing what comes to my mind in the meditation.
The guidance group was also a new concept for Henrietta. Every day the participants of the retreat met in smaller groups and reflected on what the meditation had brought up in them.
- I was not afraid of talking to the group, even though I felt a little unused to it in the beginning, she states.
She did not feel that the age gap between the people in the guidance group mattered. Every individual spoke about different themes in their life. Some of it she could relate to, and some not. Regardless of what she could recognize from her own life, she found it beneficial to hear what others had to say.
Following graduation from high school last spring Henrietta now works at a café. It was a big change to go from studying to working, but she enjoys it. Right now her plan is to travel to Spain to study Spanish, then to begin university studies in society and sustainable development in the fall of 2023.
And maybe she will attend another retreat at Lundsholm in the future.
This summer, the Young Retreat at Lundsholm will start on Saturday, July 29, ending seven days later. Read more HERE.
Language editor: Alice Cameron
