Follow Your Bliss: How One Uplifting Retreat Turned Uncertainty into Deep Connection
Follow your bliss— Joseph Campbell’s famous line. It’s a phrase that has shaped the course of my life in ways both big and small — and most recently, it gave me the courage to take a significant chance: I ran a retreat I wasn’t sure would work. I had no guarantee it would resonate, no clear map to follow — just an inner pull and a lot of hope.
Back in university, I made the first decision that would change everything. I chose not to follow the career path my father had envisioned — law school and courtrooms — and instead followed the one calling to my soul. Warrior poses over legal arguments. The yoga mat over the courtroom bench. Yoga became my compass, a daily discipline that expanded into a lifelong passion.
But passions grow, evolve, and take on new shapes. Follow your bliss.
Over the past few years, something surprising grabbed my attention — bodyweight calisthenics. Movements that look simple but are deeply challenging. Movements that ask for not just strength, but presence. I became completely enamored with gymnastic rings and the grounded, raw strength they demand. I even started calling myself a gymnastic ring evangelist — because once you feel the intelligence and potential they unlock in your body, it’s hard not to want to share it.
Calisthenics, like yoga, is more than just movement. It cultivates strength, coordination, and neuroplasticity. But most powerfully, it builds community. In a world that’s increasingly lonely, that kind of connection is medicine.
So I listened to Joseph Campbell’s quiet whisper once again: “Keep following your bliss.”
And from that came Loose, Fit & Happy — a retreat born out of the desire to blend ancient Indian yoga, the strength and flow of Greek calisthenics, and the timeless grounding of Stoic philosophy.
I didn’t know how people would respond. Would it resonate? Would the mix of practices confuse people? Would the strength training seem too intimidating? Too “vain”? Would I be able to hold space for so many different experiences and energy levels?
But what happened was far more meaningful than I could have ever planned for.
Our group ranged from age 9 to 77. We moved, breathed, laughed, and sometimes struggled — together. We explored the wisdom of Marcus Aurelius, who reminded us again and again:
“The obstacle becomes the opportunity.”
We leaned into that idea not just intellectually, but physically and emotionally. Some movements were hard — but in that challenge, we practiced compassion. We practiced supporting each other — quite literally lifting one another up in certain exercises. The strength wasn’t about aesthetics. It was about presence, effort, and connection.
The moments in between were just as powerful.
We meditated by the ocean. We created space for small-group circles that invited honest, vulnerable conversations. People cried. People laughed. Total strangers left the retreat feeling like chosen family.
The blend of movement, philosophy, and open-heartedness didn’t just work — it transformed people. It transformed me.
I left the retreat feeling grateful, humbled, and more certain than ever that we need more of this in the world: places where people can be strong and soft, curious and brave, silly and deeply reflective.
We’re doing it again — next up is Québec this September. And yes, Bali — our spiritual home — will host another round of Loose, Fit & Happy in March 2026. I already can’t wait.
Until then, I’ll leave you with the quote that became a daily reminder during the retreat — one we carried with us into our movements, our meals, our conversations:
“Be kind to everyone you meet, for they too are fighting a hard battle.” 💛
Every person who showed up for this retreat carried something they were working through — and chose to show up anyway.
And that, in itself, is a kind of strength the world needs more of. Follow your bliss.
