Brave Girls Camp

I am brave.  I can face the unthinkable and come out okay on the other side.  I am loved.  I am special.  I am phenomenal.  I can be told I can't accomplish anything and then I can do it anyway and succeed. I am empowered.  These are some of the lessons I learned this past week at the remarkable retreat I attended called Brave Girls Camp.

The brainchild of artist Melody Ross and her musician sister Kathy Wilkins, Brave Girls is more than a touchy-feely women's retreat.  It is a safe environment where women from every imaginable background come together to love, be loved, and heal themselves through nurture and art.  The retreat starts weeks before you even arrive in lovely McCall, Idaho.  Melody, Kathy and their family and friends who facilitate the retreat spend months of preparation ensuring that every last detail is perfect.  Even the very first contact by email made me feel as if these were 'friends.'

From the amazing food, music, workshops, share time and spirituality all the way down to the aprons and gifts that were lovingly sewn and thoughtfully put together--I felt as if I was joining family for a happy gathering!

I can try and try to describe this retreat, but words will never do it justice and I am quite certain that every individual will have their own unique experience.  We came wounded and battered and we left rejuvenated and empowered.

And yet, I know it is not the end.  I have 25 new best friends and I know we have connected in a special way that will bond us together for the rest of our lives.  The only sad and disappointing part is that it had to end, like all good and wonderful things--we had to go back to our homes and our families and our broken lives, but we somehow now have the tools and support to persevere.  If you are a creative person (and even if you are not) you owe it to yourself to at least browse the website and pray and think about this experience for yourself.

You can access their website with this link:  http://www.bravegirlsclub.com/aboutbravegirlcamp-main.html

It saved my life--not in a literal way, but it saved the quality of how I will spend the rest of it.  So go forth--be brave--and love fiercely and deeply.  You will never regret it!