Te Moata

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What a treat this place has been for me...

Hidden in the bush, the energy that could be felt at Te Moata brought the whole place and its inhabitants to life.

I had the chance of participating in all the retreats that took place here during the month of April while i was woofing (working for food and accomodation).

The first one was one given by a buddhist monk on META, a form of meditation serving to open ones heart to the world and spread love and kindness to one another. Effectively, you needed to think of someone you wanted to spread love and kindness towards, and repeat the phrase "may you be well, happy and peaceful" for 45 minutes without a break. Tiring, but rewarding, as one leaves a session of META feeling at peace with the world.

Then came the "dances for universal peace", which was a five day easter celebration of dancing, laughing and eating. What really marked me was the level of intimacy that we reached amongst one another, not in a sexual way, but rather in a emotional way. It was like we had known each other for years, when we had just met. The most marking moment for me was when we danced a particular dance in which every time we encountered someone, we would give them a big hug. This might seem silly, but actually, what happened is that a huge amount of energy and empathy flowed between one another, creating a spell bounding bond. This was my first step into spirituality, and i enjoyed it very much so!

So when i see any of you next, you can expect a big long energizing hug :D - no exaggeration

Lastly, my time in Te Moata was marked by my stay at one of the huts isolated in the far hills of Te Moata. About 45 minutes by foot from the center (mostly through jungle, what new zealanders call "the bush"). Left technology behind and brought with me a book on tibetan buddhist folk tales, and enjoyed peace, meditation and amazing views. Was my first time disconnecting completely from the outside world for 48 hours. Really really worth trying out. Can be done anywhere really, just need a hut with a gas burner, a fireplace, some candles and a mattress 😊

My time with the Te Moata on-site team was also special, including a friendship i so quickly developed with Maelle, a Corsican girl with whom i couldn't stop laughing (well was hard to avoid when collecting horse poo for the garden...), and one with Quicka and Hadrien, who are a lovely couple living life really simply 😊

It is also important for me to share with you the difficulties i encountered here -The main one was the uncertainty i had about the future, as during my stay, i still had no plan for afterwards, and anxiety often crept up as i tried to make plans for after. Also, i had this really uneasy feeling in the presence of one of the other woofers (helpers), who stayed at TeMoata the last 3 weeks of my stay. Was really difficult for me to point out why, but for some reason, i felt i had to be on my guard when i was with her... which was tiring and confusing. The last difficulty was dealing with my self confidence issues, as still being doubtful about my professional capacities, i even doubted myself when doing the 2-3hr morning tasks, like bringing down cobwebs. I was trying to put pressure on myself to go faster, as i felt i was slow, but usually i wasnt able to keep up a faster pace the entire time, so i often finished dissapointed in myself. This is a feeling i've been struggling most of my life, tho i do believe on the fact that with experience, some of these work related anxieties will ease 😊 however, in the mean time, they are hard to accept!

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