Images of the YA Cohort Program

All month long we've been talking about the YAs visiting BMCM headquarters in Tomales, CA, and we're so excited to share some more about the past month!

Two weeks ago, YAs from around the world gathered in Tomales for a weeklong retreat, the culmination of our six-month long Cohort Program. Since January, the Cohorts have been gathering every other month for an online video workshop on topics like personal relationships, or finding our purpose in life. Most of us were able to attend the February YA retreat, and this month the Cohorts gathered for a weeklong retreat, and then a weekend at Dillon Beach!

For three of the YAs, this was their first weeklong retreat, and over the coming months we'll be hearing more from them about their experience. Besides the opportunity for spiritual fellowship with other YAs (and what's a retreat without a game of YA volleyball?), weeklong retreats also offer the chance to engage with dedicated passage meditators of all ages from all over the world. It was amazing to get perspectives from such a wide variety of people! The retreat's theme was "Building the Will" and the week was spent looking at different ways we can use each of the eight points to strengthen our will. From the workshops to the dinner table conversations, all the YAs remarked on how many ideas we got to take home and put into practice.

After the retreat ended, the Cohorts were in charge of our own schedule and we had such a great time! We went out to dinner at a local cafe where a country-western band was playing. Since one of our Cohorts is a born-and-raised Texan, she taught us all the two-step and we impressed the band with our enthusiasm, but not necessarily our skill . . .

The Cohorts spent the rest of the weekend at a house on Dillon Beach. We took a beach walk with Christine Easwaran and local friends of the BMCM community, baked a pie to celebrate the birthday of a Cohort, cooked dinner and breakfast together, and - even though there were some late nights of chatting - we all meditated together bright and early in the house's sun room.

This was the first year we've ever offered the Cohort Program and we had such fun planning and participating! We're looking forward to next year!