Dispatch From the Ranch: Milkweed, Joy, and New Retreats
Hello Friends,
I’ve been thinking a lot about how the only thing constant is change, and in that context the preciousness of time seems even more relevant. How do I approach each day with kindness towards myself and others? How do I practice finding the beauty in moments and experiences. As we navigate this season, I’ve been holding on to a line from Toi Derricotte’s poem, “The Telly Cycle”, Joy is an act of resistance.
Above is one of my favorite photos taken of the Ranch in the last few years (thank you Marta Sasinowska). It’s of a wild milkweed patch, and its hearty green leaves and muted lavender flowers bring me such joy. It’s beautiful on its own and I love knowing it’s there for the monarch caterpillars, as milkweed is their only food source. When we were in construction, this wild patch got seriously trampled and made into mud by big equipment. I felt awful and had a hard time looking in that direction, thinking my cause created that effect. The next spring rolled around and to my surprise the patch emerged from the mud. Watching it grow and expand each year fills me with joy and awe of this plants hardiness.
When I bought the Ranch in 2009, after years of living in cities, I became reacquainted with how nature is more complicated, beautiful, sad, and wondrous the more time you spend noticing. Living with nature requires a certain acceptance and appreciation of that spectrum. This land and its wild beauty has taught me so much over the years—about impermanence, but also resilience and rejuvenation. Ruminating on these thoughts I made a playlist for you. I hope you enjoy it.
Our little valley is good for slow magic. We hope you can join us sometime this season and watch the milkweed.
Annie Coleman
Head Wrangler
ROOT, REST, & RISE: A Solstice Yoga Retreat
with Anna Argeropoulos & Paris Shirazi
6/19 - 6/22
Join Anna Argeropoulos of Moving Galaxy Yoga and Parisa Shirazi Chavoya of Parisa Yoga Shala for four days and three nights at Red Clover Ranch to root, rest, rise, and honor the Summer Solstice. Our retreat time will include an evening sauna ritual with Anna, daily meditation and yoga practices, restorative yoga, yoga nidra, and a Solstice night sound healing with Parisa.
We’ll also enjoy bike rides, swims, hikes, campfires and stargazing, as well as time to rest, relax, and connect with each other and the beautiful Driftless area of Wisconsin!
BREATH AWARENESS & GENERATIVE PRACTICES
with Kate Sheehy
6/26 - 6/29
Breath is more than a tool for relaxation—it’s a gateway to expansion. By shifting our habitual breath patterns, we can access altered states of consciousness, awaken creativity, and step into a greater sense of presence.
A Generative Practice is any intentional activity that helps us tap into the unknown that allows new ways of thinking, feeling and expressing ourselves to emerge.
Through breathwork, movement, and play, we will break free from old patterns and step into new possibilities. We’ll explore the full spectrum of experience—moving through discomfort as a pathway to pleasure, deep connection, and embodied transformation.
Red Clover has a few long weekends and some weekdays still available this season (May-Nov). If you want to lead a retreat, host a corporate getaway, organize a group of friends for an all-inclusive weekend, or get hitched, please reach out - hello@redcloverranch.com