I have always preferred the process of renovating to that of a new build. There is something deeply satisfying about taking a structure that has served its purpose for years and seeing it transformed, rather than simply cleared away. When we renovate, we are not starting from zero: we are honoring the bones of what is already there and reimagining how they can better serve who we are today.
At its heart, Goddess Retreats’s mission has been to guide women through the process of personal transformation in a embodied and experiential ways, and I often find that the process of navigating a midlife reinvention for women is remarkably similar to renovating a home.
Looking at the Structural Bones of Your Midlife Reinvention
The first step in any renovation is to take a good look around the property. You want to see what is already working and which parts of the structure are solid. We do not want a total teardown of our lives because there is so much value in the experiences we have already gathered. We start by acknowledging the structural bones that have supported us so far: our resilience, our capacity for care, and the wisdom we have earned over the decades.
Sometimes, however, we realize that we need to knock out a few walls. In older properties, rooms are often divided by structures that are no longer needed, creating a sense of separation and clutter. In our lives, these walls are often the old roles and divisions we have maintained for far too long. We might take a room that was once a child’s or guest bedroom and realize it is time to turn it into a creative studio, a home gym or a quiet space for contemplation. We change the use of the space to reflect the season of life we are currently in.
Creating a Sanctuary for Life Transitions
When the structural work becomes heavy, finding a dedicated space for reflection is essential. This is why a life transition retreat in Bali can be so impactful. It provides a sanctuary where you can step away from the daily noise to decide which “rooms” of your life still fit and which ones need to be reimagined.
Refreshing the energy of your home, and your life, is about more than just aesthetics. A new coat of paint can represent exactly where you are in this moment. We might update the lighting, replacing old fashioned lamps with soft lights that cast a more modern and welcoming glow. We change the artwork to reflect the new inspirations that have caught our eye. This is the art of seeing something that already exists and lovingly guiding it into a new form. This is exactly what we facilitate when we work to awaken, inspire, and celebrate the Goddess in you.
Practical Home Steps for Personal Transformation
You do not need to wait for a retreat to begin the visualization of your own transformation. You can start the process in your own home with a few practical steps:
Energy Mapping: Follow where your energy naturally goes. If a certain course or daily workshop interests you, make a commitment to try it. You can then decide if that new experience belongs in the “house” of your soul or not.
Create a Vision Board: Gather images and words that reflect activities, places, and feelings that naturally light you up. Visualization always comes before the first step of the renovation.
A Weekly Date with Yourself: Commit to trying one new thing each week. Take yourself to a restaurant to try a cuisine you have never experienced, or spend an hour in a bookshop looking through books that catch your eye.
Explore Local Culture: Visit a museum or a local workshop. When we start looking for new things, they often start to jump out of the woodwork.
A Reimagined Sanctuary for Your Second Act
This theme of reinvention is very close to my heart right now. For over 23 years, we have been pioneers in creating spaces for women to rediscover themselves. In the coming month, we will be sharing a very special announcement regarding our Seminyak sanctuary. For the past few months, we have been quietly refreshing and reinventing our space into an oasis to better serve the women who stay with us.
The core of what makes our retreat a sanctuary remains exactly as it has always been, but we have put so much heart into refreshing and opening up the property. We have looked at our own structural bones and chosen to transform them into something that reflects how we have evolved over two decades of guiding women’s wellness retreats. I am so looking forward to revealing this fresh space to you very soon.
Your life is the home for your soul. When you choose to renovate it, do so with love. Thank the old structures for how they have served you, and then allow yourself the freedom to transform them into something new.
