Summer wanderings . . .

I know summer doesn't start officially for a few weeks but for me Memorial Day is the harbinger of this most delicious time of year . . . the warm, hazy days of summer.

Summer takes me more quickly back to my childhood than any other time of year . . . I remember carefree days of building forts, lemonade stands, cookouts, chasing fireflies in the evenings, laying in the grass watching the clouds move overhead, family trips to the beach . . . and they seemed endless . . . what are your memories?

And because few things thrill me as much as the lure of the open road . . . especially because summer gets very hot in Sedona . . . I'll be heading out of town for much of this summer and into the fall. I'll be roaming from Italy to France to Oregon to Utah and then back to Sedona in October. I hope you'll be able to join me at one of my stops.

EUROPEAN TRAVEL ~ I'm fortunate (and extremely grateful) to be able to spend a month in Europe this summer ~ offering retreats in both Tuscany and France ~ and playing in between. I'll be sharing photos and adventure stories on Facebook so click here to join the conversation.

OREGON ~ When I return, I'll be heading to the Northwest ~ what could be more yummy in the hot and sticky month of August? ~ to do a workshop for my friend Terri Gregory in Monmouth, Oregon. She has the most fabulous B & B there ~ MaMeres ~ and is opening up her inn for a group of lucky ladies who would like to join us for a weekend of dreaming ~ click on For Women Who Dare to Dream if you'd like for information.

UTAH ~ Bluff, Utah is one of my favorite places on earth (actually all of Southern Utah is)! It's a small, arty, funky, rafting town on the San Juan River. For the third time, I'll be returning to facilitate a women's spiritual raft trip down the sweet San Juan. Talk about lazy, hazy days of summer . . . it really doesn't get any better than floating with a group of like-minded women through the ancient and gorgeous canyonlands of Southern Utah. It's truly an other-worldly experience. Click on Singing Waters~Dancing Hearts if you'd like more information.

HOME TO SEDONA ~ And if you're "of a certain age," you'll want to join me in Sedona in October to look at Rediscovering Your Self in the Second Half of Life.

Most delicious summer wishes,
Karen

Finding peace and clarity in a frenzied world . . .

Cultivating peace and clarity doesn't necessarily require hours of meditation or days spent alone in spiritual contemplation. It can take only moments a day - just a small step back from the hectic pace of your daily life and the frenzied world around you. During these moments - these mini-retreats - you can savor joy, express gratitude, and experience wonder. In doing so, you gently open space for magic and possibilities to grow.

Since 2008, Karen Ely's inspiring weekly e-mails have been inviting women to take min-retreats into the oases of their own souls. Now collected into a single volume, her messages provide weekly inspiration and exercises to help busy women slow down and find peace and clarity in the noise and bustle of everyday life.

"Your mini-retreats feel like a friend reaching out to pull me up."
Nancy W. (NY)

"Your mini-retreats deeply touch my heart and spirit."
Heather C. (CA)

"Thanks for being there for women who need other women."
Verna F. (NC)

"Your mini-retreats awakened my tired soul."
Sarah M. (CT)

Karen Ely is the founder and director of A Woman's Way, the country's premier women's retreat and workshop program located in Sedona, Arizona. Karen is the author of: Daring to Dream: Reflections on the Year I Found Myself published in 2006, which chronicles the end of her 32-year marriage, A Retreat of My Own, a women's personal retreat guide published in 2008, and Breathing Space: Mini-Retreats for the Heart & Soul published in 2011. Karen is an experienced facilitator with a commitment to assisting women in creating and living authentic lives of passion and joy.

From Karen Ely
“Breathing Space has been a joyful experience for me since its inception as weekly mini-retreat e-mails in 2008. From the beginning, the women who received the e-mails have shared how these mini-retreats have infused their lives with inspiration, hope, and guidance.

This book is a compilation of my favorite Breathing Space mini-retreats, one for every week of the year. It's my sincere hope that they assist you in creating some breathing space in the middle of your frenzied world and provide you with an awakening to your heart and soul I share them with you in the hope that they enrich your life as they have mine.”

CLICK HERE to read the book’s table of contents and 2 sample mini-retreats.

ORDER NOW (on SALE for only $12.95) and begin to cultivate peace and clarity in your life today.

Breathing Space: Mini-Retreats for the Heart and Soul

Since 2008, I’ve been sending Breathing Space e-mails inviting women to take min-retreats into the oases of their own souls. I collected my favorites into a single beautiful book that will be available next week and I can’t wait to share it with you!

The following is the introduction to Breathing Space: Mini-Retreats for the Heart and Soul:

I woke up in 1992. It was a shock to discover that I’d been sleepwalking through the first forty-six years of my life.

And even more shocking, once I’d awakened, I realized that I had no idea who I was, what to do, or where to turn. Or even what to ask.

Coming home to myself—my imperfect, beautiful, enlivened, authentic, passionate self—has been a bumpy ride, one filled with surprises and lessons and often requiring more courage than I knew I had. I still continue to learn, sometimes the same lesson over and over (and I really hate that!). Sometimes I am still foolish enough to think I know where my life is taking me —and that’s when I know I’m the most lost.

A Woman’s Way and the books I’ve written have been my way of giving back, of providing other women with a safe space to find themselves, of providing other women with some guidance and tools for awakening to an authentic, meaningful, and passionate life.

Breathing Space has been a joyful experience for me since its inception as weekly mini-retreat e-mails in 2008. From the beginning, the women who received the e-mails have shared how these mini-retreats have infused their lives with inspiration, hope, and guidance.

This book is a compilation of my favorite Breathing Space mini-retreats, one for every week of the year. It’s my sincere hope that they assist you in creating some breathing space in the middle of your frenzied world and provide you with an awakening to your heart and soul.

I share them with you in the hope that they enrich your life as they have mine.