26 March 2026 - Issue #027

Hey Reader,

And so it happened, I experienced my first Nyepi here in Bali and I loved every minute of it.

If you have no idea what I’m talking about, I wrote a blog about this very unique Balinese celebration where, for twenty-four hours, everything stops.

No travel, no work, no lights, no noise. Just stillness.

I wrote this the day before Nyepi, when I was still in that phase of excitement and disbelief that something like this still exists in 2026.

Now, almost a week later, I can say this with complete certainty: I didn’t just find this experience fascinating, I genuinely think we all need Nyepi in our lives.

And maybe even more so if you are holding space for others, teaching, guiding, planning retreats, constantly giving your energy outward.

Because allowing yourself to pause is something else entirely.

---

From the Blog

What Bali Can Teach Us About the Art of Pause Once a year, the entire island of Bali goes silent. I have been living in Bali for six months now and even knowing Nyepi was coming, part of me still wanted to work. Apparently even an entire island pausing wasn’t enough to make me feel like I had permission to stop. That resistance says more than we might think about how deeply we’ve been conditioned to keep going, even when everything around us is telling us to stop. Read the Article

What's Stirring

When I started working with yoga and wellness teachers I expected my role to be quite contained.

I thought I would focus on the planning. The behind-the-scenes work that, frankly, most facilitators don’t have the time or desire to deal with.

I assumed that would be my space.

And then things evolved.

I started getting more and more involved, not just in the logistics, but in the vision and the strategy behind the retreats. To the point where I now co-create many of them.

But something even more interesting happened alongside that.

By speaking with yoga and wellness teachers pretty much every day, both in person and online, I started to notice something I hadn’t fully expected.

Yes, facilitators need support with the practical side of things.

But some of them need something more.

They need someone to share the responsibility with.

A partner they can talk things through with.

But most importantly, they need a cheerleader for the moments when things don’t go to plan.

Someone who sits in the corner, nods, and reminds them how good they are at what they do and how important their work is.

And it’s only now, after months of doing this, that I realise how naturally I stepped into that role. It just happened, almost as a response to what I was witnessing every day.

I see it in my conversations with friends here in Ubud who are part of this community.

I see it with clients.

I see it with people in my network.

And I see it online, in the way people respond to my content, often with a level of gratitude that still surprises me.

And while none of this is particularly shocking as we all need support, encouragement, and someone to remind us we’re on the right path, it has made me reflect for a second.

• Is this simply part of being human? Or is it something more specific to this industry?
  ​
• Is it the uncertainty that comes with building retreats and experiences like the ones we do? The reality of turning a passion into a business, with all the financial and practical layers that brings?
  ​
• Or is it that this space is filled with deeply sensitive, thoughtful people, many of whom have navigated their own share of uncertainty and are still moving through it?

I don’t have a clear answer yet.

But I’d really love to hear your take on this.

---

Retreat Radar

​ ​A Pause in the Season Ubud, Bali | Nov 6 - 11, 2026 A six-day retreat for women moving through seasons of change, the kind that are not always visible, but that shift something deeply. This is for the moments where you feel a little disconnected, a little unsure, or simply in between versions of yourself. A space to slow down, to soften, and to be around women who understand without needing much explanation. All of this in Ubud, the kind of environment that naturally invites you to come back to yourself. More Information

Experiencing Nyepi, writing the article about it, and reflecting on the work I do with yoga and wellness teachers all brought me back to the same idea: we are very good at holding space for others.

We are far less comfortable creating that same space for ourselves, especially when there is no external permission to stop.

Whether that looks like taking a full day of silence, asking for support, or simply allowing things to move a little slower than what feels “productive”, there is something important in learning how to pause without needing an external force or a reason to justify it.

Because the truth is, most of us won’t be given that pause.

We have to choose it.

And that choice, however small it looks from the outside, often changes more than we expect.

If this brought something up for you, I’d really love to hear what that looks like on your side.

Ciao ciao,

Milla

P.S. Hosting a retreat, event, or programme soon? I'd love to feature it in Retreat Radar. Just hit reply with the details (where, when, what makes it special). It's free and open to everyone in this community 😊

---