Can I tell you about our wonderful time in Calistoga?
The fires did not hold us back. This was truly a test of faith. Just a couple of weeks before our group was to visit Calistoga, CA at the top of Napa Valley, a group of about 13 horrendous fires broke out, leading to one of the worst northern California fires in recent history.
Leave it to the media to have us thinking all of California was up in flames. It was bad, really bad, but not in the area where we were going.
I decided to venture out into Calistoga to assess the damage, as I had a few Well Divas thinking we should cancel our upcoming event. I’m glad I was close enough to jump in the car and spend a day driving up the valley. There was no evidence of any fire on my entire drive. Other than the pool closing at our resort (one of 4 pools, that is), the area we were visiting was not affected. So the plans for our weekend moved forward.
Wellness in Wine Country got off to a good start with plenty of wine and gifts at our welcome event. We were then blessed with a vision board session and spoken word ministry (and wine) by the team of Gina Dacus and Tiffany James as our opening session. On Saturday and Sunday mornings we were treated to MarTaiYo,a unique blend of a Mindful Awareness Routine with TaiChi and Yoga, led and created by Marcia Leftwich.
We enjoyed a talk on digestive health and smoothie bowl session the next morning where the ladies were able to get creative and make a green, pink (pitaya) or purple (acai berry) smoothies or smoothie bowls. We learned about the mind/body connection and how our emotions, not just our diet, can affect our health. The ladies were treated to a plant based lunch featuring veggies cooked in different ways and an into (for some) to jackfruit and Beyond Meat products (and homemade sangria). That evening we celebrated the Indian holiday Diwali (also known as Divali) with an authentic plant based Indian dinner (and wine) but with a soulful menu including collard greens, black eyed peas and okra.
On Sunday the ladies took some time out to enjoy the spa and later that day we were treated to a very informative wine education session by Sharon Davis Wine Boss. That evening we had our Well Diva photo shoot and farewell dinner (with sparkling wine) at Sam’s Social Club, and ended the evening with a fireside chat. Oh, and there was wine from the time the ladies checked in (literally) until time to go.
Most of our Well Divas had never met each other, and all but one had never been to Calistoga, but many vowed to return. As always, I’m so happy when WE as a people make an investment of effort, time and money in our health. That’s just not a popular thing to do in the black community, so it’s always a joy for me when I can provide an event that will entice some of us to invest in one of our greatest assets, our health.
This was a very relaxing, educational and fun filled weekend, and I look forward to taking a group of ladies to the area again, but probably not until 2019. I must admit it wasn’t the spiritual experience we had in Sedona, possibly because of all the wine. LOL.
UPDATE – Click here to join us in 2020.
