PROGRAMS

Yes, retreatants practice “noble silence” at all times during retreat, except for the times when the group gets together for formal sharing or Q&A with the teacher. Silence begins after dinner on the first evening and is observed in all of our subsequent activities until retreat ends, including meals, with roommates, and so forth.

Silence provides a container where the teachings and practices shared at retreat can “steep” without the usual distraction and disbursement of energy that we experience in daily life. We practice silence both for ourselves and to support the practice of all those on retreat.

The Center is located at 6501 N. Nebraska Avenue in Tampa, approximately 20 minutes from Tampa International Airport (allow more time near rush hour). There is parking available at the Center.

Our “Great Cloud Refuge” dormitory offers mostly double and some triple occupancy rooms. Room assignments are made prior to the retreat. Roommate requests are honored when possible. All bedrooms are simply yet comfortably furnished with twin beds (triple rooms have one bunk set), sink and closet area. A pillow, quilt and blanket are provided. We ask that you bring your own sheets, pillowcase and towels, but we are happy to provide these items if your travel arrangements don’t permit bringing your own. There is a clock in each room; we ask retreatants not to use the alarm (a wake up gong will be invited each morning) so as to not awaken other retreatants.

A number of shower and toilet rooms are provided on each of the two floors of Great Cloud Refuge. Sign up sheets are posted in each shower room, with showers permitted between 6 am and 10 pm (during nonscheduled personal time but excluding the morning work meditation hour, when they are cleaned).

Candles, incense and food are not permitted in dormitory rooms.

Yes, we do accept and often have quite a few commuters at our retreats. If you live or are otherwise staying a reasonably short distance from the Center, commuting may be a good option for you, particularly if we’ve reached capacity for overnighters, which is 28 beds, in our dormitory.

We ask that all commuters arrive and be settled prior to the first sitting of each day (typically be 6:30 am) and be on site through the end of the final session, which often ends at 9:00 pm. We have a designated “napping” room for commuters as well as plenty of other nice spots for personal reflection during the open periods on the schedule.

Three vegan meals are served daily, with the larger meal typically at lunch. We have a section on our registration form asking you to share details of any food allergies or sensitivities with us and we privately share them with our Head of Kitchen, who will provide accommodations for all restriction. All allergens are labeled and identified at each meal, with alternate food as needed. Please indicate on your registration form if you have additional concerns or needs that we can support you with during retreat.

Please check the Tampa weather forecast so you bring appropriate clothing, including outdoor walking shoes, slip-on closed-toe indoor shoes (shoes with soles you can keep clean and wear indoors in case you are assigned kitchen work meditation), a hat, sunscreen, jacket (if cool weather), and rain gear (we have extra umbrellas on campus). As indicated above, please bring your own sheets and towels if staying overnight unless your travel arrangements don’t practically permit this.

We suggest you wear modest, loose clothing that is comfortable for meditation and mindful movements. You will also want clothing that is sturdy enough for work meditation activities such as kitchen/dining hall cleanup, toilet cleaning and leaf raking. Avoid wearing midriffs, tank tops, shorts or dresses that are above the knee, and revealing clothing. Clothing without logos and loud designs is appreciated and shows consideration for the equanimity of the people around you. We do not wear shoes (unless medically needed) in any of our buildings (the exception being indoor shoes for kitchen duty). Shoe racks are provided inside each of our buildings.

Please bring a notepad and pen in case the teacher gives reflective exercise. If the teacher provides a text before retreat please bring the text with you.

FCM provides meditation mats and cushions, as well as chairs. You are welcome to bring any special cushions used for your practice. Unless specifically instructed, you do not need to bring a yoga mat.

If you have preferred medications for headaches, sinus infections and such, you may with to bring them. Please know that retreat is NOT an opportunity to stop taking your meds, get sober, or fast.

Please do not bring any scented personal products or electronics of any type (including smart phones or watches, beeping watches, ipads, laptops, etc.) to retreat. Leave these at home, or – when you check in – you can leave them in our “electronics storage bin” which will be safely stored in the locked FCM office during retreat. Please conclude personal business before arriving so you can participate fully in retreat.

The emergency number of our On-Site Retreat Manager will be emailed to you shortly before the retreat start date. If you receive an urgent message while on retreat, you will be notified as soon as possible.

Most of our retreats begin with check-in between 3:30 and 5:00 pm, followed by a general orientation downstairs in our dining hall at 5:00 and supper at 5:45. We meet in the Meditation Hall at 7:00 for our first session of retreat, ending near 9:00 pm. Each “session” of retreat might include some combination of sitting meditation (typically 30 minutes), walking meditation, teachings, reflections and Q&A.

The schedule for the typical full day then includes the following: wake up at 6:00 am (or at 6:30 for many weekend retreats), session 1 from 6:30 to 8:15, breakfast, work meditation for an hour, a second morning session from 10:15 to noon, lunch and rest, mindful movements from 2:00 to 2:30, session 3 from 2:30 to 4:30, deep sharing from 4:30 to 5:30, dinner, and session 4 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm. Weekend retreats often conclude Sundays at 4:00 pm, whereas longer retreats typically conclude with lunch on the final day of retreat.

Our retreats are “group” retreats, where we flow as a river. It is expected that all retreatants will be present from the beginning through the end of the retreat and participate in all activities (you may be excused from mindful movements if you have physical restrictions, but otherwise the movement is considered quite helpful by most retreatants). It is not acceptable to attend only part of a retreat, or to leave a retreat and then return later. Once you have a confirmed place, we ask that you participate in the whole retreat to support both yourself and others on retreat.

Yes, qigong (standing, no mats or props required) or yoga (mats are required and will be requested to be brought) is typically offered for 30 minutes each full day of retreat. All of these “mindful movements” are very gentle and suitable for beginners.

Retreat Scholarships are available. You’ll have an opportunity to view FCM’s Retreat Scholarship Policy and request an Application when applying for retreat.

Protecting the health of our retreatants is very important at FCM. If you have potentially contagious respiratory symptoms immediately prior to retreat, please contact the FCM Retreat Coordinator at retreatcoordinator@floridamindfulness.org. In general, this would include fever, chills, sore throat, frequent coughing, sneezing or runny nose. Because of the reasonable possibility of transmitting germs to others, it would be best to stay home from the retreat and participate via Zoom if this is an option.

Based on current CDC guidelines, both vaccination and masking are optional at our center. We are currently asking all retreatants to provide proof of a negative same-day Covid test or to bring their own testing kit and test prior to checking into their room.

Our dormitory and Meditation Hall accommodate people with mobility disabilities, while our downstairs dining hall may present some challenges that we are happy to support you with. If you have disabilities, we encourage you to contact us before arrival to coordinate your retreat experience.

The retreat registration fee covers room, meals, and administrative expenses connected to the retreat but does not include any offerings to the teachers. Dharma teachings are offered freely, out of gratitude for what the teachers have received form their teachers and from a desire to be of benefit. Retreatants are also invited to participate in the practice of Dana, generosity that arises from an appreciation of the teachings and gratitude to the living teachers who keep them alive. Retreatants will have an opportunity to make an offering to the teacher and to FCM at the conclusion of the retreat by either cash, check or PayPal.

Once registered for retreat, we ask that you notify FCM as early as possible if you must cancel your registration. If you cancel for any reason two weeks or less before the start date of the retreat, a flat cancellation fee will apply as follows: 1) Weekend retreats (2 nights) - $50; 2) Retreats of 3-4 nights - $75; retreats of 5 nights or more - $100.

For most retreats, a newcomers orientation zoom call is offered prior to retreat. The time and date will be emailed to all confirmed registrants. If you are unable to join that session, we invite you to contact the FCM Retreat Coordinator at retreatcoordinator@floridamindfulness.org for any further information prior to retreat.