JANUARY 2025 WINTER Retreat report: KNITTING BY LANTERN LIGHT

It was a memorable Winter 2025 Retreat for 26 Guild knitters at the Viña de Lestonnac Retreat Center in Temecula, time spent with long-time and new friends, sharing patterns, projects, and stories. Each day and night we gathered in our classroom for hours of uninterrupted knitting. On Tuesday afternoon, Eileen Adler taught us six ways to make a pom-pom. Meals prepared and served by Freddy and his kitchen staff were delicious and nutritious, including his Orange Cranberry Scones and Broccoli Salad.

The power was cut to our neighborhood because of extreme winds that may cause power lines to fall and spark a wildfire. The sky darkened as the sun set. We were gathered with friends to knit together for the next two days.
Darkness was complete, like a Dark Sky Place for star-gazing. Battery-powered lanterns lit our way as we walked to the dining room for all our meals. It was dark. It was windy. It was cold. We decided to stay and pretend we were camping in the wilderness.

We huddled around our lanterns, as if gathered by a wood fire, to absorb heat and light. Lanterns were scattered near clusters of knitters. We sat closer than usual to each other, concentrating on our projects in the light spilling from our lanterns. Our shared challenges and experiences created a special sense of camaraderie among us, a bond created by our shared goal and experience. Dinner – usually prepared by Freddy and his kitchen staff – was provided by the Olive Garden and served in a room lit by lanterns.
By 12:30 Wednesday morning the power was restored. That afternoon, half of our group sat outside to knit (though some of us planted ourselves on lounges and chairs to sit in the warm sunshine). Many stories were shared, some from longtime “retreatants” and some from knitters new to our retreat experience. Donna Mulcahy demonstrated how to knit a cozy for drink cans and bottles.
Breakfast was our final meal Thursday morning. We all left the retreat center by 10:30. Forty-five minutes later the power was shut off again(!), to be reconnected Friday morning at 6:00.
— Mary Lovett
NOTE: Thanks to Toni Wong, Annette Friedlein, and Laura Brubaker for providing additional photos.
And more photos from Mary Lovett: