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Red Mountain Spa - Part 3
Written by: Donald Miserandino
Today the big activity for me was the bike trip to Bear Claw. This was to be a mountain bike trip for four hours. After one hour of being tormented by the fact that I can't do this very well, the message sank in, and I chose to go stop the pain. The guide was very patient and supportive on the trip back to the Spa and didn’t once imply the word “wimp.” I went to my room to change into gym clothes, spent part of the afternoon on the treadmill, and then took a class on how to use weights properly.
Dinner tonight was the "Mindful Dining" experience. In a private dining room the guests joined Dr. Tate in a sensory eating experience. Slow eating--painfully slow for one who can finish a bowl of spaghetti before the family finishes saying grace. Here the point is to enjoy the food, not just consume it. Every flavor the chef put into the food was isolated and then brought together in a symphony of tastes. This was the first time a meal ever took me more than thirty minutes to eat, and I enjoyed it! This meal was my first hint of the real benefit of this spa.
Later there was a lecture on “Herbal Nature” with Cathy Farneman. I knew I would never learn to identify all the plants, but I asked questions and satisfied my curiosities about the healing powers of herbs. Cathy showed examples of local herbs, such as sage and sweet grass, and explained their traditional healing benefits. She told stories of how she learned her craft and transferred her profound respect for those who passed skills to her. We were given herbs to make a sachet for enlivening the atmosphere in our homes. This is the second hint as to the nature of this spa.
The next morning there was a trek to Jennie's Canyon and Johnson's Canyon. The weather was slightly warmer than yesterday, and there was no wind. Today I found out that our group leader is a very proud grandmother and normally leads the more ambitious trekker 2 hikes.
This alone inspired me to shut up and walk faster. The next two hours were over in a flash. I couldn't wait for the “end of the week” all day hike to Zion National Park.
Lunch today was with Deborah Evens, the General Manager of the Red Mountain Spa. Deborah IS the spa. She has inspired each employee to take ownership of the spa. It seems to be her attitude and approach to customer relations that has been adopted by each staff member. When they talk of her, many of them seem to exhibit a profound respect. I’m almost certain that very few guests are aware that every employee carries a copy of the spa’s mission statement. Ask to see it, and you are seeing a commitment to service and an inspiration to serve. Over lunch, she gave me some background and plans for the future of this operation.
To say full service is an understatement. Better to give the nature of this spa as I see it from Deborah’s talk. This spa has been designed both physically and attitudinally to be a “safe harbor” for all those whose ship of life is undergoing some rough seas. There are some who simply come to vacate their mind, but many seek a safe secure environment to reconsider some aspect in their life and start anew. Thus, Deborah has designed this as a safe harbor. Using both “life” and “business” experience, the staff and facilities enable new beginnings, and allow one to try different things, and return home hopefully a new person. Deborah Evens is an enthusiastic speaker, filled over the top with points of view and ideas to make this spa the place to set the pace for inner peace. The motto of the Red Mountain Spa is “Choose your own adventure”. This applies to the physical experience as well as the intellectual adventure. For example, I took a talk on female menopause. Whoa, baby! Now that’s a topic guys should learn about. Many things I learned in the street did not apply, and things I had thought I knew about have been updated. Since I was the only guy in the room, they gave me a lot of encouragement to stay and hear the discussions. Another talk I went to was on Iridology, with Ian Philip White. This is the meaning of the colors and shapes in the eye and their implications for the various organs and functions of the body. This was a new topic to me!
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A view of the lava river floor | |
I never had a pedicure, so I think that the gang in the office thought they would send me for the Extreme Sorts Pedicure as a joke, but it turned out to be another new experience. In speaking to the manicurist, I learned that she believes it to be her mission to examine clients’ feet for potential problems and to alleviate those that exist. Corns, bunions, and calluses fall to her expertise. In my case, a too long toenail pushed the inside of my shoe into the cuticle, bruising the toe, and made hiking uncomfortable. I should have gotten this taken care of before I started hiking all week. I could have avoided a bruised toe.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
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