The Co-Directors of Dasi-Ziyad Family Institute, Krsnanandini and Tariq, a husband and wife team of Certified Family Educators, Certified Prepare Enrich Administrators, Prep administrators, Certified Better Together Instructors and more. They have been providing Healthy Relationship skills and/or marriage education to couples, youth and families for over 10 years. They are married and parents of many children. Despite their qualifications, despite their skills and experience, they periodically take time to refresh and renew their own relationship.
It was in this spirit that they recently attended a weekend couples retreat called Marriage Encounter. For about 46 hours, they were engaged in a process that encouraged them to focus on each other, without the distractions of television, telephones, watches and computers. Their communication was encouraged through many dialogues in a comfortable hotel setting.
“I wasn’t so enthusiastic when my wife asked me to come on this retreat,” said one man, “but I’m real glad we did. We are so busy all the time with the kids, work, bills, the house and her sick dad. I was wondering what happened to the good times we used to have. This retreat was fun and I learned how to relate to my wife better. The spiritual focus helped us, too.”
The idea of maintaining or upgrading to a vibrant, healthy relationship by having periodic tune-ups is neither new nor negative. Like a well-run furnace or an automobile or a household, regular check-ups, check-ins, or cleansings are vital to optimal operation, harmony and cooperative interaction between parts.
“This was one of the best investments in our relationship we have ever made,” Sandi told us about a different couple retreat she had attended. “We’ve been engaged for 6 months and there was a lot we needed help with. Being with other couples was a real plus.”
Couple retreats are an excellent form of marriage or relationship enrichment and such retreats come in many different packages. Some take place over a weekend and others are a one-day affair. Some, like the one the co-directors attended, focus on couple intimacy and communication. Other couple retreats, like Sandi’s, include a variety of couple and group activities, games, workshops, and opportunities for physical relaxation through massage or body wraps. Usually, there is no airing of “dirty laundry’ and the retreat setting often occurs in very appealing, attractive surroundings. Some retreats are open to couples who are married or engaged or couples who may be considering engagement or marriage or cohabiting. Others are for married couples only.
Whatever the form, a couple’s retreat is generally energizing and rejuvenating for couples, providing wonderful opportunities for re-connection and tools for healthier communication, financial management, conflict resolution and win-win problem solving as well as meeting other couples. Family and friends can purchase “couple retreat” gift certificates to give as wedding or anniversary presents or just to encourage a couple to improve their relationship skills. These gift certificates can pay for part of all of a couple’s retreat experience.
(Dasi-Ziyad Family Institute offers an annual Couples Retreat (as well as gift certificates for this event and other DZFI services). This year our retreat will take place Saturday, June 21 from 9:00 – 6:00 p.m. in Bath, OH)
