I’m on my way to a Zen sesshin (meditation retreat) in Idyllwild, California, and I wanted to share why I continue to do practices like this. It’s not because they’re comfortable. It’s not because I enjoy every moment. It’s because they take away the usual ways I distract myself. In daily life, it’s easy to reach for something—your phone, music, conversation—anything to move away from what you’re feeling. On retreat, there’s nowhere to go. You’re left sitting with your mind, your emotions, your patterns—without the usual escape routes. And in doing that, you start to understand yourself more clearly. Not as an idea, but through direct experience. I don’t go on retreats to get away from life. I go so I can meet life more honestly. Over time, this has helped me build the capacity to be with whatever arises, without immediately trying to change it or avoid it. I think everyone should experience something like this at least once—something that brings you fully into contact with yourself, without distraction.