Earlier in 2025, I started listening to Buddhist teachings almost every night. There was no real rhyme or reason for why I began, but it quickly became an important part of my nighttime routine. Slowly, the teachings seeped into my thoughts throughout the day, and in a serendipitous way, a friend lent me a book-Siddhartha.

While traveling through Thailand in search of meaning, I did what many young Western women do: I signed up for a three-day meditation retreat in the northern countryside. Led by monks and organized by volunteers, the bare-bones retreat was located about 30 minutes outside of Pai, a town in the Mae Hong Son Province of northern Thailand.

The retreat is an oasis designed to help visitors learn the art of meditation. Minimalistic yet intentional, paths stamped with leaf patterns, nurseries in place of traditional decorations, and tree houses overlooking the town and surrounding mountains. Days began and ended with monk-led meditations, periods of silence, and walks through the local town for piṇḍapāta—the Theravāda tradition in which monks walk the streets with their alms bowls.