Naila Francis is a certified grief coach and death midwife, an ordained interfaith minister, a poet, and an accomplished writer. As the founder of This Hallowed Wilderness, she helps people transform their relationship to grief and loss through one-on-one coaching, workshops, presentations, rituals and community grief tending. Naila is also a co-founder of Salt Trails, a Philadelphia collective normalizing grief through community rituals, and a recipient of a Leeway Foundation Art + Change Grant, A former journalist, she found her way to the vocations of companioning others through grief and dying after suffering several personal losses in her own life, including the death of her father in 2012. You can learn more about her work at www.thishallowedwilderness.com
Details of this retreat
In her poem, “Sleeping in the Forest,” Mary Oliver writes: “I thought the earth remembered me/ she took me back so tenderly,/ arranging her dark skirts, her pockets/full of lichens and seeds.”
What would it feel like to be remembered by the Earth, to know we are held by her generous living body through our heartaches and difficulties?
In this careshop, we will spend some time reconnecting to the Earth through poetry, journaling, and embodied practice, to open up to her support. To listen for what wisdom she may have to offer to meet the sorrows we carry. All griefs, from the personal to the planetary, are welcome.
Please bring a journal or something to write with, as well as an element from nature that you feel drawn to (a rock, leaf, flower, shell, etc.).
Schedule
There will be time for silence, journaling, and optional sharing.
*exit at the Market Street Exit, Route 452 North toward Aston. At the 5th light (5-Point intersection) make a left onto Concord Road. At the next traffic light, turn right onto Convent Road. The convent is ahead on your right. (It is a large building with a large red dome.)
From North or South on Route 1,
** turn onto 452 South. Follow 452 South to Glendale Boulevard (at Barnaby’s Restaurant). Turn right and at the stop sign, cross Legion Road. Continue through the next stop sign when Legion Road becomes S. Convent Road. The convent is ahead on the left.
Coming East on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, exit at Downingtown (exit 23). Turn left at the end of the ramp and follow signs to 202 South (Route 100 merges into 202 South). Follow 202 South to Route 1 North. Take Route 1 North **
Coming West on the Pennsylvania Turnpike exit at Mid-County (exit 25A). Follow 476 South to the Lima/Springfield exit (Route 1 South). Take Route 1 South.**
Coming from the New Jersey Turnpike or I-295 – take exit 2 from the Turnpike or take the Commonodore Barry Bridge Exit if on 295, follow 322 West and cross the Commodore Barry Bridge Continue on 322 West to 452 North. Continue with directions * above
Accommodation
your own cost of attandance plus a contribution to provide access for all
your own cost of attendance
supported rate
Venue & Amenities
A/C in Rooms
Free Wifi
Spa
Sauna
Pool
Towels
Free Parking
Kitchen
Tour Assistance
Hot Tub
Coffee/Tea
Cafe
Restaurant
Fitness Center
Yoga Studio
Housekeeping
Bicycles For Rent
Our spacious grounds provide a place of peace among the trees.
Meals
Menu Types
Vegan
Vegetarian
Pescetarian
Ayurvedic
Includes Meat
Organic
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Nut Free
What's Included
Two hours on our beautiful grounds.
Light refreshments will be provided
What's Not Included
Lodging; please reserve a hermitage separately if you would like to make this into a personal retreat.
Customer Reviews
5.00 out of 5.0 average rating
5.0
Verified
Review of My Retreat at the Franciscan Spirituality Hermitages in Aston, PA
I had a lovely week in the stillness of the forest which surrounded my beautiful hermitage. The space was very clean, adequately appointed with whatever appliances or accommodation you might need for a time of solitary prayer. The Chester Creek Trail is five minutes away by car if you like to walk. Daily Mass is available at the Assisi House. I would highly recommend this spot for a spiritual get away.
5.0
Verified
restful retreat
As part of my discernment to the diaconate, my COM (commission of ministry) encouraged me to follow a silent retreat. I chose the Franciscan Spiritual Center in Aston, PA and stayed in the Hermitages. The unit was clean and efficient, having all the needed necessities for a weekend stay. Big windows, a comfortable bed, workable kitchenette, and an outside porch space made for a delight to recess for the weekend. I plan on visiting them again during a different season for a new experience. My stay was late July/early August. I would like to stay sometime during the winter.
5.0
Verified
No Words Suffice
No words are enough to express my gratitude for the Hermitages and for my fifteen-day retreat just concluded. Having enjoyed a five-day stay a year ago, this longer submersion into silence and solitude provided everything for which my soul and spirit hungered. I hope to carry that refreshment into daily life and to build slowly and carefully a version of the inner solidity I experienced for those fifteen days. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
5.0
Verified
Hermitage D
Excellent experience! I try very hard to take time daily for prayer and conversation with God, but in my line of work , it is sometimes difficult to concentrate. This long weekend was absolutely the very thing I needed to just " be". I was able to be with the Lord in my silence and when walking around the beautiful grounds. The cabin was very clean and had everything you need. Just a beautiful place to encounter God and fill your "love" cup. I definitely will return!!
5.0
Verified
Beautiful Retreat
I stayed two nights in Hermitage D, and it made for a perfect retreat. Clean, comfortable, simple -- and yet with everything you need. I especially loved the individual porch that faces the woods. I also liked the option to join the sisters for mass and for meals. They were super sweet, and the food was very good. This was just the retreat that my spirit needed.
Select your options
Available Dates
Oct 11, 2026
Select a Room
$80.00
your own cost of attandance plus a contribution to provide access for all