It is with a whole range of emotions that we write to tell you that we are bringing to a close the retreat centre at Cherry Tree Lodge. There is the greatest demand right now for such places. However, the conclusion we draw from the many significant challenges we currently face in holding this space is that such a place is not to be on this piece of land.
We both recently completed a ritual giving notice of our stewardship back to the land. Many tears were shed for as many reasons. Tears of sadness not least for regrets and mistakes along the way but also tears of joy for all the many wonderful people coming to stay awhile and the connections we have made.
Over the 10 years we have been here hundreds of you have visited and woven a part of yourselves into the rich tapestry that has been Cherry Tree Lodge B & B and latterly, Retreat Centre. It has been a two way thing – whatever you may have taken from here with you, you also left something of yourself for the next visitor.
It has been an honour and a priviledge to hold this space – not always skillfully done but when it hasn’t we have learned from it. So thank you for the teachings.
We are opening this Book of Memories & Celebrations for those of you who would like to make a comment, to honour a memory, or to share an experience.
Dear Mark and Till, I wish you all the best in whatever comes to you in your lives when you relinquish Cherry Tree. I know how much you have given to the place and hope the separation will not be too traumatic. With thanks, Ian.
Dear Mark and Till, I was a Help X volunteer at Cherry Tree Lodge when I was only 18 years old. I could have not been happier to have met you both as you were to me an example to look at. The experience at Cherry Tree Lodge was a time for introspection, mental peace and healing. It helped me understand me better and it helped me become the person I am today. I wish you all the best in your next chapters in life. Reading that the centre is coming to an end makes me sad. However, like a wise man told me once: “Sadness is a reflection of gladness” and I could not be prouder of all your dedication and achievements during this period of time. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Blai.
Dear Mark and Till,
I acknowledge the sadness and emotion you both feel at this time. It is a time of significant transition. I honour the dream you both held in your hearts for ten years at Cherry Tree Lodge. I have seen dozens of gay couples, individuals and groups try to start retreat centres. The difficulties with isolation have meant that nearly all cases do not end up the way these people hoped. I honour the integrity in you both. You have each other. The magic that you have, individually and together, will remain intact. In fact maybe there is a new opportunity around the corner that will allow you to build a spiritual fire together that is less of a strain on your resources. You have so much to offer the gay community, maybe you will end up based near some urban centre or town where you can share your magic with gay brothers. I love you both very much and always will. I am always here for you and loyal to supporting your dreams. I will stay in touch in the coming months to hear how things are going. Thank you for your example. You continue to inspire me as I build a daily community meal for gay men in central Auckland, and a retreat centre for gay men outside of Auckland. Damien
Lieber Till, lieber Mark,
ich war leider nur einmal und für kurze Zeit in der Cherry Tree Lodge. Es ist ein wunderbarer Ort, und Ihr beide habt ihn mit Eurer Gastfreundschaft und Herzlichkeit noch bereichert. Ich habe mich bei Euch sehr wohl gefühlt. Du Till bist ein toller Wanderführer und Du Mark hast so wunderbar leckere Kuchen gebacken! Aber darüber hinaus seid Ihr einfach zwei liebenswerte Menschen.
Ich bin froh, Euch kennengelernt zu haben und wünsche Euch für die Zukunft alles Gute !!!
Euer Alex. aus Stuttgart
Tho’ I only stayed one night at the B&B, I fondly remember it – the view out back, your kindness, and introducing me to the simple pleasure of Yorkshire Tea. I go to great lengths to try to find it now in Seattle. I mix one bag of decaff with one bag of Jasmine Green tea in a carafe for a blend that always delights – am told that’s what they serve at Buckingham Palace, too.
Be well, and think of us all as old friends and a bit of a community that hopes to hear where you land next and continue to benefit from your wisdom.
Dear Mark and Till:
I have been there with you three times at Cherry Tree Lodge in different times and, as you already know, I have been deeply impacted for your integrity and for the beauty of the land you have been tending all these years. It has been several years since I have been there with you last time but my gratitude towards both of you remains the same and I really believe that it will remain for life deeply in my heart.
Thank you so, so much for the opportunity you gave me to be there and be surrounded for the beauty of Cherry Tree Lodge, your high level of integrity and for the great example you always are for everybody around you.
As always, I wish you all the best for your life and your future endeavors that, emanating for you, will be in service of life. Thank you!!!
Dear Mark and Till,
I remember when I first met you both in your lovely house in East London so many years ago. Our meetings meant so much to me and I am proud to have followed you both to Scotland, although we are a fair distance apart. I visited CTL for an intimate gay weekend retreat which I thoroughly enjoyed. Your hosting and facilitating skills were second to none.
Whatever you do and wherever you go you will have left a profound and imprinted legacy in CTL and on so many people. With deep affection, Michael
Sorry to hear you are closing, my husband Reinhold and I stayed with you some years ago and he discussed making sour dough bread with Mark and he let us know how well he was getting on. I thought it was a very ambitious but very worthwhile enterprise. Everything was so tastefully planned inside and outside.
It was peaceful and welcoming and you offered a calming atmosphere which I know you’ll recreate wherever you go.
We wish you the best of luck and happiness in the future.
Ursula McMorrow and Reinhold Hils.
Ps
A friend is selling a hostel, (he’s retiring) on Inishmore the
Aran islands, Galway. Ireland it’s called Mainistir House.
Hi Mark and Til I’m so sorry to hear that you’re going to be moving on from Cherry Tree; I enjoyed several nights for B&B there with you, having first got to know you at NewBold House. It was as if you carried on some of the essence of NewBold closer to Edinburgh. It was always so restful after a long drive, and I especially remember with gratitude how kind and welcoming you were when my daughter and grandchildren came with me one time. They so enjoyed all your games – one in particular I can’t now remember the name of – and gave them food you knew their fussy palates would enjoy, and a very early pre-airport breakfast. I do hope you’ll stay in touch, and maybe stop over here sometime if you’re driving South, as I’m only a mile off the A68! Sending you love and blessings for your next steps xxxx
After meeting you both at the Pittenweem Arts Festival in August of 2015 I stayed at Cherry Tree for 24hrs in the October.
For me it was a profound experience exploring the grounds in the afternoon before a beautiful and thought full dinner.
The next morning before breakfast I walked barefoot around the meditation maze in the morning dew carefully avoiding the thistles.
After breakfast I asked if I could help in the meadow by collecting up all the discarded tree sapling protectors. Then armed with a wheelbarrow spent a happy couple of hours working my task. Had another gentle walk around the boundry before leaving scouting the mature trees for a suitable branch for a big swing and found one!
After a busy week of holiday with family in Iona the peace of Cherry Tree was so special.
May the memories give you much joy as you move to a new situation and settle to make many more 🍃🍂
Fiona 🌻
Isle of Man
Dear Mark and Till
I am sorry to hear this. I wish everyone knew that how those amazing people from the Cherry Tree changed people’s life and showed the light in our heart. As Rumi says ‘If everything around you seems dark, look again, you may be the light’. For me it was an amazing experience to be with you.I wish you the best.
With my deep respects and loves .
Alper
Dear Mark and Till, I have to thank you both for your hospitality, friendship, good humour and vision. I stayed at Cherry Tree lodge while a tutor at Dollar Summer School. I enjoyed coming ‘home’ at the end of the day, able to walk and unwind in the field and garden. Later I would return with our Cherry Tree Art Course which was a joy to be part of and could not have happened without the generosity of Mark and Till. Paint marks I am sure can still be found as evidence of our being there.
I wish you both well for the future and hope that our paths cross sometime. Take care and know that I will be thinking of you both. Janet
Dear Mark & Till,
I feel so honoured and blessed to have shared so many days volunteering at CTL and it’s been a tremendous source of healing for me in the past two years. I have found such loving and kind friends in you both and I shall look forward to discovering what the next chapter holds for you. I shall continue to support your vision and will be keen to offer my time with helping you get there in whatever way possible.
Much love and peace to you both xx
Nathalie
So so sorry to hear your sad news. I always regarded Cherry Tree Lodge as a haven to be retreated to when in need of reflection and revitalisation. It was a privilege to enjoy your company and hospitality. The spiritual energy and feeling that you both put into the place was tangible from the moment of arrival. I am happy so many people have benefitted from staying with you.
I am sure the past couple of years must have been so draining with your vision and passion on the line at each and every setback. Please take some time to recharge. What you have to offer is so valuable in an increasingly uncertain world and I sincerely hope you can soon gain new energy to find a new place and begin again.
Thanks so much for all you have done for me and the family. Mum Dad and Mue never forgot their short stay. You are always welcome with us anytime. You both have so much to contribute I look forward to what the future will bring and spending time with you wherever it is. Thanks again Love Rob
Mark & Till,
How sad I am to hear this news. My heart goes out to you both.
I have stayed with you several times at Cherry Tree Lodge, and I continue to credit those stays, and your loving ability to hold those who need peace and understanding, to much of my own recovery from significantly difficult times.
It is truly a very special place, curated by a very special couple indeed.
I will miss Cherry Tree but will cherish it’s memory always.
I hope that your path is made clear and easy, Mark and Till.
With much love and thanks to you both,
Linda xx
Dear Mark and Till,
You have been amazing custodians of Cherry Tree and both of you and Cherry Tree have touched my life in so many ways from tree planting to cinema nights but most of all where I married my husband and love of my life Cameron on 2nd May 2019.
We thank you both from the bottom of our hearts and please keep in touch.
Love George and Cameron
the email you sent was full of heart. I could feel it. It was why it felt right to run my course there – in that heart filled space. I am truly grateful to have known you both and your amazing ‘helpers’. I hope you keep us informed of all your new adventures… whatever they will be, they will be heartfelt and inspire others. Love Lorraine xx
Dear Mark&Till,
so sorry to read about the closure of your Cherry Tree Lodge!
About 7years ago, I came over as a helpX after meeting you two on Erraid. It has been great to be at your CTL and get to know you better. You hold such a welcoming space! I wish you all the best for finding your new home! And you will connect the place with your hearts again…and it will nourish you.
Love, Jutta
This is so sad but also exciting for what this will bring next for you both. I will always cherish my time at the writers retreat at the lodge. It provided me with, not only the space to write, but also many other new and treasured experiences. The hospitality was heartwarming, nurturing and pure and my short experience here has lived with me since.
Dear Mark and Till 💛
So sorry to hear you are moving on from Cherry Tree Lodge.
I stayed with you as a HelpX help for a few weeks 6years ago. Cherry Tree Lodge and you as hosts were more helpful to me than I had expected. I absolutely loved the concept and your ideas for the Cherry Tree Lodge.
Still today when weeding my little garden plot I think of your peaceful and calming place and my time there. I am sorry I didn’t have a chance to visit you again.
Hoping and wishing you all the best for the future, hugs from Finland ❤️
Dear Mark and Till,
Thank you for sharing this, and thank you for the amazing work you’ve done at CTL, and for all that you will no doubt continue to do. For who you are. I have very fond memories from my visits, you have created a magical space and thank you for giving me the privilege to contribute and to experience it with you.
With much love and the hope of seeing you again soon,
Sending a hug and wishing you wonderful new horizons.
Love,
Gil
Dear Mark and Till,
such happy memories of being with you both when we came to you to hold our Winter Dreaming Ceremony in 2018. The snow came and almost led to us not being able to get into the CherryTree Lodge. Your ingenuity and diligence were wonderful and the group had a deep and magical experience. Wishing you well on the next stage of your adventures Ann xxxx
I stayed at Cherry Tree Lodge for a meditation weekend in December 2017. It was a tough ask for me at the time because I was trying to heal cancer naturally and was extremely nervous about coping away from home. Mark and his phenomenal cooking blew me away! And all achieved so calmly and impeccably! It was a most nourishing experience and I loved the ethos and plans. I always intended to return but alas never did. When I think of CTL an image of Mark in his pinny in the kitchen comes to mind 💜
I wish you both well for whatever the future holds.
Dear Mark & Till,
Thank you for the wonderful times this year, when you opened up your home to me, staying for 7 weeks.
Your kindness won’t be forgotten and I will take your abilities of living from the heart forward with me in life.
CTL gave so many beautiful memories for me and I hope not too many brambles grew back. I really did my best to get the roots.
Mark and Till are the true heart of Cherry Tree Lodge, a beautiful location that was made even more special by the magical set up curated by the keepers of the land.
Nature danced for you on the land.
Thanks for sharing the magic with so many people.
Much love,
Peter
Dear Mark and Till, my heart is fucking breaking right now for both of you and yet I also feel joy creeping in as I know you will have made the right decision. From my first Heartfullness Meditation evening when I felt so much love and support in the room to my last holotropic breathwork weekend I knew I was in a magical place. Thank you Cherry Tree Lodge, thank you Mark and Till, thank you for everyone that touched me when I explored the expedition of grief traveling. Wherever you go and whatever you feel is your the right space for you both my heart is with you. Deep love and peace. Allan
Dear Mark and Till,
it’s taken me a good while to acknowledge your email about Cherry Tree Lodge because I felt sad, grief and ache in my heart. I got a deep sense of why Cherry Treet Lodge mattered so much to you both and reading that you were handing back your stewardship back just left me feeling bereft. I have gone through a million times in my min. I feel anger and frustration at those running the country. At the end of the day, what consoles me is that the Land knows you both deeply, she knows your names and both your hearts.
It was such a pleasure for me to help out in the garden and enjoy the sunset in the evening; to attend the holotropic breath workshop as a participant, to walk on the land. So beautiful. Thank you for the sanctuary you gave me.
Thank you Mark and Till. Thank you Cherry Tree Lodge. My love to you.
Dear Mark and Till,
Deeply saddened to hear that Cherry Tree Lodge is now closed. I have very fond and powerful memories of the time I spent here as a Help-X’er in 2015. Such a restful, beautiful and uplifting environment that I very much enjoyed contributing to, and you were both wonderful hosts.
Very best wishes for whatever path you next travel, Claire x