March 13-15, 2026
The Saint Barnabas Contemplative Life Ministries Team Presents
The Art of Attention: Cultivating Wonder as Spiritual Practice
What does it mean to be made in God’s image? Throughout this special weekend, we’ll explore ways of slowing down, paying keen attention, and becoming present to the Divine who is “always already there” in the world around and within us.
Through a variety of practices, including meditation, poetry, discussion, and prayer, we will re-connect with our sense of wonder, tap into our source of imagination, empathy, and hope refill our stores of love, courage, and creativity for our wondrous, wounded world.
Join us for one event or the entire weekend with our special guest,
The Rev. Dr. Travis Helms
After serving with the Peace Corps, Travis attended seminary at Yale Divinity School, then received his PhD in theology and literature from the University of Cambridge. Focused on the intersection of ecology, spirituality, and art, he serves on the board of EcoTheo Collective and is the founder and principal of the LOGOS Poetry Collective, a liturgically-inflected reading series that hosts events online and throughout the country.
Travis is the author of Blowing Clover, Falling Rain: A Theological Commentary on the Poetic Canon of the American Religion, and his poems and essays have been widely published. He currently serves as priest at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Jackson, WY.
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“A finely written and deeply perceptive examination of the roots and resonances of the transcendentalist tradition in American literature … with a keen ear for echoes of some surprisingly central theological themes. It is a rich and original essay by a writer with a keen poetic sensibility.”—Praise for Blowing Clover, Falling Rain by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, 2002–2012
OUR PROGRAM – SAVE THE DATES
- Friday, March 13, 7pm.—Featuring Arizona Poet Laureate Alberto Ríos in conversation with priest and poet the Rev. Dr. Travis Helms. Book signing to follow.
- Saturday, March 14, 9:30am-3pm—A day-long event with our retreat leader, Travis Helms. Lunch and childcare will be available.
- Sunday, March 15 — The theme continues, with 7:45am and 10:15am sermons by the Rev. Helms.
All are welcome to all events at no charge—freewill donations gratefully accepted.
This is a free event, but tickets will be required for attendance. Sign-ups through EventBrite will be announced soon. Stay tuned to this page or our weekly email and bulletin insert for upcoming notifications when tickets are available. Save your spot!
All activities will take place on the Saint Barnabas campus, 6715 North Mockingbird Lane, Scottsdale, AZ 85253
Alberto Ríos
Alberto Ríos, Arizona’s first poet laureate, is the author of 15 books of poetry, three collections of short stories, and a memoir. The son of a Mexican father and an English mother, Ríos was raised in Nogales, Arizona, and earned two bachelor’s degrees and an MFA from the University of Arizona.
His awards include fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the Walt Whitman Award, and the Western States Book Award for Fiction. A former Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, Ríos’ work has been published in 250 national and international literary anthologies. Ríos hosts the Arizona PBS productions Art in the 48, and Books & Co.
A Regents Professor at Arizona State University, Ríos serves as the Katharine C. Turner Endowed Chair in English, the Virginia G. Piper Chair in Creative Writing, University Professor of Letters, and Director of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing.
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”Ríos’ poems follow a path of wonder and gently move us to emotional truths that grab our breath and link our inner and outer landscapes. His alchemy works a transformation in the inner vision, turning us toward the deeper mystery of life itself.”—American Book Review
We Are of a Tribe
by Alberto RÍos
We plant seeds in the ground
And dreams in the sky,
Hoping that, someday, the roots of one
Will meet the upstretched limbs of the other.
It has not happened yet.
We share the sky, all of us, the whole world:
Together, we are a tribe of eyes that look upward,
Even as we stand on uncertain ground.
The earth beneath us moves, quiet and wild,
Its boundaries shifting, its muscles wavering.
The dream of sky is indifferent to all this,
Impervious to borders, fences, reservations.
The sky is our common home, the place we all live.
There we are in the world together.
The dream of sky requires no passport.
Blue will not be fenced. Blue will not be a crime.
Look up. Stay awhile. Let your breathing slow.
Know that you always have a home here.
“We Are of a Tribe” is from Alberto Ríos’ 2020 poetry collection, Not Go Away Is My Name, published by Copper Canyon Press.