Story
Meet the Mountain Team: Meghan Henley
Blackberry Mountain Wellness Manager Meghan Henley started at Blackberry Farm in 2016 teaching yoga and barre. With experience in the hospitality industry since she was 18, Meghan loves the connection she gets to make during sessions with guests the most. In July 2018, Meghan joined the Blackberry Mountain team, and her infectious attitude and love for all things wellness shines bright!
Question & Answer
What brought you to Blackberry Mountain?
I truly believe that the Mountain somehow called many of us here, myself included. I cherish my years at Blackberry Farm where I was fortunate to share the disciplines of yoga and meditation with our guests. It is so funny how now the Mountain feels like home. I’ve been able to expand my knowledge in so many new areas of wellness.
What is one thing that guests wouldn't know about you?
I studied studio art and am an abstract painter. I enjoy layering oil pastels, pencil and acrylic paint on canvas and removing portions with a technique sometimes called ‘sgraffito’.
How do you start your morning and end your day?
I start and end each day with breath work and gratitude journaling. Meditation and breath work enhance my quality of mind for the day. Journaling helps me remember that everything I have experienced, and will experience, can and will bring joy and beauty into my life. I keep a meditation cushion and journal beside my bed for convenience.
What is your favorite indoor/outdoor activity?
Indoor: Painting with a great playlist
Outdoor: Hiking to a great spot for yoga and meditation
What is your favorite Blackberry moment?
Wow. This is so hard! Although I have had so many wonderful moments, two moments really stand out.
The first one was when I led a beautiful outdoor watercolor meditation with a grandmother and her three granddaughters, ages 15 to 20, in the Garden at Blackberry Farm. When the ladies finished their paintings, it began to rain and one granddaughter stepped out from the canopy of trees that sheltered us from the rain. She took her painting into the Garden and let the rain pour down on her watercolor expression. She was so present. The experience itself was so much more important to her than what she had created on paper. The rest of the ladies joined her with theirs. The look on the grandmother’s face was priceless.
The second one was my very first visit to Goat Hill at Blackberry Mountain. I was overcome with emotion taking in the view and was truly speechless for the first time in my life. It’s breathtaking.
This or That
Firetower or Three Sisters
Firetower, I love feeling like I am on top of the world!
Yoga indoors or Yoga Outdoors
Outdoors!
Sunrise or Sunset
Sunrise
Cocktail or Mocktail
May I say wine?
Group Class or Solo Practice
I love the energy in a group class.
Taking in the Views or Experiencing the Journey
Experiencing the journey. I am fortunate enough to be able to do both here on a daily basis. My daughter said to me yesterday, “Mom, when I grow up I want a job like yours.” Then, my husband and son replied in unison, “Everyone does!”
Crystal Meditation or Soundbathing
Luckily our menu now combines the two so, both!