What Becomes of the Broken Hearted: A New Year’s Eve Meditation Retreat with Mikey Noechel and Matty Finn

December 29, 2026 – January 2, 2027

William J. Kelley Retreat Center, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi

The heart can break in one of two directions. It can break closed, hardening around the pain until our wounds become walls between us and the rest of the world. Or it can break free, tearing down those walls and making room for connection, compassion, and a life larger than the pain we have endured. This retreat is an invitation to let the heart break wide fucking open!

There’s an unknown value in a broken heart. We usually can’t see it while we’re still standing in the wreckage, but it becomes clearer when we look back and recognize that the experiences that caused us the most pain also set some of the best parts of our lives in motion. Pain can bring us to the place where our old ways of living can no longer carry us. From there, suffering can deepen into misery, or it can become the mud from which something new begins to grow.

From there, suffering can deepen into misery, but it can also become the mud from which something new begins to grow. As Thich Nhat Hanh taught, no mud, no lotus.

ABOUT THE PRACTICE

During this retreat, we will learn to reclaim our suffering for good through the practices of mindfulness and compassion meditation. Mindfulness will help us recognize the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves, loosen the grip of limiting identities, and see the beliefs and crappy personal narratives that have kept us trapped. Compassion meditation will teach us how to meet the wounded places within ourselves with tenderness, courage, and care.

Wisdom and compassion are the two wings that carry the broken heart toward freedom. Wisdom cuts through the stories, beliefs, and identities we have built around our pain. Compassion reaches into the wounded places with the tenderness and courage they need to open. When these two wings move together, the wound becomes an opening, and the heart discovers a life larger than what happened to it.

WHAT TO EXPECT

The retreat will be held in noble silence, creating a supportive environment for deep and sustained practice. The daily schedule will center on alternating periods of sitting and walking meditation. The teachers will offer meditation instructions, Dharma talks, and group interviews to provide guidance and support throughout the retreat.

IS THIS RETREAT RIGHT FOR ME?

This retreat is suitable for beginners and experienced meditators alike. You do not need to arrive knowing how to meditate or having attended a silent retreat before. Clear instructions will be offered throughout the retreat, along with a structured schedule and regular opportunities to ask questions and receive support from the teachers. Retreat practice can be challenging, and you will not be navigating those challenges alone. The retreat will be led by two teachers who have been authorized to teach in the Theravada Buddhist lineage within the Insight Meditation tradition. Together, they will create a grounded and supportive environment where you can deepen your practice at your own pace.

TEACHER DANA AND REGISTRATION

The teachers are supported entirely through dana, the Buddhist practice of generosity. Your registration fee covers accommodations and three meals each full day. Dana serves as the teachers’ only compensation for leading the retreat, so please include it when planning the full cost of attending.

As a general guideline, it is customary to offer dana equal to approximately half the cost of registration. This amount is simply a guide. Please give according to your means. If you are unable to offer dana, we still want you to attend. If you have the ability to give more, your generosity helps support the teachers and makes room for those who have less to give. You will have an opportunity to offer dana directly to the teachers at the conclusion of the retreat. The retreat includes periods of guided and silent sitting meditation, walking meditation, Dharma talks.

Suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners, this retreat offers a welcoming environment to deepen your meditation practice.

WJ Kelly Retreat Center, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi

Tuesday - December 29th Check In 3:30-5:30 pm Dinner at 6 pm, program begins at 7:30 pm

Wednesday - December 30th Full day of Programming Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Served

Thursday- December 31st Full day of Programming Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Served

Friday - January 1st Full day of Programming Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Served

Monday - January 2nd Breakfast and Closing Ceremony Depart Center by 11:30 am

You'll receive 11 meals, 4 nights accommodations and endless opportunity for practice in community.

When budgeting for this retreat please be prepared to practice dana/donate to your teachers at the end of the retreat. Read more about the practice of Dana?

PAYMENT PLANS OR SCHOLARSHIP RATES AVAILABLE HERE

Read More about our Teachers:

Mikey Noechel (he/him)

Mikey a Buddhist teacher, author, and counselor. Mikey is the guiding teacher at Wild Heart Meditation Center in Nashville, TN. He regularly brings Buddhist meditation classes into addiction treatment centers, prisons, and a variety of settings. Mikey is the author of an upcoming book. Mikey is the co-host of the punk rock, mental health podcast Punks On Hope and is the singer for the punk band The Rip Taylors. Mikey is a Buddhist teacher who has been empowered to teach in both Theravada and Mahayana traditions through the authorization of Ven. Pannavati Bhikkhuni and Ven. Pannadipa Bhikkhu. Mikey also holds a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology. He integrates these two worlds: the old school Buddhist teachings with new school psychology, in a way to help individuals free themselves from suffering of all kinds.

Matty Finn (he/they)

Matty is a graduate of the Wild Heart Meditation Center teacher training whose path weaves together contemplative practice and the discipline of a working musician. As a national touring bass player, he has spent years learning presence under pressure, the kind of attention that a stage and a meditation cushion both demand. That same steadiness shapes his teaching, which is grounded through the lens of recovery and humor, where meditation becomes a tool not for escape but for meeting life exactly as it is. His approach is direct, warm, and unpretentious, less concerned with spiritual polish than with real practices leading towards true liberation. Matty is also a student of religion pursuing a degree in religious studies at MTSU. He pursues this work so he may continue to live out his vow of bringing the dharma into the darkest spaces so those who have found themselves imprisoned there may be free from suffering.