Why are we losing our taste for what is real, and what kinds of practices can help us recover it? In this Lectern conversation, John Vervaeke is joined by Guy Sengstock and Kyle Koch to discuss their upcoming Reconnecting to the Real retreat in Whistler, British Columbia. Together they explore why connection is not just a feeling, but something constitutive of who we are: our relationship to nature, to one another, to story, to personhood, and to the sacred. Kyle describes how nature connection, tracking, bird language, and embodied practice can shift the way people perceive and participate in the world. Guy brings the relational depth of Circling, showing how conversation can become a practice of presence, listening, and contact with what is most real. John situates the retreat within his work on the meaning crisis, Socratic practice, dialogos, virtue, wisdom, and the renewal of the senses. The conversation moves from fire, forest, and shared meals to the deeper question of what it means to flourish. Along the way, John, Guy, and Kyle reflect on AI, virtual mediation, the loss of touch and taste, the sacred as something sensed in ordinary life, and why a retreat is not simply a vacation but a participatory apprenticeship in reconnecting to reality. Reconnecting to the Real Retreat: August 31-September 4, 2026 Brew Creek Lodge, Whistler, British Columbia Learn more and register: https://lnkd.in/erVwif6A Explore courses and teachings from The Lectern: https://lectern.johnvervaeke.com/ Support The Lectern and join a growing community of wisdom seekers: https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke John Vervaeke: https://johnvervaeke.com/ https://twitter.com/drjohnvervaeke https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke Thanks for watching. Explore courses and teachings from The Lectern https://lectern.johnvervaeke.com/ Support the Lectern and join a growing community of wisdom seekers https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke John Vervaeke: https://johnvervaeke.com/ https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke