So you may want to come and live with us for a while?  Please know beforehand what you will get yourself into because we all work hard, study hard, practice hard and play (in the ordinary sense) very little. 

We are committed to living from consciousness and to destroy our automatic personality patterns and programming.  To facilitate this, we interact with one another on a very limited basis and we do not come together for personal or social reasons.  We do the work assigned to us in silence, we meet up as a group for practice sessions in silence, we practice mostly in silence, and the rest of the time we are on our own, which again we spend in silence.  

Silence is not enforced at White Cloud by any means - it is something that happens as a natural flow here.  You will see how good silence feels once you get used to it.  And you will see how most talking is based on your individual personality structure and how it stems from your programming and ego make-up.  Plus, you will eventually notice how much energy talking actually takes and you will soon, out of your own volition, not want to engage in this draining activity anymore, unless absolutely necessary.

As far as work goes, there are various chores that need to get done every day:  feeding our animals, cleaning their stalls, milking the goats, cutting greens for our animals’ evening feed, pulling weeds, tending to our vegetable gardens, picking fruit and coffee beans, clipping overgrown foliage, repairing fences, building walkways, improving older structures, designing and constructing new buildings, cleaning of grounds and site, administrative and computer work, going on shopping runs, etc. 

Do you get the picture that there is a lot to do here at White Cloud to keep us busy every day, all day long? 

Yet, we really work only five hours each day as White Cloud's main objective is living from consciousness.  Therefore, about six hours of daily practice are given top priority.  Our day starts at 3 am with our first practice of the day, our meditation session which last between one to two hours.  We then can go back to sleep if we wish or remain awake on our own time.  Our daily work starts at 6 am and by around 9 am we are usually done with the morning chores.  We go take a shower, eat something and then we meet up at 9:30 am for our Tai Chi practice which usually lasts about two hours.  After that, we have time to ourselves.  We start our afternoon work around 3 pm and finish approximately by 5 pm.  The time from 5 to 7 pm is again our own.  We meet back up at 7 pm for our evening mediation session which usually lasts around 2 hours.  From 9 pm on, you are on your own time again.  But it is a good time to get ready for bed and go to sleep considering that our day starts at 3 am the following morning.

This pretty much sums up what your experience will be like at White Cloud.  Just a few words of caution: if you really come here to become free from ego, expect that your ego will show up at every turn.  You can expect that your ego will tell you that you are in the wrong place; that the practices we do here are no good; that none of the teachers here know what they are doing; that you have made the wrong choice in coming here; that you are paying way too much or are working way too hard for what you are getting in return; that there are much better things you could be doing then being here; sex may be an issue; anger may be an issue; isolation and loneliness may be an issue; worry and fear may be an issue; money may be an issue; control may be an issue; fatigue and low energy may be an issue; depression may be an issue.  Whatever it is that you have been dealing with in the past or are dealing with right now in your life as far as challenges and difficulties, they will show up 1000 times stronger here.  This may throw you for some pretty heavy loops.  Therefore, only if you are really serious about breaking your personality structure and programming, should you decide on coming here.  This is what White Cloud is about - and in this process you will be supported to the very best of our ability.  So, if destruction of your ego is what you are after, you will get it here.  Just know that it won’t be easy and that you have been warned.

Below you will find the fees according to your desired length of stay.  The fees include housing in either our casita, temple quarters or another building of our choosing.  If you want to pay a reduced fee, you can do so by bringing your own tent.  Inquire with us about that.  For food you are on your own.  We will have weekly shopping runs scheduled that take us to town where you can either give us a shopping list to bring things back for you or come with us to do your own shopping.  We ask that you chip in $2 for gas each trip.  Depending on the food you buy, you should count on your grocery bill to be $15 - $50 per week.

                                                      1 Month Residency                                                            

Everyone starts with our one month residency program.  This way, we both have the possibility of checking after 30 days, if we are a good fit.  Therefore, upon completion of the first month, if you want to stay longer, we will be happy to extend your stay to your desired length of time.  (Only in severe circumstances do we chose to not extend that option, when it was clear that the person’s presence, attitude and conduct is destructive to White Cloud’s principles and way of life).

Program Fee: $800

                                                      2 - 3 Months Residency                                                     

You start with our one month residency program.  Upon completion, you may choose to say for 2 or 3 months total.  The first month program fee will be pro-rated so that you will be charged the fee as stated below.

Program Fee: $700/month

                                                      4 - 6 Months Residency                                                     

You start with our one month residency program.  Upon completion, you may choose to say for 4 or 6 months total.  The first month program fee will be pro-rated so that you will be charged the fee as stated below.

Program Fee: $600/month

                                                      7 - 12 Months Residency                                                    

You start with our one month residency program.  Upon completion, you may choose to say for 4 or 6 months total.  The first month program fee will be pro-rated so that you will be charged the fee as stated below.

Program Fee: $500/month

                                                      Longer than 12 Months Residency                                    

You may decide to stay longer then a year or live with us permanently.  As your 12 Months Residency comes to an end, we will reconsider your situation, possibly offer you a more permanent residence on our property.  We will also renegotiate the monthly fee contribution at that time.