Me and the Zafinator, happily “stranded” in Ajijic
Wow! What a Week! Some of you may remember my old article I had with the Express in Nelson, with the same title. That same caption applies to the past week I’ve had. All good. Just totally unexpected. And Wow. Spirit showing up and having my back in a big way.
I left Canada last Friday morning, after an amazing summer of writing for festivals, hanging with old and new friends and connecting to family. Truly, there is nothing like summertime in Canada; particularly being on the lake. I’m so incredibly blessed to be able to spend time at my boathouse, immersed in nature, and hang out with my pops everyday. Truly a gift. It was such a beautiful time to just be in my own rhythm, and to take some time to truly be in flow. Canada’s summers are so short, that there tends to be a “pack it in” mentality with planning, which of course I get, but I really wanted to veer away from this, and ended up making plans somewhat last minute, and deciding what I wanted to do in the moment. After a long period of not feeling so strong (with adrenal issues, fibroids/anemia), I’m realizing I really have to honour my body and myself with the gift of choosing what to do in the moment. And thankfully, I’m feeling super strong, and could choose to do A LOT of amazing things. So grateful.
Back to last week; I landed in PV where my dear sister Tisane picked me up in my car that had just been “repaired.” You’ll see why there are quotes around that soon. The drive back was smooth, no clunks (as there had been en route to the airport when I left for Canada in June), so I thought all was easy breezy. I spent a few days at my house in lo de Marcos organizing, cleaning, sweating like nobody’s biz, and packing up for San Miguel de Allende; it’s still crazy hot and humid on the coast. So I loaded up the car with my guitar, new electric piano, some stuff and the pooch and headed out on the road. Ready for the road trip extraordinaire.
The plan was to stop in Ajijic Jalisco for the night, to break up the eleven hour drive. Soulshine sister and fellow mantra musician Brenda McMorrow graciously offered her place to me for the night, while she finished her tour in the States. Long story short, one night turned into almost a week. After hitting the road, my car started clunking again about two hours into the drive. I just cranked my audiobook to mask the sound, then turned up the Naad (sound current) and chanted protection mantra to get me here. It worked.
The mechanic said a new part from the dealership would be 30-60 days. Shit. I asked if he could try and locate the part in Guadalajara instead, and he obliged. Luckily, it came in Monday. Luckily, I had a beautiful place to stay whilst I was there. Which got me thinking about the notion of “luck”. Is it really luck or just fate? I truly believe there are no accidents, and Spirit guided me to be here. I used to get triggered when people would say, “Oh, you’re so lucky! You lived _______ “or “You’re so lucky! You do _______.” For me, it’s not really a matter of luck; rather it’s taking risks, booking flights, and searching for places to live. It’s about setting a clear intention about how I want to live my life with a sense of adventure and joy. No lottery tickets are being bought. I say this with hope to inspire those of us who want to make changes and live a more full, rich authentic life. If we trust and are open to the guidance and take the first steps, Spirit will be on our side and help. And so much help came here in Ajijic. I was immediately taken in by Brenda’s neighbours who helped me find a good mechanic, and were so generous by taking me to and fro. Her other neighbour told me about several awesome hikes nearby. I’m so grateful that I got stranded here. I never would have been able to take in the beauty of the area in just one day. The hikes here in the mountains have been glorious, and since I was such a mountain girl for so many years, this really filled my soul. And Zafi’s. When we left the coast, she was basically just laying around, moving from cold tiles to cold tiles (that weren’t really that cold) and panting in the heat. Here, she came alive. As did I. It was beautiful to have a quiet space to just integrate all the travel, the time in Canada, and the healing and growth that have taken place in the past few months.
I’m feeling extremely grateful today (very apropos after our Thanksgiving weekend) for the fact I had the summer to rest, enjoy and take care of my body as it rebounded and recovered from my hysterectomy I had in the winter. Man. That was one doozy of a surgery. So humbling. And I’m so amazed at how the body can heal. I’m feeling stronger now than I have in YEARS. I’m also noticing that my state of equanimity seems to be quite stable right now. The car breaking down didn’t really faze me too much, and I was able to really just be in the flow of what’s happening. I attribute this to many years of meditating, and also my path with Hakomi, which has encouraged me to be more mindful, gentle and nurturing towards myself. Such a gift.
I landed last night in San Miguel de Allende, after a super smooth drive, and will be here for the month, and am curious to see what will unfold here. Always a mystery, and always magic. Gracias for the gifts and powers of mantra, the mindfulness I’ve been blessed to cultivate, and the opportunities that await. So far so good. The place I landed is beyond amazing, and the woman hosting me (who I just met, but had a great feeling about) is a wild woman and true kindred spirit. And so, vamos a ver (let’s see)! Even though I went off a bit on the whole luck thing, you can still wish me luck. I’ll take it. And I wish you all luck AND the knowledge that you can create your own reality with choices that come from following the heart. Thank you for being on this Camino and Journey with me. Mucho amor y luz. Aho.