Thanksgiving

Writing on the Wall

Once upon a time Riverbend was a youth hostel.  There are footprints and fingerprints left behind that attest to the many people that have passed this way.  

I am parked next to what used to be the girl's dormitory and if I sit with my back towards the road, this is what I see out my side window.  Because of the trees I couldn't quite capture the writing on the wall, but this is what is written:

Some people come into our lives and quickly go....others stay for awhile.
Those who move our souls to dance leave footprints in our hearts and we are never, ever, the same.

Because the weather turned so cold for Thanksgiving, we set up the tables and food in this building.  I couldn't even count how many people showed up...20, 30?  The tables were laden with three turkeys, two hams, three pumpkin pies, two apple pies, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and scalloped potatoes, just to name some of the food we piled onto our plates.  There were people from Colorado, Texas, New Jersey and even Scotland.  Such a bounty of beautiful people.

And so I found it quite fitting that we would all end up in this building with those particular words written on the wall, people coming into our lives and quickly going.   And that the workampers would linger even longer, hesitant to leave and take the few feet back into our own singular homes, staying awhile.

And I thought of all the many people that have moved my soul to dance and am thankful for those encounters. I trust that you know who you are because our meeting means I will never, ever be the same.

Elephant Butte State Park

I needed to get away.  I needed some solitude away from the busy, dusty street I have been living on.  I needed to swim in a big ocean of peace.  I found that place at Elephant Butte State Park, a mere five miles away.

 No one around and a sky that held its beauty all through the night.

Just me and a bunny

Three Days Off, Three Days On

I so enjoyed my last three days off it has been a challenge to work my current three days on.  But then I realize if I had not worked three days on, I would not have met the people I so enjoyed during those last three days off.

Theresa stayed another night in T or C and almost ended up staying even longer.  She was offered a job as a yoga instructor and if the house sitting job had become available she would have permanently parked here for awhile.  I would have loved that.

I had been gifted with a free night's stay at Pelican Spa (http://www.pelican-spa.com/index.html) which I in turn gifted to her.  She ended up with a fabulous, funky retro room so we started the evening at her new abode drinking wine "big enough to chew" (one of her many expressions, wish I could remember more) and then went to dinner at Bella Luca. (http://www.cafebellaluca.com/)  We talked and laughed, shared our numerous similarities and our hopes of one day owning a motorcycle.  Oh yea, it could happen:).  She headed out to Taos the next day with an invitation to visit Crested Butte, CO in the summer.  Hmmmm...sounds like a plan.

Living room

Bedroom   All this for $55!

 

Earlier in the day I had been invited for lunch at  the Birch Street Retreat. http://www.birchstreetretreat.com/
Roger is the local masseuse we recommend and his home also has two rooms which they rent out to various visitors in town.  I have had previous conversations with Roger and happily accepted the invitation to visit his home and have lunch.

It was wonderful getting to know Roger and his wife Anne and interesting to note that they went to the University of Colorado the same time I was there.  Lots of Colorado energy around me these days.  Towards the end of the lunch Roger and I further explored our cranial sacral training and I agreed to come to his home the next day and gift him a session.  So that's where I was the next day, and it was a wonderful session.

Friday night I went to a women's shamanic drumming circle.  I enjoyed it, but also realized "been there, done that" so doubt I will make a return visit.  The best thing about the journey was that I came back long before the drum's "call back", eager to return to Earth.  Now, that, was a first!

I am thankful for this world where the magic is now so touchable I want to stay here and play, no longer needing to travel so far off planet for relief.  I am thankful for this beautiful web that is weaving so many different, yet similar, people into my life.  I am thankful that I am alive in these times so that I can experience this shift in energy that puts such a smile on my face

I am thankful for the three days on which connected me with the people I would so enjoy on my three days off.

Gypsy Soul Sister

 I made a rookie error and did not drink enough water last night.  The price I paid for that oversight is now everything aches.  The reason I forgot to hydrate myself was because a new gypsy soul sister pulled into town.

A few nights ago I took a phone reservation from a woman named Theresa.  Her mailing address is Philadelphia and she currently lives in Colorado.  Since I have lived in both places I chatted a bit further with her and there seemed to have been an immediate bond that was forming.  I told her I would not be working the night she checked in but she assured me she would find me anyway.  Maybe we would meet, maybe we wouldn't.

Because of a flood and a roof collapsing in the room she was to check into, Theresa was bumped to another, much larger room.  And because the manager was busy trying to install a new water heater in that same room, I volunteered to work an extra hour on my day off to help train the new night person.  Coincidentally, Theresa checked in during that one extra hour.

We hugged as if we were my long lost sisters, which in some sense we were.  This is the second time this has happened since I began working in T or C, the other time being Jennifer, and I wonder how many more beautiful young women the Universe will be sending through the office doors.  I hope there will be many.

Theresa and I met up later in the hot springs and thankfully had them all to ourselves as we talked non stop for well over an hour.  We laughed, told stories and shared magic.  After a particularly potent Owl story, we paused just long enough in our conversation to hear a nearby owl hooting in the trees, acknowledging the telling of the tale.  We talked about the stars and when I asked Theresa where she had camped the night before, she replied Benson, Arizona, my Benson, Arizona!   There was a weaving of the web that had brought the two of us together.

Magic was afoot last night in those swirling waters and that is why I forgot to drink more fluids.  I hope it happens again.

Sacred Land

I love this Land called New Mexico.  I want to immerse myself in her rivers, soar in her skies and burrow myself deep within her body.  She and I have a mutual attraction that grows stronger every day.

And it is more than just this town of Truth or Consequences, although this vortex has a firm grip on me.  I want to explore all of New Mexico, to know all the secrets that she holds, her mysteries and her beauty.  I have not felt such a Land connection since Glastonbury and wonder how deep these ley lines will take me.  Serpent is strong within me and I have a new understanding of this particular medicine.

I have never felt more aligned with Nature as I watch the sunset and star alignments.  Turtle Mountain is my constant companion and hot springs flow just beneath my feet.  This Land is sacred and my time here is also sacred.

I love this Land called New Mexico.

Am I Coming.....or Going?

I did not plan this shot, it was an "accident", but I love this picture.  It represents so much about my life, on so many levels, and the last few days in particular.

I am assuming most people have patterns to their daily lives, a specific routine that gets them through the week days and weekends.  I know I do.  On work days I do as little as possible before the actual time I need to walk across the street and into the office.  I need my personal batteries fully charged to enable me to be totally available to the needs and wants of the various people passing through on my shift.  I sleep late, have coffee while relaxing into the flow of the Rio Grande, read, nap and basically stay as peaceful as possible. That is my pattern and it works for me.

I worked Monday and Tuesday and traded my Wednesday for my co-worker's Friday because she needed that day off.   This allowed for only two days off instead of the three, but also meant I only worked two days in a row.  Fine, no problem.  Because I had two days off, I scheduled an appointment on Thursday to have Minnie's brakes checked.  They have been squealing and I am trying to take care of as much maintenance and grooming as possible while living in such an accessible town.

I had scheduled the appointment for 8:00 AM so was up at 6:30 AM to allow me time for coffee and the pack-up necessary when I take Minnie on the road.  Drove Minnie to the tire store, dealt with the good ole' boys who almost made me want to take my business elsewhere, and then walked the 1.4 miles back home.  Had coffee on the Rio, went for breakfast and a few hours later walked back up the hill to retrieve Minnie.  Very happy new brakes are not needed and I now have valve extenders on all the tube stems which have continued to plague me and make it a challenge to check the tire pressure.  Whew!  Just glad that is all taken care of.

Since I was already mobile, I went to Walmart to stock up on supplies, went to the Dollar General for more reading glasses and checked out the electronics store to see if they had a battery for my particular cell phone.  Just lots of busy work that I would typically do before stationing back into my spot.  I eased back into my spot at around noon and then proceeded with the usual set up - reconnecting sewage and water hoses and putting back out anything I had stashed away for the trip.  No big deal, doesn't take much energy or time, but I have been up since very early in the morning and I am ready to just chill out and read or maybe take a nap.

It was while I was in this chill-out phase, reading but on the verge of a nap, that I received a call from my same co-worker as she is driving back from the doctor's office.  She is ill and wondering if I can work her shift for her.  It is 2:45 PM and the shift begins at 3:00 PM.  As much as I want to work for her, I am tired.  I have spent the day as if I would not be working; walking, shopping and expending rather conserving energy.  I tell her I will meet her at the office and I am sure something can be worked out.  The manager is already in the office and it is agreed that he will work the next two hours while I go home, take a nap and get geared up for another work night.  I take my power nap and work until 10:30 PM but am glad when the night is done and I can return to the womb that is known as Minnie Minerva.

Tonight I work the Friday night I exchanged for my Wednesday and I am resting as much as possible.  The days are a blur right now....is it Wednesday, Friday, Thursday?????  What day is tomorrow????

I don't know if I am coming.....or going.

Mother Nature

This is where I sit and have my morning coffee.  I listen to the waterfall of the hot springs, enjoy the view of  Turtle Back Mountain and tune in to the flow of the Rio Grande.  I was glad I had my camera this morning because Coyote came to drink.

And most evenings I am treated to a spectacular sunset, serenaded by the hundreds of Grackles that gather in the reeds.

These are the blessings of my days.

Balance

I am finding it a challenge to resurface from Dreamtime.  I want to stay curled up within the inner regions of myself, exploring the different aspects and dimensions.   I want to "dig down even further below the surface layers of my psyche, in search of the gold at the rainbow’s end".  It is almost 2:00 PM and I have no desire to even stick a toe outside and enter that external world.  I want to float out to the boundaries of my consciousness and then stretch even further, sail away into the Cosmos.

But work starts at 3:00 PM.  I must reel myself back in, find my way back into my Earth body and close down certain portals.  It is my own particular dance, one that I have gotten much better at over the years.  I no longer resist the re-entry.  My new life has made it easier for me to want to return.

But it remains a balancing act.  Maybe it always will be.

Boondocking

I have come to realize I am not set up for boondocking.  I am envious of all the equipment Jennifer has that allows her to be fully self contained.  She has electricity, leveling blocks, a cell phone booster, wifi and coffee brewing in the morning.  I have lights and propane. 

My electrical outlets do not work even with the generator running.  I have no wifi and I am tilting rather than level. And because I left my cell phone on all night and have no way of recharging it, I also have no phone.  I am low on water in my holding tank because I have never filled that particular tank and somehow when I tried to fill it, only a small amount of water went in before it started to gush back out.

I feel inept and long for the security of a full hook-up RV park, preferably one with a really good shower.  But I also realize what you get when you can go anywhere.  You get to drive the Dempster, to drive all the way to the freaking Arctic Circle!  You can park as far away from civilization as you want, see stars that city lights muffle, hear coyotes and a quiet that is rarely heard.  You can lay on top of your roof and get lost in the Milky Way.

Thank you Jennifer, for sharing the way you travel the world.

Three Rivers Petroglyphs

After Jennifer and I visited White Sands we decided we wanted to visit the petroglyphs which we believed were only 22 miles further down the road.  As with most sacred sites I have visited, there is a pilgrimage you must first undertake before arriving; a pilgrimage of it always being further than you anticipate, a certain exhaustion that begins to strip away the familiar and surrounds you with a feeling of  being "lost within the mists".  It is my belief that sacred sites remain sacred because they are not on the tourist route and not as easily found.  That was the case with the Petroglyph Site.

Although Jennifer and I left at different times, we both got lost at the same cross roads along the way, felt like we were going the wrong way, felt we would never arrive and that it was certainly more than 22 miles, which it probably was.  This time I left first and arrived first and was able to guide Jennifer in when she felt lost.   We were able to park and stay at the entrance to the site and after circling round and round, I finally found a space that felt comfortable and paid my $2.00 fee for the night.

This is what the park looked like while climbing up to the petroglphs.  We are in the middle of nowhere.

 We had just enough daylight left to climb up to the stones and I was in such a hurry I took off wearing sandals instead of socks and tennis shoes which left me feeling very vulnerable when a man also walking the ruins warned us of rattlesnakes.  I was in some otherworldly trance and just kept climbing upwards until some rattling noise at one particular place got my attention and made me hope I was far enough to the other side of the path to avoid whatever was making that noise.

The energy built the further I went up and the petroglphs starting to become more and more concentrated until I reached a peak where I became nauseous from the energy overload.  I have walked many, many stone circles in some very ancient lands, but these rocks were kicking my butt!  On the way back down I was still disoriented and lost the path, making my own way back down the hill.  Those stones were glorious.

Jennifer walking the petroglyph path

 

As the sun began to set, Jennifer and I sat outside listening to coyotes and sharing our stories.  Before too long the sky was filled with stars, the Milky Way was visible and I remembered it was Samhain, the time when the veils are very thin.


 

White Sands National Monument

(Yes, I actually took this picture)

The great thing about traveling with a fellow solo traveler is that you each journey in your own way, and then meet up at a specified destination.  There is none of that following behind one another, or being the leader, or going too fast or going too slow.  You just travel the way you normally do.  I figured this out after my second stop on the way to White Sands National Monument when I realized there was no other way to get there than the method that suited me best, which was making several stops.

I was traveling with Jennifer and even though I left before her, I ended up at White Sands after her, but only by about 5 minutes.  White Sands is just that, white sands.  But it is also eerie, powerful, wonderful and just plain strange.  This is undulating sand.  The history of this gypsum is that it originally was deposited at the bottom of a shallow sea, turned into stone, rose into a giant dome when the Rocky Mountains formed, and then collapsed and created a basin.  Of course it took millions of years to do this, but the sand is still moving, only now it moves with the wind's direction.  It was extremely hot walking across those sands and yet a mere inch below the surface it is quite cool.

Taking a break at the Burrow

Surrounding the White Sands on all sides is a missile range.  So on our way out of this strange land a shattering BOOM shook the earth, the animals, the trees and Jennifer and I.  Not once, but twice.  Cannot even imagine what the vibration of that sound does to the land.

Jennifer connecting with the Sand

Jennifer the photographer

Walking the endless Sands