Working quietly with the Universe

Universal Undercoat ... for painting the Universe (and the lamp)
*

After today, there will be no more online updates on the window lamp until the Thursday after Carnival. (But don't be surprised if some of you get updates in your dreams). The seven days away from the online updates will allow you to review the lamp's journey in a leisurely way and ruminate on what everything has meant to you so far. Meanwhile, behind the scenes I will continue to work quietly on the piece until Friday 1st February, after which I will cease for five days.

Before the crack of dawn on Saturday 2nd, I will leave and go to Toco (without the lamp) until Ash Wednesday ... for a silent retreat (my third). Many of my friends (even those who talk alot), when they hear about the experience, say they would like to try it (the silence) - and one of them is actually going to come this time. I told her she would not regret a moment of it. I love the location (perched aloft on the edge of the coast), no burglar proofing (sleeping with the fresh wind and sound of the sea blasting through open doors and windows), the food (healthy, scrumptious vegetarian banquets cooked by some women from the area), the silence (after the extended silence I wonder why we even bother to use words), the deep restfulness and relaxation (much needed), the water (steps lead down to the lovely private cove), the nothing-to-do-all-day but sleep, read, write, walk, swim, be in nature, meditate, explore (internally and externally), eat, think, not think ...

One comment left on yesterday's post asks of the lamp: "Well. What will this BECOME? I know... be patient." So true. Patience ... that necessary bridge across the time of 'waiting' for the mystery to unfold. Take a look at the below photo of the glimmering spider's web which was being built on a branch above the window when it was under the sapodilla tree. I noticed it the evening I did the smoke ceremony. Until we meet again, keep this image in mind and envision the Universe as an infinite web within which the large Cosmic Spider masterfully pulls everything together as it must be.

Many hands. Lightwork. (with video)

My friend Glen, measuring a piece of wood in his factory workshop.
*

At this point I must say thank you to those of you who have been keeping up with these window lamp updates. Any interest and energy you are putting toward the lamp-work process so far is helping it all to happen. This is the kind of project (as you will see in the end) that not only one person can do. Many people will have to come together, physically and otherwise, to make it really happen. This is what I am inviting you to be a part of.

(Don't mean to sound like I'm receiving an Academy Award, but ...) A special thank you also to my friend Glen who, when I took the window to his workshop and decided upon the way in which it should be constructed further, immediately set to work on helping me achieve that vision. He had other important work to do, but he put it aside to help me with the construction. Even when I said: "Look, we can do this tomorrow you know" ... he said: "No. I would rather do it now."

Now is Wow, after all.

The short video below shows what is becoming of this window. You will begin to see it taking its new shape. A few people (in TT) have contacted me to say that they are having trouble viewing the videos (due to slow internet or other issues). That's a pity. I really wish you could see the clips, especially this one, as the window undergoes transformation. I have kept all clips as short as possible to make it easier for you ... so be patient, let it load while you do something else on your computer, then go back to it and view smoothly.

Divine Timing

Before I knew what this lamp was for, I was going to name it Kairos, which is my new favourite word, with its beautiful meaning.

There are two kinds of time: Chronos and Kairos.

Chronos is chronological time, the world's time, deadlines, dates, appointments, calendars, clocks, seconds, minutes, hours, days, years ... etc.

Kairos, simply put, is Divine time/timing. It cannot be measured.

In my reading on Kairos, I gathered and distilled certain definitions which I have put below for you to get a quick overview. But if/when you have or make time (i.e. chronos time), check out this great pdf document entitled "Time measured by Kronos and Kairos"; Mark Freir (2006).

The day I realised what the lamp was for, I changed its name (to be revealed soon). However, it remains Kairos in spirit, since everything about it is happening with Divine timing and purpose.

*
KAIROS
Some distilled definitions.

1. The quintessential moment that must be seized or acted within in order to achieve a desired result.

2. The discrete moment in which an act is done that decides the outcome of a matter.

3. The God-given moment of destiny, not to be shrunk from, but seized with decisiveness.

4. The moment of turn-around, of change and of building bridges.

5. Moment in time when opposites meet and contradiction evaporates.

6. An undetermined period of time in which "something" special happens.

7. The window of divine opportunity. The transformative moment.

Sources:

Wikipedia
The Matter of Time.
The Greening
Kairoslife
Kairos - The Spirit of Time

Working like a dog (video clip)

Making wire flowers with the dogs ... and an extra little guest.

Things you wanted to know but may have been afraid to ask

A friend contacted me last night and told me that she was not getting the whole window lamp thing. I was glad she mentioned this, since it made me realise that there may be others who are also not understanding what is unfolding. Maybe confusion comes when you try to understand what I (Elspeth) mean it to be ... rather than what you (_______) perceive it to be. Neither way is right or wrong. We just see things in life through different lenses sometimes.

Imagine each person in the world looking at a dot and just seeing a dot and nothing else. Rorschach would go out of business. Life is more interesting when some people see it as a dot, some see it as a coin, some see it as a peephole through the paper into another world, some see it as the footprint of Thumbelina with a wooden leg ... and then when we come together and say what we see and ... "Wow, I didn't see it like that until you showed me." (... and vice versa).

When the final thing is revealed,
we will all know clearly what it is and what it is for.

*

I'm not one of those creative people who feels insulted if someone doesn't understand what I'm doing ... especially since sometimes even I don't understand (until I do). And I don't think any question is 'stupid'. In fact I prefer when people have questions and bring them out. It means they are feeling or thinking about something ... and after our exchange, we both come away with wider vision and a greater understanding of not only the thing, but of each other.

S(m)oothing the Situation (with video)

Length: 36 seconds
Location: My friend Glens factory workshop

*

Press play and you will see the video. Press numbers in a certain combination and you will make a phone call to a particular person. Turn the right key in the right lock and you will open the right door. This is what I feel happens when I work on a window lamp. Each thing I do to it is like pressing a button to activate something similar which happens on a larger plane and another dimension.

For example, in the video, clip, I appear to simply be smoothing the rough surface of the window. However, this is symbolic of a larger occurrence. I trust that the rough aspect of a particular situation (to be revealed) which requires resolution is also being worked upon ... in ways that cannot yet be seen.
This is why I often call the window lamps 'three dimensional prayers'. The creation of each lamp is a series of visual intentions occurring in sequence to bring about a desired result. Sometimes the full intention is deep in the subconscious and I am not immediately aware of it - until, by going with the flow, I see the deeper meaning gradually unfolding before me. And sometimes the intention is very clear and focused, as with this lamp. There is no question for me as to what this lamp is about ... and yet, I still leave room for possibilities ... knowing that nothing is ever just what it appears to be on the surface. The lamp may be about even more than I think it is.

Intimation

I sat
At your feet
And listened to you.
You spoke in the wind
And the leaves rustling.

There, with birds and time passing,
I came to understand:

You are bigger than this.
You embrace wide spaces.
You hold life within you.
You are home.
*
Tomorrow we will go inside and the physical transformation will begin.

Smoke Ceremony (with video clip)

Late one afternoon, just before sunset, I went under the sapodilla tree, lit two sticks of Chandan incense and sat in front of the window playing my thumb piano. I was hoping for inspiration, since at the time, I didn't know what the window would be for. A short video clip capturing a snippet of that evening makes me think of an indigenous smoke ceremony ... for cleansing, healing and giving thanks. It is necessary to do that before we move forward with this project (or with anything for that matter ...)

We clear away what is no longer needed.
We invite what is.
We give thanks.

(Below video is only 38 seconds. Press PLAY to cleanse, heal and give thanks before we proceed).

A Divine Window (Lamp) of Opportunity

Last year I had said that The Soul Window (a.k.a. 'Window to my Soul (mate)') would be the last window lamp I would ever make ... but this has turned out to not be so. For those of you who don't know, for about a decade I have been making lamps out of the old windows of houses (I call them 'window lamps'). (You can read more about how I started making these lamps HERE). Hard to explain, but these are never just "lamps". I refer to them as 'three dimensional prayers'. Each window has a specific energy and purpose which, at some point in time, calls out to be manifested on the material plane. (Like us). That is how I've always felt it to be. The process of making each lamp is unique to that window and is an interactive healing process and experience on many levels (not just the physical) - for me, the recipient and those who follow the online documentation of the creative process. (In 2006 I started recording the process of the newer lamps online through words, photos, video and audio).

While walking early one morning about two weeks ago, I got the strong feeling to make a new window lamp, but I dismissed it because I had said I wasn't making any more. Then a particular phone call that very morning confirmed that I must. (That is just to show how the Energy and Spirit part of the window lamp process works). Luckily I had an old window stored under the house. So I immediately went and took it out, took it to the bottom of the garden and placed it under the sapodilla tree, where I washed it. The washing of a window is an important part of the creative process (it is a cleansing on many levels) ... and each window is washed in its own special way - in the sea, in a river, under a tap, with a hose ... etc. depending on the feeling I get for that particular window. (e.g. See here for photos/written account of the washing of one window, which became the lamp named "Serendipity").
Anyway, about the old window under the sapodilla tree. I felt strongly that I was being guided to make it into a lamp soon ... but I had no idea who it would be for. Then, very early yesterday morning as I sat quietly under a tree after my walk, it struck me with amazing clarity who and what this window was all about.

Soon I will reveal the name of the lamp and its important purpose. Please stay tuned. This is a very important lamp and your participation in this particular process will be invaluable and life-changing.

Thanks.

Elspeth

(As with the other window lamps, I will record the creative process/evolution here on the blog).

The Very Day of Love

Chookooloonks has spearheaded another postcard swap. Last time the theme was Beginnings. This time it is ‘Love’ (since Valentine’s Day is approaching). I made my cards on Friday evening. I will post them today so they'll reach to their destinations ‘on time’. By ‘on time’ I don’t mean for V-as-in-Valentine’s Day specifically. In this case, V-Day can stand for "Very Day". Each card will arrive on the Very Day it is meant to be received by that person.

Speaking of love and postcards … when I was leaving St. Lucia, I got to the airport a bit early. To pass my time, I went across to the beach and bought two of those little smoke herring and bakes and sat by the water eating them. I then returned to the airport and spent my remaining small change on a postcard and some stamps. The card featured two dolphins leaping together out of the ocean. It was so beautiful, I wondered who I could send it to. On the back I wrote: “Dear Elspeth …”. I can’t remember my exact words now, but basically I wrote a short love letter to myself, signed it: “Love, Elspeth”, addressed it to myself, stuck on the stamps and dropped it in the little airport post box.

I’ve been back in TT over two weeks and the card, which should have arrived by now, has not. Maybe it will come on the Very Day.

Well Being(s)

We want to find ways to convince you that the Well-being that you've been asking for is being answered. Your wish is granted. Now it's time for you to start accepting that it is done.”

Abraham-Hicks

Going with the Flow

The Flow people left a while ago. I have signed up with them for my internet and can once again enjoy wireless in the comfort of my room or wherever else I go in the house. I also like the name/meaning of "Flow" - in terms of life, energy, etc.

I will not be going with TSTT's internet service again. Every time my phone is down (which is too often for my liking), I lose internet service. It is inconvenient, especially as the phone can be down for weeks or months at a time (aka "3 - 5 working days"). At least with Flow (cable) I'm not dependent on the phone line.

My phone is still not working. In the past I would call TSTT at least twice a day to make reports or follow up, holding on to the line, getting angrier and more frustrated as time ticked by. I would also write letters to the TSTT superiors, hoping to get (but not getting) swifter action on the issue. But ... I have changed for 2008. I am (becoming) more patient and I am more open to a different sense of timing in general.

Since being back from St. Lucia (2 January) and finding a dead phone, I have made only two reports in total. And, rather than call, I went in physically to the TSTT office since that seems to take less time than calling 824-TSTT and waiting for someone to answer.

While it would be good to have my land phone back (so I don't have to keep running up cellular bills), I do not feel as ruffled and inconvenienced by its absence as I would have in the past. In fact, a few simple things I have done have contributed to a less frustrating and angering Trinidad for me:

1. I no longer read the papers
2. I do not allow the lack of TT service to ruffle me
3. I spend less time on the roads, only going out when I have to or really want to

Meeting bloggers for the first time

(Update: ironically this week's Sunday Scribblings is 'Fellow Travelers')

*

Today on her blog, one of Kikipotamus's meme answers was her post about the time we first met when I was in Toronto in May 2007. It made my heart feel warm and brought back such fond memories ... of not only a great six weeks in TO, but that great day of unfolding surprises and magic around every corner.

It is funny how in this modern age the internet is bringing together people who may never have met otherwise.

Yesterday I met the blogger Andreamuse for the first time. I think I first encountered her when she left a comment on my blog. She is a writer from Florida who had been seeking Trinidadian blogs because she and her husband were moving to Trinidad, where he would be lecturing at the University. What a small world. Last week when they moved here, the world got even smaller. Turns out she is living about fifteen minutes walk from me in St. Augustine! What are the odds of that?

I took her up to Mount St. Benedict, where we looked around for a while (the view, etc.) then sat under a cool tree eating snacks and chatting. It was great little interlude in my day ... not only because I was meeting her, but also because I was 'escaping' from writing a proposal which had me feeling agitated because I'm one of those I-wish-I-could-just-do-the-creative-part-and-let-someone-else-write-proposals-and-budgets kind of people.

Had to cut short the session on the Mount with Andreamuse to go to my appointment for a wellness massage (birthday gift voucher given to me by my parents last October). But we will meet again. Welcome to Trinidad, Andrea. I hope you find inspiration.

A second before (video)

Length: 32 seconds
Location: La Vega Estate, Trinidad
Shot on: Video function of digital still camera
*
Shadows shift in the sun
Lightly
Naturally
Effortlessly
Changing
Releasing themselves
Never to be again
As they were
Before.

So why ...
Do we stay there in
What we thought
What we were
What we felt
What we did
What we said
A second ago?

You are what you eat

Over the weekend I went to a friend's house to visit and have lunch. At one point we were standing at opposite ends of the room, chatting across the floor. "Oh, here!" she said suddenly, tossing a brown thing to me. It was the heart-shaped potato featured in these photos. She then gave me a heart-shaped rock and said she couldn't think of anything else to give me for Christmas (belated gifts).

She told me that she had been having a dinner the other night and the guests were all around, helping. She had dipped into the bag of potatoes to make some aloo and her hand pulled out the heart-shaped spud. She immediately thought of me (I guess because I'm always finding heart-shaped things in nature) and quickly hid it, before anyone else saw it and added it to the pot.

Last night I boiled it in its skin (to keep the heart whole) and, when it was done, sliced it into four, spread cottage cheese on each segment and sprinkled black pepper on the cottage cheese. I then ate it for dinner.

The date: 8th January 2001

Just a few days ago I realised that I had missed an important and life-changing date. The 8th of January 2008 marks 7 years since I miraculously woke up and stopped smoking and drinking alcohol and coffee. Never looked back and never got cravings. I believe it was yoga that did it.

Jan 8th 2005 is the day I started this blog ... partly out of curiosity and partly out of doing something to celebrate my miraculous anniversary. So I am now entering my 4th year of blogging!

Jan 8th 2005 on this blog.

Jan 8th 2007 - celebrating my anniversary of two things.

This week's Sunday Scribblings is "The Date"

I'm back

I got Satya back the next day with everything intact. It was an odd thing that happened - a CD I had put in her drive did not show up on the desktop and when I tried to eject, it would not budge. I restarted and was met with a frightening, white screen and no little apple indicating that Satya was booting up. To cut a long story short, the people at the mac place opened up Satya, got the CD out and Sat was working again. What a relief!

But ... I still decided to take a few days away from internet on the whole and it was good. Didn't go on at all. Spent time being quiet, spent time in nature, spent time tuning in. Would still not have been on were it not for clients sending e-mails which I needed to look at.

Rainbow seen on drive back from La Vega with Gab the other day.

Until further notice ... use telepathy

My footsteps, Toco
*

Dear All,

I will be taking a break from technology for an indefinite period of time. Satya, my laptop, is currently being diagnosed (an unexpected ailment). Thankfully her hard drive is intact but the exact nature of the problem is not yet clear. Please send her good vibes as the experts examine and work on her.

In her absence I don't think I will be going to internet cafes, etc. to update my blog, check e-mail, etc. I've already told my clients and my friends who e-mail me regularly that if they need me they should call me or use telepathy.

With my home phone also not working and TSTT nowhere in sight, my only form of man-made communication is the cellular phone. And even that ... lately some people are calling and not getting through - and when they leave voice mail messages, I am getting them a day or two later, if at all. So, unless you are telepathic, reaching me may not be as easy as it usually is.

I see this as the Universe's way of telling me to not depend on man-made forms of communication for now and to use the time to tune in more deeply and regularly to communication with my Self and the Divine. This must all be a part of the Universe's 2008 plan to get me to trust it more.

While I enjoy blogging daily and will miss it, being without technology can be freeing and enlightening. It is interesting to note what we focus on, return to and rediscover when we go 'back to nature'.

Not sure exactly when I will be back but I will be.

Take care and enjoy your experiences.

Elspeth

3rd song in my 2008 soundtrack

Love, thy will be done
I can no longer hide
I can no longer run
No longer can I resist the guiding light
It gives me the power to keep up the fight
Love...thy will be done
Since I have found you my life has just begun
And I see all of your creations as one
Perfect complex
No one less beautiful or more special than the next
We are all blessed and so wise to accept
Thy will love be done

Love, thy will be mine
And make me strive for the glorious and divine
I could not be more, more satisfied (satisfied�)
Even when there's no peace outside my window
There's peace inside
And that's why I no longer run (I don�t know�)
Love thy will be done

Love, thy will be done
I can no longer hide
I can no longer run (no�.)
Love, thy will be done
Thy will love be done

No longer can I resist (no..) the guiding light (guiding light)
The light that gives me the power to keep up the fight
I couldn�t be more satisfied (no�)
Even when there's no peace outside my window
There's peace inside
And that's why I can not longer run
Love thy will be done (thy will be done, done, done�)

Love, thy will be done
I can no longer hide
I can no longer run
Love, thy will be done
Thy will love be done

Love, thy will be done
I can no longer hide
I can no longer run (no, no, no)
Love, thy will be done
Thy will love be done�
Thy will love be done�
Thy will love be done

2nd song in my 2008 soundtrack

"Big Time Sensuality"

i can sense it
something important
is about to happen
it's coming up

it takes courage to enjoy it
the hardcore and the gentle
big time sensuality

we just met
and i know i'm a bit too intimate
but something huge is coming up
and we're both included

it takes courage to enjoy it
the hardcore and the gentle
big time sensuality

i don't know my future after this weekend
and i don't want to

it takes courage to enjoy it
the hardcore and the gentle
big time sensuality

First of 12 songs in my soundtrack for 2008

Now and then a song comes along which I can't help but play repeatedly - for days, weeks, possibly even months (mostly in the case of a whole CD) ... until my mood/vibration changes and requires a new soundtrack to accompany it.Above: singing and bopping to my January 2008 theme song. I love it: the words, sentiments, beat, melody, energy. Yesterday I must have played it hundreds of times for the day alone - and today will be similar. It speaks on so many levels, the way I see it: not just as one lover to another, but as self to self and the Divine to the human/vice versa.

Timely messages from the Labyrinth Angels

Went on a spontaneous jaunt with my friend Nisha to the Holy Trinity labyrinth yesterday. As we stood in the centre, we thought of Sally-in-Canada and decided to send some angelic messages for her ... and by extension, everyone who reads this.

This year contains limitless opportunities for happiness.
Be open to fully embracing, enjoying and experiencing those opportunities.
Fear not!
Keep looking up!
The sun is up
The stars are up
The moon is up
The clouds are up
The sky is up
We are up

We live in a gentle Universe.
All is well and as it should be.

Toco shadows (with haikus)

Paula (left), me (middle), Carol (right)

Stretching my body
Pulling down the sea curtain
Giving us some shade

Walking the tightrope
Fine line between sea and sand
Between shadow sun

“Where is her body?”

My levitating shadow
Asks of the ocean

Eleven platforms of my life

As I described before ... on the zip line adventure there were eleven wooden platforms high up in trees throughout the forest - for us to zip from one to the next (on cables strung through the trees).

Yesterday, as I gave more thought to my willingness to remain-open-and-patient-and-be-surprised-by-the-Universe, I felt that just ‘being open’ is not enough. For the Universal energy to work on my behalf I need to work with it. So, in keeping with my 2008 zip line metaphor, I used the eleven platforms as a template and identified eleven areas of my life as portals through which the Universal energy can flow. This does not limit or constrain the openness of the experience or the vastness of the energy/potential. It grounds it and gives direction and focus. “Ask and you will receive,” as the saying goes.

These are my eleven platforms (in no particular order, since all are important):

1. Self
2. Spirit/Spirituality
3. Love Life
4. Relationships (friends/family)
5. Career
6. Creativity
7. Geographical Location (travel/abode)
8. Recreation/Social Life
9. Learning
10. Finances
11. Health/Exercise

Further to making the list, I added details for each platform. As time goes on I may refine and adjust these details. ‘Remaining open to surprises’ means that, having outlined details for each category the way I see it … I will not dwell on them, wonder if or how they can be achieved or think that what I have written is an absolute. I am letting go, being open and trusting that:
(i) the Universe is already moving in its mysterious ways to manifest these platforms in ways that are best for me and my happiness – ways that may even be unknown to or unimagined by me
(ii) I do not need to worry. As with the zip line, everything is organized, my guides are with me and I can safely let go and enjoy the ride.

"Surprise me" is what I have said to the Universe

Propeller of the LIAT plane shot through dirty window on flight back to TT yesterday.
*

My focus this year will be me. As simple as it may sound, this is such a vast statement that I'm not even sure what it means or how to fully go about it.

TSTT has given me the first major clue. I came back yesterday to a dead telephone. I called 824-TSTT to report the problem and was kept holding the line for so long that I gave up. When I eventually get through I will no doubt be told that in "3 - 5 working days" a technician will come and look at it. From past experience this could mean three to five working months. Rather than get irritated and worked up, I will be patient and see this as a simple message to trust, communicate with and listen more to my internal self, my higher self ... and less with external people and sources.

In the midst of everything, this year I will strive to be patient. Patience is not one of my virtues, but I will make it one of my strengths. Lack of it leads to impulsive emotions, thoughts, words and (re)actions. There is nothing wrong with impulse, but I want my energies to pass through a filter of patience so that when they are released (whether impulsively or not) they are clear, focused and sure.

I have made no fixed plans for 2008. I will be an open vessel ... letting things come to me, rather than thinking of, worrying about or figuring out what I want or what I 'should' be doing or who I am or am not. This process can involve the feeling of being lost (a bit like how I feel upon returning) ... but I do not want to be afraid of or impatient with the 'lostness'.

"Surprise me" is what I have said to the Universe.

This involves patience, courage and trust ... being in the 'now' and not dwelling on the past or projecting into the future. It involves developing a solid core of 'me'. It involves being true to myself and constantly tuning in to what that means. It is an intense learning process on so many levels. Being true to myself involves the possibility of other people feeling/being hurt (albeit unintentionally) ... because in being true to the self there are elements that others may not like, agree with or understand. There are elements of my self that I also may not understand ... until I do.

Goodbye St. Lucia, hello Venus

(St. Lucia log: final entry)
Today is my last day in St. Lucia after what was definitely a worth-it trip. I feel rested, relaxed and renewed. I am trying to maintain this feeling and not think ahead, as I am wont to do, about returning to Trinidad.

While in St. Lucia, the differences between TT and St. L were glaring to me in simple ways: the polite, gentle people who cheerfully say good day whether you said it first or not ... the clean beaches and roads ... the rainforests where I didn't see a single plastic bottle, snack pack, KFC box, condom, name carved into a tree, cigarette butt, diaper, etc. ... the smooth roads ... the absence of towering buildings and rampant concrete, metal and glass construction ... the beautifully refurbished old wooden buildings ... the cool day breezes and unscorching sun (!) ... the smiling faces ... the lack of confused, aggressive energy and anger ... no bumper-to-bumper gridlocks! ... the absence of tons of burglar proofing on every window ... the respectfulness of men in general (no ogling at women, psssst, 'dahlin', etc.) ... only seeing one man urinating in a bush bythe roadside within a six day period ... the courtesy of drivers ... the cheaper prices ... and so on.

Increasingly I do not know what 'returning to TT' means. I feel numb and dispassionate when I think of it and, in order to return, I need to reconfigure. The other day, returning from Soufriere, I told Mel that even though I was born in Trinidad I don't feel that I am from there. She agreed (feeling the same) and asked me where I felt I was from. I said I didn't know ...

Then yesterday, as we were walking along the road to go home, a 'strange' man (vagrant-like, but not quite) called out from the other side of the road: "Where are you from?!"

He crossed the road to me and asked pointedly: "Where are you from?"

I told him: "Venus."

With a serious face, he continued: "When are you going back?"

"Tomorrow," I said.

He shook my hand, nodded and walked off.

Flying into 2008

One of our guides zipping along the cable.
*

Coming in for a landing on one of the platforms
*

2008 started on a high note, literally. Early this morning we went zipping through and above the St. Lucian rainforest on lengths of cable, strapped into individual harnesses with helmets and heavy duty hooks to suspend us from the wires. This worthwhile adrenalin rush is the Rainforest Canopy Zip line Adventure. It involves a ride up into the rainforest in a cable car, then a ten minute walk into the heart of the forest (led by our guide, Kennedy) to our first take off point.

There were eleven lengths of cable for us to zip along - some higher above the ground and longer than others. Your dominant hand must grip the cable, while the non-dominant hand holds the harness in front of the body. You push off from the platform, let go and zip through the greenery to the next platform. And so on ... until all eleven platforms have been encountered. The whole experience is great, lasting about 3 - 4 hours.

I will use this exciting excursion as a metaphor for 2008:
Journeys deep into the heart of the forest = journeys deep into the heart of the self.
The towering trees and cables = new heights to be reached and enjoyed.
Letting go of the platform = leaping into the unknown and using wings.

A zippy exciting happy natural heightened trusting new year.

Opening

Sky in St. Lucia