During this morning's meeting, I had the thought of how I could begin to sit with my experience more deeply, and that is to re-live the trip, day by day. I had the image of sifting through each day's experiences like a miner for the boon. Today's post will be the Friday/Saturday experience of the trip (Feb. 13/14) Thank you all by the way for teasing me about my worries about finding the boon :-)It felt like a dream to actually leave school early on Friday, say good-bye to the kids and bring my plans into action, but leave I did. I packed what I thought was too much stuff (and later I saw that compared to others, I had actually brought very little), and was ready when Lyle and Joel were ready to take me to the airport. I hadn't done anything like this (flying on my own), since going to Egypt/Israel so long ago in my early 20's. We had supper together, I gave my winter jacket to Lyle and we said our good-bye's (and said good-bye to Cal who called on the cell) and then I was on my own, heading towards the waiting area.
I met who I thought was a guardian in the waiting room, a couple from Winnipeg. When I told them I was a teacher on some PD to Mexico to see the monarchs, the husband began ribbing me quite a bit. "Oh, this is where our tax dollars are going hey?!" He also teased me that I didn't bring the right ID, and that I'd probably get bumped off the flight . I laughed along with him, but he didn't know the double edge of his jokes - that I already thought I was breaking the rules by going, the rules of proper procedure and "what a teacher should do" (especially according to my boss). It reminded me that I was going as a pilgrimage, called by God, not as a vacation with permission granted from humans. In many ways, before, during and after the trip, I have been challenged to claim my "true reasons", which is to say, claim God's hold on me rather than humans.
I felt privileged to meet Verda's co-worker while waiting in the TO airport for my
luggage, who told me about her brother in TO who was diagnosed with cancer. Terry was visiting her brother Tracey, and bringing a break to her mom who was worried about losing a second child (Terry's first brother had died suddenly only a few years ago). I felt like I could bring a bit of Watershed to her as I asked about her brother and told her I'd be praying for Tracey (who has since died, Verda said the other day). This felt like a meeting of the heart. She too was not on a vacation, but also a pilgrimage.
On Saturday morning, despite a bad sleep in the hotel, I made it to the airport and met my first traveling companions also bound for Mexico. All 7 of us were on the same flight. Linda's prayer from the little book of quotes from the gals had said, "Jesus be in my feet, in my hands, in my eyes, in all that I experience today," and it suitably framed the experiences ahead of me for the new day. I boarded the plane, and was greeted by a sniffer dog who must have smelled my newly acquired pesos. I thought perhaps he was another guardian, who asked the same question, "Are you sure you haven't broken the rules by coming?" The police told me, "It's all ok." Again, I was reminded to see the trip as the expansive prayer"God in all that I experience" rather than the fear based thought of "All that I've done wrong".
I felt God's mercy when, despite a bad sleep, I felt very peaceful and felt this focus to read Burroughs and start my novel, for a good chunk of the 5 hour flight. (I had not had this reading focus for a while.) Towards the end, I looked out the window and saw with a start, the Mexican mountain chain below. Walking through the Mexican airport was much more calm and peaceful than I had imagined, and we soon found ourselves in a taxi headed towards the hotel. I was happy that, though we were a bit later than I expected, the Monarch group had waited for us before heading out to the Anthropology Museum. I met Eric M., the host and guide of our trip. After stashing away my belongings in the hotel room, off we went, via another taxi. It was nice to be in a summer climate, though not unbearably hot. Comfortable t-shirt weather.
The tour of the museum, now led by Eric and Marcos our Mexican guide, was a suitable intro to how the days together would be - a lot of great teaching on Mexico's history and culture. It was more than I expected, and I (not a history/anthropology buff) found it interesting albeit somewhat overwhelming at times. I said later that it was like a really good documentary. I remembered some of the scenes from this very museum which Lyle and I had watched together from the Lonely Planet documentary. We learned about the Spanish conquest in the 1600's and about "Meso America", a term I had never heard before. I usually thought about Mexico as Spanish-speaking people, but of course there was a huge history before then, as there is of Canada before the Europeans, dating back to the Aztecs among many others. One of the scenes that stands out from the Museum was the huge Aztec calendar, which Eric explained we were all on, including the Creator at the center.
That night back at the Hotel, we gathered for our first meal together in the Hotel restaurant, and Eric gave us many intros and details about the trip. Introductions from each other would come in the morning on our long bus trip. At this point, I had this dull feeling in me of not wanting to be there. Too many new people (over 30) and I felt this sudden homesickness as the day felt overwhelming. Strangely, my phone card didn't work and the Internet room was locked for the day so I couldn't contact Lyle to let him know I got there safely. I chalked my homesickness up to just a full day, so I packed it in and it was a comfort to read over the next quote from the gals, which as each of them proved, was a great word to hear. Strangely, I can't find the little book at the moment, but I remember Bev's quote of a prayer for the new day, praying to bring God to all we meet. Again I was reminded of the focus being off my comforts or anything to do with "me", and that this trip was somehow a spiritual one, seeking the will of God. It was good to have the accompaniment of prayer, knowing that God was with me esp. in the prayers of you all, and that I could pray too.
P.S. I just about forgot that before I went to bed, my new friends from Ontario, Barry and Helen (who I felt more of a connection with in the days to come), and I went for a walk down a main street close to the hotel. It was bustling with activity (Valentine's Day and Saturday night), with street vendors and many people selling their wares including mothers who had their cute, poor looking children come up to us and ask us if we wanted to buy things. There were also many couples, including many gay men and women openly affectionate, which I found curious considering what I thought was a more conservative culture. Barry and Helen were good to walk with, just some kind souls. Incidentally, they may be spending a night or two with us this summer as they travel to B.C.
No comments:
Post a Comment