Southwest Spirits Calling Part 3

...continued from Part 2
GPS is an excellent tool for navigation but we decided to follow something even greater…our intuition. And so hitting the reset button, we tossed out our travel plans and decided to follow our  hearts northward.  Clearly we were meant to be the learners and not the teachers. I had thought the purpose of this trip was to raise awareness in others, it is why I wrote the book about the struggle of the wild horses and burros – it was why I had traveled so far…or was it?

Although mankind feels he has the right to disrupt nature, often it pushes back, like the herd of Bison that halted the traffic in Yellowstone National Park.  Or the spectacular falls that hurdle forward while a rainbow danced upon the surface. It's in those moments when we are reminded that we are but one species on this planet.

My daily meditations continued to bring me heightened awareness and particularly about water. The drought that has come upon the parched land is far reaching and seems to be getting worse.

Meditation:  I see shimmering water that forms an image of a man.  He is bare chested, dark skin, maybe Italian or Mediterranean olive skinned. Something hangs around his neck and he wears a camouflaged large brimmed hat that looks like a ranger hat or Mountie hat. He is comparing the beauty of Colorado and Arizona. He now hands me a slip of paper with something scribbled on it, lastly he signs his name large and I can't make out anything but Arizona and WASTE. It ends.

As I have traveled the country I am astonished by the over-consumption of water for lawns and golf courses in the desert. There is a water crisis yet people continue with recreation and beautification projects that guzzle up gallons every day. Sadly this will continue unless we make changes. During this trip my water meditations brought about a change in my attitude toward my own use of water, the lessons must begin within.

Onward we traveled driving 9 hour days to reach the next watercolor/book signing event. We are good traveling companions, you HAVE to be, and it is another lesson in sharing space, not only the land but our living space. We were attentive to each others needs working as a team as this felt very natural to us. There was a lot of discussion regarding everything we were experiencing yet, we were reminded daily to stop and stand in silence. This silence allowed us to hear the messages brought forth from the earth. Majestic mountains that told us to, "Stand fast in all you believe and reach for the sky ever upwards."  The beauty of the land seemed to encourage us and embrace us pushing us forward saying, "Yes, you are a part of ALL of this."

 

And where would this journey take us? To the smiling children of the Arapaho/Shoshone Nation who waited eagerly to listen and to learn. With welcome arms they allowed us to share the simple gift of art. Had we not ventured to this middle-of-nowhere land in Wyoming, we would never have met these remarkable Native Americans known as the HORSE PEOPLE. I may have come the teacher but I left the student.

We enjoyed this part of the trip so much we hated to leave, but we had one last stop in Colorado. With an hour to spare we pulled into a cafe, and a good thing too, as an unexpected Tornado dropped in for a visit. Wow! Again nature was in control and all we could do was watch as the sky darkened and all ran for shelter. Would our event be canceled? Slowly we made our way to Zuma's Rescue Ranch thinking we would just say, "hello" and "goodbye" as surely no one would venture out. We were stunned when the students took their seats as if to say, "We are here to learn, we will stand fast and together we will make what we can of this day." We shouldn't have been surprised as this organization is dedicated to helping abused horses and broken children heal.  Looking around the class at the different genders and ages I was reminded that this lesson is for ALL people. No tornado will ever stop the needs of others nor should it stop us from lending a hand.

And so this adventure came to an end as we began our trek home and pondered all we had learned. By following our intuition we found ourselves naturally drawn to helping others. The Southwest Spirits brought us a lifetime of lessons about compassion, listening and assisting wherever we could. By quietly going within we heard them introduce some new voices ...Northern Spirits that said, "Enjoy this for now and savor all you have learned for there are many more roads ahead."

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To learn more about meditation please read Meditation Mojo