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Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2018 12:22 pm
by Christine
These days swirl by in an ever increasing beat of activity. I find an inner smile simply because I knew this was coming, the outward intertwine with the people I know here in this town we call home. I am pretty much at peace with it though I do confess a lingering longing for the bubble of energy we create being alone or wandering in the hills. We've managed to get out more lately as Spring is showing herself with clear blue skies, warm to hot days and trees turning green with new leaves.

That's my lead in to why I haven't found a crack in time to write and share on the forum. And a journey starts today so it won't be likely I can post for another week or so. We've been out to the little piece of land and it continues to speak to us, for the first time in months we took a long hike up the mountain behind us at sunset. It was so beautiful as we followed a narrow trail up to where the oak grow. There is a special light here that has called many artists to live in this hustle-bustle tourist town so to get away from the noise to some silence was blissful. We walked back down in the dusk as stars came out to blaze in the clear sky. Sitting on a large sun warmed boulder sharing a glass of wine gazing to the vault overhead all the stars came alive. Mars especially sent some intense jolts of energy recognition. Again the recall of communion in nature, the subtle energy fields open for those who listen.

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This past week was needing to take care of paper work, never fun dealing with the authority that resides in the bureaucratic registry of all things, we managed to maintain equilibrium though it certainly brings to awareness of how tight the grid of control is squeezing. I have a long article brewing but no time to get it all down on the keyboard and well those who walk awake know this well.

Ah, but love of creation is an ever expanding in the doing of Being. Much inspired by my talks with Niels Kunze my fairly large knowledge of botanical herbology and a life time study of natural medicine has sprouted again and we've been creating a skincare line that actually is more than skincare, it is natural beauty care that turns the whole body on ... We will have to find local outlets to sell our products because the restrictions and registrations are not hoops we want to jump through. Releasing a deep sigh as I write, all this hoopla seems so ridiculous and constricting. Free trade is a thing of the past unless you can duck beneath the radar.

I've started using some of the formulas and within days noticed a huge difference in my skin and a sense of well being, also using a special blend for joint and muscular pain relief on my mom with much success. As Minxie Coffeegirl (one of our cats Facebook cover) says: We often spend too much time talking and too little Being in the doing.

So, ta-da introducing Luminescent Botanicals and our soon to be created website luminescentbotanicals.com

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Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2018 8:42 pm
by Christine
There never seems to be enough time to post here on our forum yet I so often resonate in this field. Reading what others write is such a blessing and I can only wait for the rite time to sit at the keyboard to compose a reply. We returned from a sojourn to Guatemala for we needed to renew our visas, it is a trip we will only make again when there is ample time to linger. As we crossed over many rivers each called to us to return with a kayak and several months.

Too many photos to transfer here so please if you choose open the Earth Empaths blog ... some spectacular places we visited and it is always a joy to share the journey.


The Long Winding Road | Living with trust in all things
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Back home from our travels through the southern states of Oaxaca and Chiapas we find ourselves in a deep contemplation on the a juxtaposition with the requirements of unnatural life. For the simplest things are the most enjoyable such as sitting on the earth as the sun sets and the crescent moon rises. Home now we gaze at the embers of our fire, the remembrance of ancient time when there were no clocks only the revolving stars overhead and the days marked by the rising and setting of our sun in one continuum of flowing motion like waves that come to shore. It is with a bitter sweet delight that we share our recent road trip.
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Embers in our Anafre, a clay cook stove we brought home.
The long winding road of our recent travels is a metaphor for a journey together that has taken us to surprising shores. We left early in the morning, our destination the Guatemalan border, long hours driving that took us from the high peaks of seemingly endless mountains down to the Pacific ocean and back again.
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Mountains of Oaxaca, we drove for eight hours on a sinuous road to reach the Pacific Ocean.
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This land shares its primal power with us.
Every steep ascent brought with it the grandeur of a stunning view or we would come upon humble roadside establishments, for peppered along our route were rustic comedores, small shops of handcrafts and bright displays of regional food. Built hanging over cliff edges we couldn’t help but stop to take in the view or sample the food. Our first stop coming out of Oaxaca City after a night spent seeking refuge from a torrential thunderstorm was to find this stand selling fire distilled mezcal, Las Pencas Hablan. Easily understood in Spanish it roughly translates to “the root speak”, the penca of the Agave is the thick barrel like trunk that is used to distill mezcal and tequila, so if you drink enough you can hear the plant. We were offered generous samples early in the morning and will testify to the medicinal properties of a mezcal made from wild harvested Agave. Included in our morning fare were handmade corn tortillas, Oaxaca cheese and fresh eggs from the hens in the backyard.
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Las Pencas Hablan
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Traditional Mezcal with Gusano (worm).
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Mezcal with Rue, for aches and pains and stomach upsets.
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Agave nativa, we purchased a bottle of mezcal made from this wild harvested plant.
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Handmade corn tortillas on comal, the best I’ve ever tasted.
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Hens who laid the eggs we had for breakfast.
Taking a road not traveled before is a journey of magic and trust. Our silent communion during long hours of winding up and down mountains was all we required to slip into a space of the expansive fulfilling self, the one that has lived immortally and knows that what we see is but a small part of what we are. There exists within a sense of trust that all is as it always has been. We could forget for a few days the compression of a world going mad in consumerism, deceit and war.

We wound our way through largely uninhabited landscapes of abundant splendor and when we came to a village the people lived as they have for centuries cultivating a small plot of land, tending their sheep, goats, burros and horses, most still attired in traditional clothing and selling the fruits of their labor to the passing tourists. We heart felt that not all is lost to the modern mind set on acquiring the fleeting happiness of convenience that offers nothing of the real in its fake promise.

Later that day at one of the highest mountain villages we stopped at a stand where we purchased some honey and local grown chocolate. Our hostess a young woman with a baby on her hip took us down a steep trail behind her stand to show us the coffee plants, cacao and banana trees. A harmony of color, scent and sound.

Read more of our photo blog HERE.

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2018 12:53 am
by LostNFound
Such beauty and splender and the wonders of just being. Did you both venture to eat the worm after many drinks of the mezcal? I was told that eating one with the drink is all part of the medicinal treatment.

So great to see you back and thank you so much for sharing the journey.

much love
Steven

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2018 3:15 pm
by Christine
Thanks so much Steven, sharing is a mutual joy. No we didn't eat the worm but I will say that after four small shots of mezcal with breakfast we had a very happy day and actually didn't feel anything resembling an alcohol high. We took so many great photos and could really only post a few of the best. Here are two more and they really show the rural childlike nature of Mexicans, their sense of humor permeates everything. One photo we didn't get was a big semi with a slogan that said: "Tu envidia es mi bendición" translates to "your envy is my blessing"

Someday I would like to make a photo journal of Mexican trucks, they are amazing.

Much love ...

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LostNFound wrote:Such beauty and splender and the wonders of just being. Did you both venture to eat the worm after many drinks of the mezcal? I was told that eating one with the drink is all part of the medicinal treatment.

So great to see you back and thank you so much for sharing the journey.

much love
Steven

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2018 3:18 pm
by maggie
Christine wrote:The Long Winding Road | Living with trust in all things
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all the pictures were great and thanks for sharing your adventures. This one is so lovely of you... radiant.

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 2:08 pm
by Christine
And Life continues it's miraculous course... There is a current running through each and every thing, and that means each and every one of us. Having spent hours upon hours listening to the sage named Alan Watts where I almost always find myself nodding in agreement with I have recently uncovered a course, a stream, a current (call it what you like) and it carries me along. How that translates into daily life with mountains of work, daily house cleaning and the multiple tasks at hand is that I am finding a sense of serene surrender so my own energy is conserved even when physically tired I am still carried along. Grace in motion.

Coming soon ... making dreams come true.

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Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Fri Jun 14, 2019 12:58 pm
by Christine
Life in Méjico continues to unfold in unfathomable beauty. There are challenges met every day with an inner mirth of joy so I am feeling called to share one. Recently my heart is pulling me back to living in the country and the quiet voice of Spirit assures me that next year this shall be so. So many tributaries of friendships offered are running into one coherent channel of grace.

I want to share this seemingly little event. Even though I am busy at a pace I've rarely experienced there is an inner ocean of calm that gives allowance for long moments of sharing. This photo is my first country home in México which my daughter grew up in, she is now living there and will soon have title to the house and yard so she's working on restoring the property. I was able to be of assistance this week as we planted a long row of pollinating flowers and a new lawn was put in. It was so beautiful for as we placed the flowers we were immediately visited by butterflies and bees, the delight of seeing this was shared with her nine month old daughter sitting on a quilt laughing with us.

Today I received a message from her: "Hummingbirds in our yard!!!!! I can't believe they found us so fast."

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I have more to share though it may be a few more days before the time presents to do so. Meanwhile bee love, bee love, bee love ...

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Fri Jun 14, 2019 3:06 pm
by Professor Doom
Pics with furry friends? :)

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Wed Jun 19, 2019 11:40 am
by Christine
Professor Doom wrote:Pics with furry friends? :)
soon

Re: Our Life in Mexico

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 5:20 pm
by Spiritwind
I’m sure some who read here are wondering where Christine is, and why she hasn’t been around much. I got her permission today to share a few pictures and am happy to report that the vision she has for building community and keeping the momentum going for El Arbol de la Vida is slowly paying off and good things are happening there. Unfortunately for us, that also means she has very little free time, and what she does have is most likely spent in self care to make sure she has the focus and energy needed to stay the course. Hopefully, as time goes on, she will be able to give us an update herself. I encourage everyone to visit her website (the gallery has many awesome pictures of the store), and even pay a visit if you happen to be in Mexico.

It’s such a beautiful country, having been there a number of times myself. I would certainly visit if the opportunity came up. I’ve operated a small store with a similar vision, many years ago, so I know the commitment it takes. It’s like, you want it to grow and be vibrant, but then when it is, you become busier than ever! There are regularly scheduled events happening, allowing people to come together, network, share, and create a special space, and to me, that’s what it’s all about. Something each of us can do in our own special ways, and something vital for out times.

http://elarbolsanmiguel.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


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Mexican Corn - Yum!
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