Gratitude: Pura Vida Bliss

There are days, and today is most definitely one of them, when I wake up and look around me and almost can’t believe I’m not dreaming. I have to rub my eyes and pinch myself when I gaze out over the vista that greets me. The artistry of the creator, who and whatever it is, amazes me to inexplicable degrees. Nature is so enticingly delightful to my senses in every way possible. I feel tickled, sweetened, gooey and so ripe with love and grace in her embrace.

The perfect blue of the sky melts before me into the azure liquid bliss of the ocean held by the shore in the most epic curvaceous land formation known here as the Whale’s Tail. The sand bar merging with the black rocks creates the big tail fin a whale would slap on the surface. Those rocks make for fluffy white breakers that contrast the stillness of the tranquil blue water that eternally extends to the sky. I especially love low tide in the early morning when there is still a little bit of a misty haze floating over the ocean and the eye can’t detect where the ocean ends and the sky begins.

My heart stops for a moment and I take a deep breath, say an inner “WOW” and give thanks for all that has brought me to be here now. This year here has been the best by far. I have enjoyed it the most, felt the most connected, taken lots of time alone in solitude with nature and felt the most at home here. I feel so blessed to get to experience this place and to really sink into it’s rhythm, it’s grace, it’s ability to soften and wisen the heart just by being in it and allowing is a huge gift that continues to unfold every time I return.

I walk in gratitude today once again and welcome the continuing softening of my lotus heart as it unfolds to meet the grace of nature’s magical mystical musing.


==================================================================================
Great thanks to Josh Wendel for holding and manifesting the vision of Selva Armonia and for the opportunity to be involved and share this magic! The retreat center is well under way and we are inviting groups who are looking for space to host programs as soon as December of this year! If you know of people who are looking to host programs in Costa Rica, this is one magical piece of paradise with facilities for 15 people, and epic views that will have you WOWing every morning too! Magic, Mindfulness, Health, Harmony, Creativity, Music & Celebration of Life: It's what we're all about at Selva Armonia!

Jungle Muse: Drumming in Costas Rica

I am so blessed to be living in a truly magical place right now, nestled deep in the heart of the jungle perched up above the Pacific Ocean with a magnificient view of a land formation known here as “Coasta Baillena” or “The Whale’s Tail.” I’ve been coming to this magical place for 5 years now working with a good friend on a vision for a center for musicians, artists and conscious creatives to enjoy, learn, rejuvenate and practice the artistry of life in harmony with nature!

Part of what has continued to attract me and keep me interested in this place is the community that is growing and thriving here. There are people from all over the world coming here to work and live in a different way, a more sustainable, more “tranquillo,” more community oriented way that offers a much different quality of life than what modern mainstream society and culture seems to offer.

One of the things I’ve observed and resonated with in the people that I meet here is a deep appreciation for the simple pleasures of life: good food, good conversation, nature, and a real love and appreciation of sharing creativity, music and inspiration together as often as possible!!

Last night I went to visit my friend Andrew’s finca (farm) just down the road from Selva Armonia for a little pizza party he throws there every Friday night in the jungle. Interestingly enough, Andrew and I met almost 10 years ago in North Carolina in the African Drum and Dance community in Asheville. When I first came here, 5 years ago, I thought it was pretty groovy and synchronic that Andrew lived on the same road that Selva Armonia was on! I took it as a very good sign to already have at least one drumming buddy here!

The pizza party happens all around the tiny little fire fueled clay oven with just a few benches and a grassy hill to lounge on, and with about 20 people showing up for a nite of sharing in the jungle, roots style, there was a good amount of energy and love to bask in!

For me, there is just something so incredibly magical about playing in the dark of night, nestled deep in nature, far away from city sounds or distractions. It allows the real me to surface effortlessly, especially once a drum comes within my little wild hands, and even more so when a few other experienced solid players emerge to groove with me! Being immersed in nature and playing music allows us to become deeply connected to the earth’s energy in a very powerful way. Tribal people of course have known this forever. For me, the experience is always a direct portal to blissful union with God, self and others. When that pocket of connectivity really anchors itself thru all of the players present, it seems that nature responds and unites with us, and thru us and the wisdom of harmony is transmitted through the ethers, resonating thru the stars!

There were moments last night when I could feel the insects pulsating in sync with our playing, the nite birds chiming in on the spaces that were there between beats, and all of nature totally in the groove with us. The only light was a few candles they were cooking pizza by and the clay oven’s flame behind us. The stars above were brilliantly dancing and fully be-dazzling me with their star songs. The moments of transcendance from linear time and space that music seems to create, granted me refuge, sanctuary and freedom from all of the monkey business of the mind and it’s stories!

Bliss is pretty much a given for me in moments like these where good people are together in nature sharing in the simple pleasures of life, opening our hearts to each other, the cosmos and our own divine reflections of grace and wisdom. So grateful for the opportunity to share in the Jungle Muse!

Oneness Gathering: Costa Rica

The Oneness Gathering/Bioregional Council was held on Sat Mar 19, 1-4pm, Hotel Angelus, Perez Zeledon. I was invited to attend to host a Full Moon Muse Drum Celebration with the community and also was there to represent and share about what we are up to at Selva Armonia, in Uvita. Beyond all of that, though, I was curious and excited to meet the larger community here in Costa Rica of activated like minded people who are living in a different way for so many valid and good reasons! It has been such a blessing to come down here and see what's going on, but I've been so busy working most years here, that I haven't had a chance to get into the larger community to meet others and explore other projects. I was excited to have this opportunity to connect and get a bigger picture of the who's, what's, how's and why's going on in SW Costa Rica Pura Vidaville!

And being an event organizer also, I was impressed that they were expecting 50 people for the event as I know how hard it can be to get people to show up to even the most amazing of events!

So, my first piece is Gratitude: "Thank you and Great work" I say to the organizers of the Oneness Gathering! The bringing together of brilliant minds, elders and youth, open hearts and a willingness to unify with a strong foundation and clear intention can only hold goodness and unlimited possibilities for more goodness! The last count I did just before sunset had the group at about 45 people, and I think a few more showed up during the drumming and Full Moon Muse I hosted after the presentations were over!

It was inspiring and affirming to see the strength that has gathered and anchored in this area of Costa Rica to work on sustainable living practices, personal growth and living in harmony with a higher calling. Solid, mature, connected hearts and committed minds from all over the world shared their projects in the circle, resourcing and sharing their gifts together in a circle. There were a few Tico's present, and my hope is that there are more coming to share with us their experience and knowledge as I feel strongly that the integration of those who have lived and grown here for centuries with the new comers is a vital piece that absolutely must happen in order for total harmony and sustainability to thrive.

The Full Moon drum celebration was super high energy and really a sweet way to cap of the day of presentations and discussions. The following morning, those who stuck around for the night shared in a beautiful heart opening cacao ceremony together, sharing in the truth of our radiant and tender hearts! The photo here is that group post cacao, and the bliss and love were sent out to the whole world through the jewels of our expanded heart lotus blossoms!

I feel blessed to have been invited to participate and to have been there representing Selva Armonia and I look forward to the next event and the unfolding of the love and magic and sustainable efforts that is definitely in full swing here in SW Costa Rica. Thanks to all who attended and participated and shared! It was such a joy and a blessing to see so much amazing reflection and empowered essence of humanity in one place!


Here is the description the organizers posted on the event:

The circle process will welcome and bless the joined intention of individuals, fincas, communities and groups as we move into “new earth consciousness.” We will share a “seed/seedling exchange,” as a way of introducing ourselves and clarifying our purpose as stewards of our amazing bioregional habitat. As we step together into an ever-accelerating time of transformation, we put our commitment to Oneness ahead of any personal or political differences.

The circle will be facilitated by a leadership team that includes Chema, designer and developer of Casa Tordesillas, Desiree Wells, facilitator of permaculture and earth building at Finca Fruicion, Louis Bourgeois, Founder of the OASIS Center for Conscious Living, and Don McDougal, ambassador for the ManKind Project in Central America.

Practical questions that will be addressed include: who are we? What are we looking to accomplish as communities, fincas, and groups? How can we support each other as spiritual family? (ie seed exchange, tool sharing, etc.) How can we as a bioregion function as a cohesive network? (collaboration vs. competition)

For more info, contact Louis Bourgeouis on Facebook!

Bird Song Bliss

The soft billowy mists are rising out of the lush green valley in front of me as toucans, parrots and an orchestra of bird and insect songs awaken me again in the remembrance of the joy of life that nature is always expressing.

How can I not awaken in joy hearing this most beautiful jungle song?

The jungle is such a sweet reminder of how life loves to express itself, and the magic of each new day bringing yet another opportunity to invite life to move and live itself through me. Each place I visit and sleep holds it’s own unique sonic vibration, and I feel like I am learning peace and experiencing bliss in more profoundly unique ways in each one of these magical places. Last nite, there were night sounds I hadn’t heard yet, and I floated into such a deep dreamstate on a sonic carpet that pulsated through me, calming every cell of me before taking me effortlessly into the dreamtime. It is possibly my favorite thing about living in Costa Rica: being so close to and surrounded by jungle. As a musical and expressive being, the expression here is so comforting and so mystically entrancing, I simply can’t get enough. I open my whole being to the vibrations here, allowing them to massage every piece of me, mind, body and spirit and the sensuality it awakens in me goes beyond my ability to express in any cognitive way.

The more time I am in the heart of nature, the less appealing modern culture becomes. The birdsongs alone here in the mornings have captured a piece of my soul that nothing in modern culture, no eye candy or ear candy, can ever come close to enticing or stirring in me. Sitting here now, I am watching myriads of them show up, brightly splashed in brilliant colors, two here with a wave of blue perfectly painted on it’s wings and a yellow head are climbing up the thatch roof and just landing now in front of me now with a whirlwind of blue, two magical little tweeters that look like they’ve been dipped in the dawn’s softest blue hue.

How can I not be totally impressed by the artist who has created this diversity and beauty? Their songs fill the air, my heart is busted open in love and gratitude that I get to experience this bliss, this truth of simple beingness that is available for those of us who have the courage to explore and seek out the reality that goes far beyond the maya that modern culture is trying to brainwash us with.

I’m in love and nature has brought me home again, as she always does, to the truth of who I am. In her embrace, I soften and crack open. I find stillness is easy and my mind rests. Joy is natural and spontaneous just in the listening. Then opening the eyes to feast on the curvaceousness of the rolling green hills and soft emerald green of the forest is a feast of delite! In her magical playground I find true solace, comfort and the remembrance of the joy that life holds intrinsically when we just live connected to the experience of life and let life move thru us. She grants me space to feel nurtured in the midst of these times when it seems much of the “human creation” is showing up to be, for me, a game I am not so interested in indulging in anymore.

She welcomes me home over and over with open loving arms and moments of magical mystical bliss. I pray and she responds in a flower or a bird or a song. I open and she fills me fully with the truth!

Volcan Baru

SUNSET:

My legs are still a bit stiff and my heart and mind still full of magic and love after a journey to Volcan Baru in Panama with a new friend from the Envision Festival weekend in Uvita, Costa Rica. The journey to Panama from Costa Rica took us thru the Osa Peninsula on a bit of side trip to hike around Drakes Bay for a few days before crosing the border into Panama. Having been to Drake's Bay 2 years ago, I was happy to bring friends there and share one of my favorite places in Costa Rica. Two years ago, this is where we did the Dolphin Drumming trip with Wild Dolphin Journey's (Marta MacBeth), so it was really a sweet treat for me to revisit the area and love it up again!

We did a mellow and magical day hike there with pristine beach after pristine beach and rocky craggy palm studded shores greeting us on every turn. We saw lots of white faced monkeys dangling about the treetops, mischeviously spying down on us as we gazed up at them: I couldn't help but think "monkey watching monkey!" From Drakes Bay we journeyed to Puerto Jimenez, crossed the Golfo Dulce to Golfito and bussed to the border, then straight on to David, Panama. From David, we headed to Boquete, which surprised me in how charming and quaint it was. The little central square was all lit up with Christmas lites, and there was this very gentle vibe there that was welcoming and endearing in a way I somehow hadn't expected. We found a hostel that rented camping gear, run by a Colorado smoosher, had a little rest and got up to hit the trail for the Volcano the next morning.

We were warned that it was an "intense" hike, even for Coloradan's, by a Colorado native, and indeed it was. I have done some pretty intense hikes, 14'ers, and the likes, and can say honestly that this hike was up there with one of the more challenging hikes I've done. Definitly not THE most challenging but it ranks probably in the top 10, ,mostly because of the length of the hike in one day being 15 km (and about 14 of it a fairly steep vertical incline), and the vert of the whole thing from start to finish being pretty steep.

The bus dropped us off 2 km before the entrance to the park and just that first 2 km was a pretty good indication that we were in for some serious uphill climbing. The road part was sweet though, and took us past native Panamanian homes with women and children in brightly colored traditional garb and men playing soccer in the fields. The hike itself was nothing so great, definitly pretty terrain, rolling hills, oaks and towards the top more thick forest, but not a lot of vistas and the only wildlife we saw were lots of little sweet song birds.

The last few kms to the campsite were more or less brutal and had me in a deep state of mind over matter, my mantra became: "I am not my body." The campsite was about another 1 km from the summit and when we got there, the mists were heavy and thick, it was cold and I was not feeling like I was going to peak the summit, my feet were blistering, and my knee was tweaking and I told my hiking partner to head without me. I didn't think he'd see much anyway with the heavy mists falling. Of course my curiosity and adventurous spirit kicked in when the sun peaked out of the mists again and I trekked behind him weary but strong willed!

We peaked the summit just about at sunset. The cloud formations and sinking mists were gloriously mesmerizing and so enchanting it was hard to really want to do anything but bask in the beauty of it and rest in the moment. We sat quietly in awe of the everchanging scene in front of us, weary and I was filled with deep gratitude and grace. Such a gorgeous shifting vista as the clouds lifted and dropped into the lush green valleys beneath us.

Apparently, many people hike up over nite, see the sunrise, then book it down. I just can't see the point in that to be honest, though I guess if people don't like to camp and want to see it, they've got to do it. After such a gruelling hike, to just turn right around and go down would feel to me like torture. Not that I wasn't tortured in my own way: I laid awake all nite freezing in a thin cotton sleeping bag at almost 12000 feet (it wasn't freezing but probably not much above it), tossing and turning on rock hard ground too overworked to fall asleep! But atleast not having to turn right around was some form of rest and comfort for my body. And sunrise the next day was well worth losing a night of sleep!

SUNRISE:

At dawn we could see both oceans, the Pacific and Atlantic, and a beautiful cover of clouds hovering above the earth. I offered prayers to the earth, cuddled in all the clothes I could find with cold wind blasting thru me, and strong warm arms of my friend reminding me of how much love there is in this world when we are ready to receive and give in return.

Such a delightful way to start a day with a birds eye view of the world and the love of all life pulsing thru me!

Glorious experience, if you ever get to Panama, I highly recommend doing the hike! Take your time and catch both a sunset and sunrise: it's really worth it and the views are so different depending on the cloud cover and time of day you catch it