040515_Festival of Eostre/Returning Sun/Resurrection

Festival of Eostre (Anglo-Saxon goddess of fertility)

Festival of the Returning Sun

Festival of Easter/Resurrection (Christian)

Dennis and I have made our home in Cotacachi, Ecuador; we've been here for four months. Ecuador is - at least nominally - 98% Roman Catholic. Though in recent years there has been a large influx of many other forms of Christianism. Today is the Sunday of Resurrection, the most important "feast". Dennis and I walked all over town this morning. We found a great breakfast at a local restaurant of Huevos Rancheros with guacamole and pico de gallo (I) and a breakasft burrito of huevos revueltes with torcino (bacon!). And good coffee:  yum!

There were very few people about mid-morning. We heard the church bells at the main church in Matriz Square; but it seemed that almost no one was around (or in) the church. I've asked locals if many people "go to church"; they say not too many.

But of course, Roman Catholicism has been part of the culture of Ecuador and of Latin America since the Spanish conquest, including the indígenos peoples. As with most such situations, the pre-christian religions remain in many ways part of the cultural life.

Good Friday was memorable! I had a terrible cold, but Dennis and I, with my new, excellent Canon high telephoto lens camera, went of to Matriz Square, where the main church is.

We got there about 9:15am. I would say that there were maybe 50 people there, most sitting on the church steps. The people from this church were getting ready for the procession.

The Shrine particular to this church - Neustra Señora de los Dolóres - was almost ready, the last flowers (including beautiful antherium) being put in place. The young people, mostly indigenous young women in their traditional dress, and young men dressed in white, were getting ready. The shrine is carried on the shoulders by (I think) specially chosen men, for whom it is an honour. I don't understand or speak enough Spanish (yet!) to be able to find our when these statues were made; my guess is sometime in the 18th to 19th centuries; none of them looked old enough to be 17th or older, but of course the style is from that period.

About 10am, the procession left the square, to join up, I was told, with other processions from other local communities, all of whom have their own particular version of the Virgin, or other saints, or various depictions of Jesus. 

In the next hour and a half, the square slowly filled with people. Unlike my experience in North America, the atmosphere on this Good Friday was not solemn or meditative. It was rather carnival-like. There were actors in white-face acting out a play; no one around me could tell me what it was about. There were lots of people selling every kind of food: coconuts, corn, candy, pizza, candy-apples, helados (Ecuadorians are very fond of ice cream and ices - they are sold at all bus and other terminals, and vendors get on all the buses selling things to eat), cotton candy, chicken, etc. Families sat and talked and laughed and ate. Vendors were selling balloons, flags, shirts, hats. 

One thing that interested me was that, unlike other such religious events in other part of the World, I never saw, either in the square, the procession, or the church, any priests or other clergy at all. I wonder why?

Slowly the number of people in the square grew. By 11:30, I would guess there were about 500 or more. Then a procession with Roman-soldier guards, Jewish High priests, etc appeared, and Jesus dragging the cross, followed by Joseph of Arimathea, and the women, one carrying the cloth with the face of Jesus imprinted on it. 

Another large cross was lying on the ground in front of the church. There was a rather charming (I thought) moment when a little boy came up and used it as a road for his toy truck; there was a nice meditation in that!:

Jesus - yes, a real person acting the part - was stripped, and then placed on the cross. It was lifted up and placed in the ground. After a minute or two, a microphone was raised to Jesus' lips, and he uttered the words "Father, forgive them". People were crowded all around. He was then taken down, and wrapped in a sheet, and taken away towards the local cemetery.

I was watching people. One never knows what is going on in peoples' hearts, I guess; but I saw no one who seemed moved by this portrayal of the crucifixion. People took pictures. As soon as it ended, the festive mood continued. In the church, a large crucifix was placed in the middle of a canvas painting that had the two other crucified thieves on it. I saw only a few people go in. Again, I couldn't help but reflect on the very different mood that has been the "norm" in all the decades I led congregations in the keeping of Good Friday.

An hour went by. Then I looked up the main street, Simóon Bolívar, and saw a huge mass of people and many shrines coming down the street. By the time that all these came into the main square and into the surrounding streets, I would guess that there were perhaps 5000 or more people. Here are some pictures:

I had a strong sense of the tradition, of there communities gathering, with pride in their communities and in the saints and shrines they lovingly made and cared for. Some of these people had carried and accompanied their shrines kilometers from their pueblos, and I was told that they carried them back with some not arriving back until the early hours of the morning.

We didn't stay in the square; we went to lunch and had our "traditional" Friday Fish & Chips at Trebol, a wonderful tiny restaurant owned and run by Eric (an American) and his wife Patricia (Ecuadorian). That night, Dennis and I didn't hear much late music - a loud norm on many weekends!

Sábado Santo was quiet. About 4pm, we set out for The Bar/El Bar; it's owned by an American and a great musician, and his daughter Kassi runs it. (and she knows how to make the perfect Black Russian for me!) We had heard that a fine fine group of young indigenous musicians, whom we have heard before, were playing. They were terrific: they play (and each of them seems to play several instruments) traditional Andean flutes, and modern guitars (electrified), and one an amazing high-tech modern electrified violin. In my opinion, they could play anywhere in the World they are so good and so creative. They then went to Matriz Square, where a big stage had been set up, with huge screens, etc. Dennis and I and our new friend Candace followed. 

Those of you who know me well will know that I can be uninhibited! So, as they played (their music has a kind of disco heart-beating beat, but slower) Candace (who is "our age", with flaming red hair with a feather in it, cowgirl skirt, soft-leather cowgirl boots with Navajo ankle bracelets) and I (your near-69 year old plump guy in Colombian pants and Ecuadorian shirt), alone in front of a crowd of local people, danced away! It was great! When the next piece started, a small circle of young indigenous people formed a circle and started to dance. They moved one way, turned, and went the other. Candace and I joined them; they made an opening for us. Then, when the next piece started, they formed another circle ... only this time it had several rings, and they moved in different directions. Some had little babies. We joined in. No one said anything to us .... but I like to think that they were happy to see us "expats" sharing with them. I certainly felt delighted to participate in the life of our new home!

It's the afternoon of the Sunday of the Resurrection/Sun Return/New Life as I write. Dennis and I had a long walk through town and then home. I've gotten the fountain going, and we are drinking vino tinto. Soon it will be time for a Black Russian on the back gallery. We'll be calling family. By then, the fabulous pork shoulder that Dennis has had simmering in the slow cooker for hours will be ready, with his home-made corn tortillas, and we shall have a fine dinner of which Elizabeth David and M.F.K. Fisher would be proud!

I think Dennis and I are suited to be here in Ecuador. We are flexible; we understand that change is the only constant in Life and that changing and adapting makes Life an Adventure. We are open and willing not to try and impose a former Life on our Life here. And we are willing and able to appreciate what presents itself to us here. 

Whatever path you are following, may it open to you new vistas for a richer, deeper, more free and accepting Life! Especially if you are our age .... it's easier to "let go" !!

02252015 - On words from e.e. cummings

e. e. cummings wrote:

We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that something 

deep inside us is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, 

sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, 

wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit.

Every now and then, a human being - if we are fortunate - will come along and do this for us. But, it will be a temporary thing. In some way, every human being will disappoint us ... that is the nature of humanity. Ourself included.

The need we have to be affirmed of our value, our "worth listening to", worthy of our trust, "sacred" in our minds and feelings, is why we invent "God". "God" does, will do, all those things for us ..... and never betray us. 

If, of course, one has invented the right deity. There's the rub.

Alas:  there is, in the World today, only a remnant who know such a deity and who follow the way of love and acceptance and affirmation. Most give only lip service; their actions betray that the god they know has essentially betrayed them.

+++++++

Cotacachi has been lovely these past few days. A little rain (and it is the rainy season), but lots of blue sky and warm sun. We have been here nearly 3 months now, and are glad we are here. It is a very freeing thing to get completely out of one's setting and "risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit". 

My decision not to watch "news" is a real part of this freedom.

Here you can buy these wonderfully comfortable cotton pantaloons; I like the bright colours! (It's difficult to take a selfie of one's lower legs!)

We finally got the fountain going ... I really enjoy the sound of the water, and this fountain reminds me of the Piazza Navona!

02152015 - My Father Jim McHugh, on his 98th Date of Birth

It's Sunday, Feb 15, 2015. Dennis and I heard fireworks last night in Cotacachi; Carnival is going on, to climax on Monday and Tuesday, before Christians begin Lent. So far, all I've seen are little kids with spray cans, running around squirting adults with a white foam ... and a few school kids throwing water balloons and balloons of a white powder. We'll see what happens on Monday and "Fat Tuesday" before Ash Wednesday!

Today's my father's 98th anniversary of birth. I really didn't know my father; we had very different temperaments, I was gay, and I "left home" at 16 really when I went to university, and then left to live for the next 47 years in the USA. I saw him perhaps once a year until he died in 1996. Anyway, I remember and honour him on this birthday. I think he was a handsome young man.

Here is my Dad, age 24, in the uniform of the Royal Duke of York 17th Hussars

and here with my mother in Verdun, I think before they were married, c. 1940

At my brother Allan & Sheila's wedding, 1972

here, about 1997, with my brother Allan, in Markham ON

I am now a Permanent Resident of Ecuador; I got that 2 weeks ago, and last week got my Cédula, the National Identity Card that every citizen and resident has. Dennis is still getting some documents, so hopefully he will have his visa and Cédula in the next month. 

In late June, we are planning to travel. If all works out, we will go to Santorini for about 10 days; and I hope to visit the island on which the poet Rupert Brooke was buried. Then a week on the Italian coast. And then a train trip from Athens, dropping in Germany whence came Dennis's family, and on to the English Lake District and the Scotland. 

I'm reading Somerset Maugham's Of Human Bondage". Ever read it?  Depressing!! 

In my opinion, the "protagonist", Philip Carey, is one of the most stupid, self-abusive characters I've ever come across. If I were reading it in a book and not on my iPad , I'd have thrown it across the room!

012915 - Madge McHugh; Cotacachi Garbage Trucks

Yesterday was the 94th anniversary of my mother's "cumpleaños". She was born on Jan 28, 1921. Here is her Cradle Roll Certificate at Taylor Presbyterian Church, Montreal, and a picture of her, in Montreal; I'm not sure exactly where it is - people moved around a lot within the city, Verdun, Rosemount  -  and I'm guessing she is about 6 or 7. She is sitting with her mother, Margaret Harker Angell.

Here she is at about age 21, in Montfort, Quebec

And here she is with my father in 1972 at my brother Allan's wedding to Sheila Parsons

I left Canada in 1967, age 21. After that, I saw my parents maybe once a year. I didn't really know them. The image in my mind of my mother is somewhat mythological. She represented, and still does, gentleness and a natural kindness, and, somehow, vulnerability, as well as a certain strong inner sense of reality. It was good to think of her yesterday!

Getting to know another country and culture and people is really interesting. Dennis and I now live in Cotacachi, Ecuador. Lots of other "expats" live here too, and in this town of (I am told) about 8000 people, English is heard a lot on the streets. All my Life, I have embraced the maxim Comparison is odious. Here, I try hard not to compare what's here to what it is like other places I have lived. Yesterday someone was "complaining" that the local lunches were "the same", and why couldn't restaurants do things differently .... meaning why can't they make food the way "WE" would like it. I say nothing. I just want to be open to the way it's done here.

Ecuador is a Catholic country .... though there are many other forms of religion. Every Wednesday early evening, over loudspeakers that can be heard throughout the town, there is the recitation of the Rosary, accompanied by "contemporary" music. It goes on for about a half hour. Loudspeakers are part of life here! Many things are part of public life here that just aren't in most of North America.

The other thing are garbage trucks. They start collecting before 6am around town ..... and they play loud music! Someone told me that it's to warn people that the trucks are coming, and to get their basura out if they haven't already. Good idea; for one thing, if you out it out early or the night before, the large packs of dogs that roam Cotacachi have it all over the place! Interestingly, one seldom sees cats. Someone told me that cats are eaten here .... that may be an "urban legend"! Guinea pigs are apparently eaten in Ecuador ... but I haven't seen it on a menu yet!!

So:  Happy 94th Mum. I hope your atoms are enjoying their journey being redisbursed throughout the Universe. And Ecuador:  I'm looking forward to living here and learning about and getting to appreciate the way Life is lived here!

01222015 - Coffee & Reflexology in Cotacachi

Well! Catching up. Dennis and I had a nice trip to Mindo last week. It's touted as a great birding area, but I must say that I think I didn't do enough research. There was a nice place called El Descanso, where we could watch birds from the balcony. Great hummers and tanagers. I think I need to find out from my friend Martin, wh has friends who come to Mindo frequently, how to do it better the next time! (We had van trouble on the way back .... broke down in Quito; but we managed by taxi and bus and got home without much stress!

Today, I am waiting for Dennis; he is having reflexology; I'll go after him. Then we will try a new place for lunch! I'm having a Caffelatte at Cafe Rio ... excellent place.

I'll write more later today. And Oh:  we are actually looking at a little house to perhaps buy! It's "in construction" now; right in town, part of a 6 appartment, 3 story place. Stay tuned!!

B

01102015 - The Drama of Illness (Intestinal!)

Well, Friends. Want to know what the last week has been like?? Well, here it is. Proving:  An Adventure has its challenges. Hope all who read this are well and enjoying Life. We are thinking of our friends Theresa and Patrick; Patrick developed an infected foot; much of it had to be removed! So look after yourselves! Love to you all! Blessings in 2015!

~~~~~~~~~~

I am now feeling better, as, for the first time in days, I am sitting at the laptop and not languishing in bed! Though I wanted to be said languishing because yesterday, after much carry-on, our ropa de cama electrico arrived via DHL from the States. Dennis took the bus to Ibarra [we travel by bus; 45 minutes to Ibarra costs 45 cents] and found the DHL facility and brought it home. We should, of course, have brought our electric blanket  with us, but we had no room, since we sold everything and moved with 2 suitcases. Now, I do not like piles of bed clothes on top of me (Dennis doesn’t mind); I am glad that he has “adjusted”! In bed at night here (as the house has no heating/cooling) it is cool. (Other things we should have brought are flannel sheets!) Last night was perfect! Toasty warm … and adjustable. And, after some soup for dinner, followed by 3 short bouts of diarrhea, I slept through the night until 7:30am. 

I had had diarrhea, aches, fever for several days. There  was blood in the stool  -  always frightening! Like blood in a spinal tap. (One should never talk about aging and health issues with young people; but with elder equals it’s interesting, I think.) This moved me (pun intended) to send D to the farmacia for the correct plastic cups needed to gather a stool sample (cost: 45 cents) … now just liquid. The local lab had the results in 3 hours. Diagnosis:  the Rotavirus. At least it wasn’t parasites. Of course I looked it up online; I read the rather amazing statistic that almost every child born will have it before age 5. It is highly contagious. It lodges in the feces, and contaminates anything it comes in contact with. Adults get it from cleaning up feces and vomit, or, coming in contact, including through food handled by a contaminated person. Etc. 

So then, a lovely woman here, who came 6 years ago, a nurse, with the Peace Core to work in the local hospital, then stayed, got me an appointment with Doctora Luz Merina Conejo, a superb indigena .. who waited at her office for me (Imagine!!). She was a striking woman in her 50s (what is the correct way to punctuate this??), in full indigena dress (which most indigenous woman wear, except I see that the young are beginning to abandon it), and her white doctor’s coat. Mary (the nurse) came with us to translate …. very helpful; she does it for $10 an hour for people in need on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and in emergencies whenever necessary …. nice gift to the gringo community, I think. (Though I must say that my Spanish is getting better!) 

So, I am now on the diet for 10 days and treatment that children follow when they have this virus. I was, of cours, dehydrated … hence the listlessness, fatigue, etc. Tuesday and Wednesday I had to drink 3 bottles of Pedialyte (electrolyte replacement) … and I am feeling much better. I take 1 pill Every 12 hours for abdominal pain/cramps … it is plant based, is not a pain-killer per se, and just calms body spasms; one pill every 12 hours to replace all the “good” bacteria in my system, which has been leached out. The diet (for 10 days) is bland:  rice, pasta, no dairy, veg well cooked, water boiled. Wine is acceptable. Chicken, no other meats. Quinoa OK. I had taken a Bactrim (antiobotic, strong) because I had visions of my colon rupturing 10 years ago, and thought this was a bacterial parasite, and could not entertain the thought of it happening again! But, it’s a virus. So, as of yesterday morning, I am having slight diarrhea when I eat anything, but an definitely getting better! Have to wash my hands well and often and use that gel everyone uses today (even here) and not to touch anyone. An aside:  it is amazing where explosive diarrhea can get! No more need be said!

By the way: Dra. Luz's fee?  $15.00  !!

I have gotten my Resident Visa, or at least will when I see our lawyer on Monday and complete the process. It looks as if Dennis will have to return for a bit to NM and get his Criminal Background checks redone …. this time not only the State Police, but an FBI one, with fingerprints. I am in touch with 2 other local people who do visa work, and they will let me know if there is a way to do it without having to go back. But, we do want to be here, so we will do whatever is necessary. This is purely bureaucratic harassment; I go mine at the same as Dennis, and apostilled at the same time (granted, they were both NOT within the 90 day limit, about which we knew not!) and they granted mine and not his! Well, we will do whatever necessary, and if D has to go back, he can bring a huge valise full of the drugs and other things we need/want! Including flannel sheets!

[A neighbour, a very feisty Peruvia lady who just separated from her husband, and who owns houses here, in Lima, and in Florida … aren’t people amazing! just came by with a bag of organic potatoes a friend of hers (her’s?) grows on her hacienda and would like to starting selling them. Nice. I can eat potatoes.]

Today, Saturday, I finally worked up the courage - taking a roll of toilet paper with me - and went out with my husband to shop. No problems! My doc, Dra. Luz - Dr. Light! I love having a doctor with that name  -  said that being careful about what I ate was critical, and she was correct. Anyway, I am feeling much better!

I see our lawyer about my own Visa on Monday, and we begin the process of seeing how to get Dennis's documents with the least amount of time and money spent. We both want to spend our full year here in Ecuador, so we are willing to do what is necessary. But:  if it is absolutely crazy, we'll head somewhere else after 6 months.

p.s. I'm getting better at not listening to news from up north. I'll be writing more about this .... but basically I am convinced that America is headed down the proverbial drain.

Cheers!

Here is the view from our front gallery, of Mt. Imbabura volcano

December 12, 2014 - First Posting from Cotacachi, Ecuador

It has been months in planning, this move to Ecuador! Dennis retired, and we decided that we wanted Life to be an adventure in our "advanced age". We looked at several places that we thought we could afford, and have an adventure, and - though we had never been here - we decided for various reasons on Cotacachi, Ecuador. [We had first thought of Cuenca, but a few bloggers' remarks convinced us that we didn't want to live in a city of over 350, 000 people which was also becoming more and more polluted.] We connected online with many people who had moved to Cotacachi, and we liked what was being said. Of course, we Googled and read everything we could find.

We decided to keep our wonderful little house in Silver City and rent it out. [Silver City is a funky, fun, high-desert place to live in the far SW corner of New Mexico. If we decide to return to the States, we would be happy to live in SIlver City; we loved our three years there.] We decided to sell everything - and we did, except for a few things we put in a small storage unit - which will cost us $360 a year - something I said I would never do, it being (to my cynical mind) such a crass consumerist materialistic thing to do (!) done by millions of people:  stuff, stuff, stuff and more stuff! Maybe I'll start a storage unit business ..... like products for old people and booze, it is lucrative and will have a big clientele for a long time to come barring a complete economic/political collapse!

Being an accomplished procrastinator, Dennis and I were taking the last few things to storage an hour before we were to leave! I have learned to "go with the flow" on this:  I really do work better under pressure! Much of the process was fun; we had Estate sales and plied people with wine and other drink, and we sold things on the street for a few days and chatted with people. Now lots of people have our stuff, and there are many houses of our friends with things that will remind them of us, and us of our former possessions if/when we visit them!

Have you ever heard of an apostille? It's a protocol that authenticates documents if you need them for other countries ..... though of course Canada does not participate in the Protocol, so I couldn't get my birth certificate apostilled. [That may cause some problems.] We had to get documents verifying our monthly income, and we had to have police reports from the NM State Police, and our marriage licence (which is not recognized in Catholic Ecuador, but which they will accept as proof of our domestic partnership which, laudably, Ecuador has) affirming that we were not criminals. Everything has to be notarized. One gets the records from the appropriate bureaucrats; then sends them to the Secretary of State from which they originated, who "apostilles" them. THEN you have to send them to the Ecuadorian consulate, and they issue appropriate documents authenticating the apostilled documents .... and of course mucho dinero changes hands at every level!! We finally got the last needed things on Dec 2, and we decided to leave on Dec 9. I won't go on ..... but it worked, and we bought our Business Class One-Way tickets [Yippee; first time we have ever done that and it was great!] and after 4 nights of little sleep worrying about what could go wrong with the weight of bags, immigration officials, etc., we sailed through everything and our driver brought us to our lovely house in the San Miguel area of Cotacachi. A lesson relearned about Worrying accomplishing nothing! [The only point of Worry is to get one to ponder what alternatives there might be if Plan A fails.] So: enough of this. WE ARE HERE! We have rented a wonderful house - BIG! - for a year. Now to live in a new setting, learning a new language - I can manage so-so with the basics, but I intend to get much better!

Here are some pictures:  This is our view from our front gallery [the Quebec word for a porch when I was a boy]. Cotacachi is right on the equator, so flowers and vegetables etc grow all year round. To the right is Mt. Imbabura, an extinct [so I'm told] volcano to the southeast. The Cotacachi volcano is to the northwest.

Here's our house from the front:

And here's the fountain in our back yard. The back yard, planted with fruit trees, is big enough for Queen Elizabeth to have a Tea for 500 people!

Here's Dennis in the kitchen ... all marble, as are the bathrooms, which have huge showers and the Master Bath a tub big enough to do laps in!

Our "neighbours" out the windows are Maria's cows! Rather thin, but they smell great as they are fed on grass!

So: more later. We live in a gated community. Our mentors, Patrice and Dave,who used to live in this house until they built their own, have been terrific, getting us acclimatized, where to find things, etc.

We are looking forward to our year in this wonderful new place, and once we get our Permanent Resident Visa (6-8 weeks), we will begin to travel, exploring Ecuador and other South American and Central American countries ..... though we may take 10 days of loafing on Santorini in May.

Cheers! Dennis is roasting chicken with fresh carrots and onions, and we are imbibing Chilean white wine ..... just fine, as we have uneducated and unsophisticated tastes, thankfully in line with our beer-budget level!

081314 - Myth, Metaphor, and Atomism

Here's Pooh:

It seems fairly clear that the only time we can actually live is "today". The past is just that; the future will come in some form. Both may have an influence on how we live the Present. But "Today" is and should be our Favourite!

I've been thinking about the word "spiritual" ... as in this usage:

I don't like to use the word "spiritual" because it always seems to imply that our material nature is extraneous ... and inferior to the "spiritual". We talk about the "flesh" being discarded, and the "spirit" being eternal .... though to me "eternal" is a dubious concept, especially in the ways people conceive of it!

I've been seeking for another word to describe "us". For the moment (everything can change, and indeed both must and should!) I've settled on "atomistic". I would rephrase the above to say simply, We are Atomistic, having an Experience. "Being Human" is an Atomistic Experience.

It is my belief that every person, every culture, every society, is a Mythmaker ..... by which I mean, we develop stories which help us to explain how we understand ourselves and our experiences. I call Myths "Truth Stories". I don't think that some myths are intrinsically better than others (though some will speak to us individually more powerfully than others); all of them are someone's attempt to comprehend, or to seek meaning. As well, I think that all myths are, to some extent, what we would call propaganda. They are, in part, crafted to justify any group's beliefs, biases, prejudices, hopes, vision, etc. For example:  Jewish scripture claims that God gave them the "Promised Land". Christian scripture claims that Jesus is God. Both claims, deriving from the deliberate shaping/redacting/editing  of "scripture" by both communities, tries to establish their assumed rights or power or superiority. 

Figures in Myths are always metaphors ..... they stand for "large" meanings. "God" is a metaphor. Metaphors are very useful; they allow us to expand ideas or concepts beyond the limitations of our intellectual abilities, primarily by pointing us beyond our limitations and inviting to "see" into Mystery.

So:  what do I think "God" is, since I no longer feel confined by the common intellectual or institutional "explanations"/definitions? I can only try, with my limited human intellect:

"God" is the metaphor for Emergence.

Emergence simply happens. "Behind" Emergence is, perhaps, a Mystery. It does not help us to try to "box in" that Mystery.

Ethics develop from our human reflection on Emergence. As part of this process, we choose. This is the profound gift of human essence. We create "God" .... because this is the way that the Mystery "works". I accept no philosophy, theology, which denigrates the sublime beauty and creativity of being Human. Ponder this!

Well, Dennis and I are in Pueblo CO, on our way to Rapid City SD, to visit a friend and see Mt. Rushmore (and for me, even better, the Indian Chief carvings!). Then we head to Wisconsin. It was 91F when we arrived in Pueblo ... one never knows!

I wish you an awareness of your Emergence!

073114 - The Way of Subtraction

God is not attained by a process of addition to anything in the soul,

but by a process of subtraction. 

~ Meister Eckhart

Well, it was towards the end of 2013 that I first read this quote from Meister Eckhart. (Eckhart von Hochheim O.P. (c. 1260 – c. 1328; a German theologian, philosopher and mystic, born near Gotha, in the Landgraviate of Thuringia in the Holy Roman Empire.) Little did I know how, across those 700 and more years, he would change and enlarge my Life! 

I followed his "advice"; I began to practice a "spirituality" of a "process of subtraction". [I use the term "spiritual"; but I am not a dualist; I believe that who we are as incarnated/enfleshed beings is a unity.] I decided not to be licensed to officiate as a priest, after having done so in the parish for the previous year in SIlver City. I began to search my mind, my inner life, and to examine all of the concepts, ideas, beliefs. I examined "God", worship, church, liturgy, language, core principles of living, ethics, "religion", and many other things. 

It was, and still is, an exciting and very liberating time.

Obviously I can't deal with all aspects here. But in essence what happened was that I was calmly, gently, catapulted into a profoundly different universe of Being. When the shift happened, I recognized that I had been on this journey for a long time. I also knew where I was .... it was familiar, someplace I recognized. It was a quiet "aha" moment. I remember smiling; I "felt" peace and openness flow around me. To invoke an image attributed to the Christian apostle Paul, it felt as if the "glass darkly" had absorbed light and I was living in a different Reality. Presumptuous as it may sound, it seems to me that I had been seeking unity with all Being and that, once I "subtracted", it was possible to be integrated.

For me, the word "God" is a metaphor. By "metaphor", I mean a pointer towards an Eternal Reality, a profound Mystery, eternally to be entered into. Most mystics of all paths say something like, "Once you have said everything you can say about God, you haven't even begun". Alas, being human, we can only talk about "God" in human terms. It is impossible not to present "God" in some version of our own image ... and in doing so we create God to meet our own needs .... and endow God with our own foibles. My Journey seems to have pushed me on the path towards being freed from this understanding.

Well. Dennis and I had a great 3-week trip around California. We're home, getting rid of things in preparation for moving to Ecuador. Seeing doctors, etc. August 13 we head out for a 7 week trip out to the East coast and back, seeing family and friends. Slowly our house is beginning to look like we are camping out! We've rented our house in Cotacachi. Here it is:

The birds here in NM at Casa Uccello are wonderful ... and they all came back after we had "abandoned" feeding them for a month! Ecuador is one of the premier birding sites in the World (1600 species), and boy am I looking forward to seeing them!

Here's some "wisdom" I want to live by:

Cheers!

From Cambria CA - July 16, 2014

One doesn't have much time to ponder profound things while having fun traveling, visiting with delightful friends, drinking good Black Russians and wines, and eating great food! Anyway, our little PriusC is zipping nicely along, and we are basically relaxing.

The exciting thing is that Dennis and I have been accepted as the next tenants of the house in Cotacachi, Ecuador. We've sent the security deposit, and the house has been removed from the internet. Dennis and I are both Cancers, so a place to be at "home" is important .... doesn't matter if it's a shack or a mansion. At least we know that we can fly to Quito, get to Cotacachi, and get a taxi to take us to our house! Then we will get out our Waterford glasses for our Black Russians/Gin & Tonic, put a couple of Jan Fell's superb bird miniatures out (including the lovely Ecuadorian Rufous Crested Coquette [hummer] she painted for us as a going-away/retirement gift), get out the olive oil for a salad, and sit and toast our Adventure! Maybe build a little fire in one of the two in the house, and contemplate the two volcanoes which will be part of our view. What fun!

We are off to Davis CA tomorrow to see an old friend of 47 years; I want to stop in Big Sur to see the Camaldolese monastery (trust monks to build in a fabulous location!).

It seems to me that the whole World is in a state of decline and disintegration. [Democracy Today says this morning that Iraq has already disuntegrated; not surprised; I thought that would happen when George Bush started this debacle 11 years ago.] I suspect that this will be the case for a few decades, and that we had better adjust to it. Meanwhile, of course, doing our best to create kindness and friendship around us as we can. Seems to me like an appropriate thing for someone my age to be about. It's up to the Millenials to try and shape their World.  One of "them" said recently that we Boomers really screwed it up, buying into the worship of Mammon (they didn't use that term), making it all about money and possessions, etc. I tend to agree; why we did that I have to ponder. In part I think it has to do with the fact that faith/religion lost it's soul and became just a club to curry to peoples' prejudices, fears, etc. (At the moment I'm just being cranky; but I will settle down to do more reading on this whole thing.)

Do you like to listen to music that you have stored on your iPad or whatever? Dennis and I do as we set out a picnic on some quiet country road. Answer?:  consider purchasing the BOSE Soundlink mini ! (No, I don't get a commission.) The sound, like all BOSE things, is superb! And it's all wireless .... so the country air can be filled with glorious Beethoven, no plugs needed, and the clink of wineglasses!

Cheers!

Lulu's !! And Ecuador.

Lulu's has been here in Palm Springs for awhile, but we have been there only once, with friends. It is a "California Bistro". And it has a "Bar Menu". It's FANTASTIC! Very reasonable prices, and a fun setting. Lunch was "lightly friend" oysters ($7.99) and tonight ... yes, we went back! ... was "lightly friend calamari ($7.99). I really get so sick of American restaurants that pile your plate with too much food; this is so much more sensible. All drinks are $5.00 or so, all day! Well, enough of the debauchery of the Dennis Much Memorial Retirement Tour! Dennis is loving it; I can't tell you how many times he has said to me how wonderful it is to know that he doesn't have to go back to work!

I wrote to a much admired and beloved friend today, and I said that in my blogs I was going to try to be irenic, honest, and amusing. He wrote back and said, yes, honest and amusing .... but that he doubted I would manage "irenic" since Republicans and religious fundamentalists pissed me off toomuch! I got his message .... so I will try to pay attention! Isn't it great to have friends who know you well and can tweak you with love!

Dennis and I are planning to move to Ecuador to live in December. We've been looking for a place to rent, and I think we have found it. Here's a picture:

It's in Cotacachi (not too far from Quito); 2500 sq. ft; 1 acre; 3 bedrooms, 2 bath; partly furnished; 5 min by bus or 15 minute walk to town; close to Mindo, the premier birding site (Yippee! and Ecuador and surrounding area has 1600 species of birds):  around $550 a month. We are negotiating with the (American) owners. Hope it works!

So, we are munching on home-made chocolate truffles (just one each!) and drinking cold white wine for dessert. It was 108F today, but is cooling down, and we will soon be in the pool cooling down as well. 

Both of us no longer attend "worship" of any sort. Much of "religion" is community; of course we have many friends from "church" who are part of our supportive community. But we didn't go to church primary for "community. Gayfolk are our primary community, as well as supportive "straight" allies, friends and family. We "went to church" seeking support for the process of transformation which we believe to be at the heart of "spiritual seeking" ... not found most of the time in "church-going", alas. Of course, in every Christian parish in which we have worshipped, we have found that core (and I was a parish priest for 25 years) who share the goal of seeking what the Christian (And other) faith calls the "unitive way", and they remain part of our valued family. Of course, there are many who are not Christian, or who have no institutional  connection. Our intent, now, is to live out of a sense of that union with All Being, and we certainly accept that Love is one of the primary paths for such a Life. And that a deep understanding of Jesus and the Gospel is a "sure foundation" for a life of Love ..... though we do not see that in the way that a great deal of American popular Christianity is portrayed and lived.

How terrific is the Internet! We are in Palm Springs listening to Michael Feinstein and his programme on WQXR in New York City streamed live to us. I love it!

Time for the evening swim, and watching the stars emerge in the darkening sky. There is so much for which to be grateful and in which to be delighted!

One Day After my 68th Birthday

Well. I begin the living of my 69th year of Life in this incarnate, "mortal" form! I am now married, to Dennis, my partner of nearly ten years. I've been retired for 6 years, having spent 41 years as a priest in the Episcopal Church. From the age of 21 until 35, I was a monk of the Episcopal Order of the Holy Cross - a religious order which, like most religious orders (certainly in the Episcopal Church) was /is 99% Gay. More on that in the future of course! Dennis retired on June 20th, 2014. He gets his Social Security  this month ..... and I get spousal benefits:  keep this in mind, you same sex folks who have recently married and are of the appropriate age! We are presently at the beginning of a "farewell" tour for 4 months in our lovely little Prius C (getting an average of 55 mpg), visiting friends and family. We are divesting ourselves of all our present possessions, getting our house in Silver City NM ready to rent, and in early December we are moving to Ecuador. Dennis and I decided that, in "retirement", we wanted Life to be an Adventure!

On April 3, 2014, I formally renounced my orders in the Episcopal Church. More on THAT later too!

I read this this morning:  “The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off!” Good ole Gloria Steinem! I don't, however, feel pissed off in having "discovered" in my advanced age  the "truth" that for the most part institutionalized "religion" is "failed" religion. Meaning - having spent 45 years pondering this business - that most religions began as an attempt to assist human beings to experience their unity with all Existence and so be liberated to live as deeply, joyously, profoundly, fully, as possible. They all developed "paths" i.e., religions, to guide people towards the Goal, which goes by many different names. My view is that they all have essentially failed ..... collapsing into organizations which spend most of their resources on self-perpetuation, providing mostly ways for people to feel good about themselves and to denigrate other paths and their followers. My sense is that this is now pervasive throughout the World ... and the human community is in a pretty sad state. The truth pisses me off ... but it also has set me free:  free to be grateful for the vision of the unity off all things, and to try to live out of that core within myself. 

All "belief", I now accept, based on the past 50 years of my Life, is personal choice. No "belief", no "sacred text", no philosophy, is "right". All are human attempts to understand the wonder we call Life. Each of us is responsible for making the choices concerning our "beliefs", and for living them out with integrity. 

These are the things I'll be reflecting on in this blog ..... alone of course with the experiences of people and places that Dennis and I will have as we set out on our Adventure. If you are interested, follow along. And I'll be happy to receive any comments and your own thoughts and ideas ..... as long as they aren't just mean or nasty!

Cheers!

July 8, 2014

092713 - The Reality of American Income distribution

Here it is folks - the reality.


http://www.upworthy.com/9-out-of-10-americans-are-completely-wrong-about-this-mind-blowing-fact-2?g=2

Monday, September 2, 2013 - Treachery and Deceit

I read all the books. Amazingly ... because I loath militarism ... unless it is a "parable". Game of Thrones" . Read any? Now I am watching the videos.

Kings, Queens, make promises ... all false. The only thing that matters is power. And, of course, personal gain. Lord Stark "confesses", and acknowledges his submission to King Geoffrey. The agreement was, he do this, and his daughters would live. No. They chop off his head, and his daughters  will die ... except Arya, who will flee. A parable of the human dark side. Oh yes, there are a few of us humans who have entered into the truth of Compassion, of the high potential of being human. But, we are now, in this World and these times, in 2013, in a time of Darkness.

David Cameron, Barack Obama, President Holland, and the sad but mad Vladimir Putin, and most of the so-called "leaders" of the World. They have been seduced by the Dark Lord ...  Voldemort, as Ms. Rowling called him. They pretend that they have the the best interests of US, of the people of the World, in mind. But they do not. They have, in mythological terms, been taken over by Evil.

Listen, People. Hear, People. We must act. It doesn't matter who elected these people. We are easily deluded by the media, by propaganda, by our own self-delusion and ignorance. Only we can protest, and change the future of the human community.

What kind of human community do you want? Think!

And revolt.

Monday, September 2 (Labour Day) - The Republic of San Marino

I have a Calendar that tells me the date of the establishment of all the countries in the World. Swaziland on the 6th: 45 years; Brazil on the 7th:  191 years. That sort of thing. Today is San Marino ... also know as La Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino - The Most Serene Republic of San Marino - and it says 1712 years!!!  "Its size is just over 61 km² (24 sq mi) with an estimated population of over 30,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino. San Marino has the smallest population of all the members of the Council of Europe.

San Marino claims to be the oldest surviving sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world, as the continuation of the monastic community founded on 3 September 301, by stonecutter Marinus of Arba. Legend has it that Marinus left Rab, then the Roman colony of Arba, in 257 when the future emperor, Diocletian, issued a decree calling for the reconstruction of the city walls of Rimini, which had been destroyed by Liburnian pirates.

San Marino is governed by the Leges Statutae Republicae Sancti Marini, a series of six books written in Latin in the late 16th century, that dictate the country’s political system, among other matters.

The country's economy mainly relies on finance, industry, services and tourism. It is one of the wealthiest countries in the world in terms of GDP (per capita), with a figure comparable to the most developed European regions. San Marino is considered to have a highly stable economy, with one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe, no national debt and a budget surplus." (Wikipedia) 

I went there once ... wonderful place! I was traveling around Italy on my way to Rimini, and stopped in San Marino for a day and night. 

Now, here's an interesting thig about their way of government:  "Every six months, the Council elects two Captains Regent to be the heads of state. The Regents are chosen from opposing parties so that there is a balance of power. They serve a six-month term. The investiture of the Captains Regent takes place on 1 April and 1 October in every year. Once this term is over, citizens have three days in which to file complaints about the Captains' activities. If they warrant it, judicial proceedings against the ex-head(s) of state can be initiated."

Sounds good to me. Listen up America!! (Abraham Lincoln was an Honourary Citizen of San Marino.)  At this rate, most of our Presidents would be in jail .... and that would be a good and just thing in my estimate! 

Wouldn't you like to be Citizen # 30,001 !! I would! And, they have the highest per capita income in the World!

Well:  I can dream .... and about America too!

Aug 16, 2013: Evolution - Sr. Ilia Delio

Evolution, Franciscan Sr. Ilia Delio told the members of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), does not describe a biological function but rather “a continuing process of unfolding involving the hands of God.”

I would say no. Rather, it describes both ... and the two are inextricably interrelated. The concept of "God", Life and the Body are One.

080313 - poet Rupert Brooke's birthday

Today is the date of birth of the English poet Rupert Chawner Brooke. He was born in Warwickshire, in 1887. He has the reputation of being the "handsomest man in England". He had many lovers, both male and female. He died on board ship during WWI, on April 23, 1915, and was buried, at night, by his crewmates, on the Greek island of Skyros. His tomb is still often visited; I would like to go there!

A picture:

His tomb on Skyros

Here is a poem of his.

~~~~~~~~~~

When Beauty and Beauty meet

All naked, fair to fair,

The earth is crying-sweet,

And scattering-bright the air,

Eddying, dizzying, closing round,

With soft and drunken laughter;

Veiling all that may befall

After -- after --

Where Beauty and Beauty met,

Earth's still a-tremble there,

And winds are scented yet,

And memory-soft the air,

Bosoming, folding glints of light,

And shreds of shadowy laughter;

Not the tears that fill the years

After -- after -- 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope your day has much love and much kindness.