Connections

Good morning! 

It's been awhile hasn't it?  Well...that is because I have been in good company.  ; )

I don't quite remember where I last wrote from, but I just spent the last week in the Hamilton/Toronto region with Mile and his new roommate Edward.  We spent the majority of the week together and I was able to see and do many exciting things! 

A little bit of background for all of you.  Mile is a fellow graduate of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies three-year program.  Early on in the program we connected and even talked about meeting up to practice together since he is not so far away from my hometown, Flint, MI. 

He is currently working on his Master's in Globalization studies and works at the Hamilton University for conflict resolution.  Although his ever-inquisitive mind brings him interest with many traditions, it would be safe to say his strongest pull is to the Central/South American cultural shamanic practices. 

Edward is a young gentleman from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.  He arrived shortly before I did, giving Mile a full house (which he enjoys.)  Edward is interested in pursuing something within the Horror film industry.  He has the distinct feel of someone who would be perfect for being on film.  Like an actor or something.  It will be nice to see where he ends up, as he shows an untapped intelligence.

We spent a lot of time together throughout the week doing many things.  I was invited to a Buddhist lecture given by Dzogchen teachers on getting unstuck.  They taught various awareness practices that one engages in to help see and understand how we prevent ourselves from moving forward in our practice.  We also ate at several delicious restaurants and even drank fine wine and sake.  I particularly fell in love with sake.  Mile used to work in the wine industry here in Canada.  So as we drank delicious wine, including the bottles I brought from Leelanau County, he shared some funny stories about his younger years and the vast underground wine collection...caves?...that the extremely wealthy people would use to store their wine casks. 

This week has brought me plenty of surprises when it comes to connections with spirit. 

First off, Mile surprised me by showing me his personal mask collection.  He didn't want to tell me about it over email or phone.  Rather, he thought it pleasant to surprise me.  Surprise me he did!  He also has a growing interest in masks and their use through shamanic ritual/ceremony.   Most of his collection stemmed from South America, while others came from places like Africa. 

Since the very beginning of our relationship I have been intrigued by his connection to S.American practice and, more specifically, his experiences with a plant medicine that shamans often use for spiritual purposes in that region. 

By the end of our time together I decided to travel with him to Peru next April to visit remote tribes and learn from the shamans who use this medicine.  This will take place just before my next tour begins!  There are a lot of correlations that go along with this decision that I will talk about when the time comes. 

On the last night I was there he pulled out some items to give to me as gifts.  The first was a medicine bag with medicine, while the second was a beautiful rattle.  I'll edit more specifics about these gifts as soon as he sends me the information on them (I want to make sure it is right.) 

Over the course of our time together we spoke about many things.  In particular I am interested in his interest in shamanic research into the lower left quadrant of the AQAL (of course, he doesn't categorize it like this since he doesn't know much about AQAL.)  The lower left quadrant is the quadrant of culture, or WE.  All subjective I experiences have, as their context, shared cultural values and interpretations. 

During my stay I felt compelled to give him my copy of Integral Spirituality.  It has fast become one of the "must haves" in my collection.  I'm looking forward to what he has to say about it.

As far as ceremony goes...

We ended up going back to having just one ceremony.  Instead of the University in Toronto, it was moved to Miles friends house.  All-together there were...5 participants (dog included) and each one came out of the ceremony with a valuable experience. 

Just outside of the ceremony on Saturday night I found a single book inside a box that was being given away.  The book was written by the American Psychological Association, so I quickly scooped it up.  When I looked at it later, it was a book teaching people all about writing non-fiction research material.  Which happens to be exactly what I am planning to do!


Yesterday I spent my time driving through the backcountry in between Hamilton and Barrie.  I stopped in Guelph at the siting of a magnificent church structure lying atop a hill as you drive in.  It was a Catholic church that was being renovated.  I tried snooping around the place, but everywhere besides the Chapel was locked up.  So I sat down and just looked at the history that the church revealed and the people sitting inside in prayer and contemplation.  I've stopped in a few beautiful churches but have refrained from taking pictures of them. 

I also stopped in a beautiful little city and walked about the streets, even entering a few shops.  I don't remember the name of the city...but the lady in the bookstore I went in was telling me about her plot to rule the world with compassion!  Then we discovered that floods follow me, since Toronto had a major flood while I was there (the other being Grand Rapids.)  Apparently the town had their 150 year celebration and had a gigantic party in the streets of downtown.  At some point an interesting guy stopped me and beckoned me to come hang out with him.  He was very friendly and had some sort of mental instability.  He invited me to his bible study, told me about some of his travels with the town hockey team, talked to me about his friends and the town, and even randomly slug-bugged me while I wasn't looking (though that happened before we talked a lot.)  Eventually I left both him and the town behind and headed to Barrie.

I have a few days until my next ceremony, so I don't quite know what I will do with my time yet.  I am looking into taking a detour in my pre-planned route after Montreal and heading up to New Brunswick, Prince Edward Islands, and Nova Scotia.  In particular I want to visit Halifax, as they have a Buddhist Monastic community that I am interested in.  I'd also like to do a bit of hiking/backpacking around that region.  This even enables me to enter into Maine in the region that I really wanted to while I was planning my trip earlier in the year.  We will see what transpires closer to the Montreal ceremony.


Cheers!

Justin