Nine Eleven

Don Manuel had said he would not come back to the U.S. again.  Then 9/11 happened.  Don Manuel brought healing to the site of 9/11.  He had planned to work with people in NewYork, Chicago and Washington State.  In New York and Chicago no one signed up for his teaching.  In Washington State, though, there was a full house.  Everyone I spoke to in this special session was absolutely certain they were meant to be there.

It actually started with an open forum with Don Manuel in Skagit County.  One of my friends brought Auntie Vi Hilbert, who was revered in all of the tribes of Washington.  I don't no what she saw in me, but she counted me as a grandaughter.  After the presentation, My friend brought Auntie Vi to the the edge of the stage.  Immediately Don Manuel beckoned to her to come up on the platform.  Three of us took the post of guardians.  Auntie Vi was speaking in her native language and Don Manuel in his native language.  The most interesting thing to me was that they absolutely knew what the other was saying.

Finally the day had come for us to go to Orcas Island, where we would be for several days.  Jose Luis translated for Don Manuel.  It was apparent to all of us that Don Manuel had something big in mind, but we didn't know until the last day.  We had a full room: about forty people.

The Incan way is to have a "Mesa" with sacred stones.  It is energetic, and very personal.  When I was in Peru, I gave a stone to Jose Luis.  He gave me one of his.  The Mesa shows who one is.  Don Manuel looked at every single mesa.  This was a major process because he had to look and understand what the stones in each mesa were about.  I can't say what anyone else's mesa was about, but Don Manuel knew what I was about.  I am certain that he knew everyone of us, especially the inner being.

Once he had checked out our mesa, something much more important happened.  Don Manuel gave all of his knowledge, and even more, his energy, to every single person in the room.  Once it was done, we made a collective into a whole body of light coming through all of us.  We literally became one.  I will never forget!  

I have never been even a little bit rich.  However, I had a very good education, and I helped people for quite a long time.  Education is one of the best ways to get out of real poverty.   But I suspect that in many places in the world, there is no free education.

Do you remember the school  in Africa that Oprah created?  There is a reason for that, and a purpose. Africa is still struggling for food, medicine and education.  Often there is no way to get anywhere except by walking.  I walked to school when I was young, but my school wasn't but three streets away.  There was one period of my young life that I couldn't walk to school.  But we had a free bus ride.

How do the impoverished countries of the world become part of a real Global Community?  Only if we make sure that education, good food, and necessary medicine.  It is up to those of us who can contribute, even in small ways.

After Machu Pichu

After Machu Pichu, we rode in the mountains on beasts that looked like ponies.  They were very sturdy and they knew how to stay on the trail.  Don Manuel took us to a high mountain plateau, where he checked each of us before we had a special ceremony.  Some of his friends were with us.  When he went past me, he said that I was a strong Shaman.  We heard some of what Don Manuel wanted us to learn.

Later we took the train back to Urubamba.  I was weary and got sick.  Fortunately it wasn't serious.  After a night and a day, I was fine to go.  There was a body of water, part of the Pacific Ocean and we were told that there is a feud over the water rights.  We went to a fancy hotel just a few yards away from the water - the first and only since that first day in Cusco.  I went down to the pier, sat for a while, and took some of the water in a small bottle.

The next day we set out on a boat. We landed on a small community that was built of reeds.  The people lived on fish, and more from the tourists.  After a while we got back on the boat and went to an island.  We were guests in different homes on the island, and we were tired and went to our beds as soon as we had dinner.

The Peruvians on the island were agricultural, and they also made clothing, pottery and just about all they needed.  We got to know our hosts.  They were very sweet and wonderful.

We had more experience of the Peruvian Spiritual way.  Some of our group went up to the top of the mountain.  Sadly, my lungs  -- and my entire body was not up to it.  We did go to an unusual store.  Each family had a table of their handiwork for sale.

I had given a stone to Jose Luis. I had done that because the still small voice pushed me to it   As we were getting ready to go back to the mainland, Jose Luis, and Mary's husband each gave me a stone.  It was without words, but I knew indeed what this was.

Machu Pichu

I was excited: we were on the way to Machu Pichu on the train.  When we arrived we went to a hostel at the base of Machu Pichu.  It was clear that all of us were excited to go to Machu Pichu. We had dinner and went to our beds.

The next morning we gathered to get on a bus going up to the mountain.  The bus ride was up a narrow road.  The driver seemed quite serene, and I suspect he had gone up and down many times.  We did get to the top safely.

The Incas have what they call mesas.  They might have taken it from the Catholic Mass, or it might be about the Rocks.  The Mesa is mostly rocks.  The rocks have power.   There were guides.  One of the interesting I realized is that those guides knew exactly what we were doing.  At one point we were told to work with our mesas.  There were "rooms" without a ceiling.   A guide was with some visitors, and as soon as he saw what we were doing, he directed his tourist away from where we were.  Another time I put my mesa on a huge and very special stone altar with a rope around to block so tourists wouldn't touch it.  But when I put my mesa at the bottom of the altar, the guide who was explaining to tourists, he nodded.  This happened a lot. Our group was special because we had been learning the ancient traditions of the Peruvians.

We also had an unusual night at another pleace: the Death Stone.  This ceremony was led by Don Manuel.  It wasn't about physical death, but a way to let go what each of us needed to.  Our soul was sent out of our bodies and came back clear and pure.

Another day we went into a caves farther up the mountain.  There were more ceremonies, and we each were were given all that our guide had of power and blessing.  These words cannot convey what all of us felt, and what we received.

All of this took a couple of days.

Don Manuel

                                                  

Urubamba was a small place, and yet it was adequate.  We had dinner, and then went to bed. 

After breakfast the next morning, we sat in a room in a circle.  Not long after, Don Manuel and a few others of the Inca arrived.  What was most astonishing for me was that Don Manuel looked right into my eyes.  It felt like eternity, but I suspect it was less than a minute.  He made a connection that I could not yet fathom.  I don't remember much of what he had to say, even though his words were translated.  It was his presence that was so wonderful.  It was the beginning of Don Manuel gently poking me, calling me to be all I could be.

But I had a bad case of flu.  We all spent some down time, and the next day we climbed on a six feet high rock Serpent, which we were told it was sacred.  Snake is my ally, and I felt the connection. Next we went to a kind of Pyramid, except the layers made steps to climb.  I decided to stay at ground level.  Between the flu and the high mountain air skimpy on oxogen, I decided to stay with Mary and Don Manuel.  I opened my "mesa".  It is a kind of altar, but much more than that.  I started to work with it, and Don Manuel said it wasn't quite right. He made some motions to show me what he wanted me to do.  Immediately it felt so much better.  With the next breath he said "We go".  And go we did!

Next was a time in the market plaza. The people were mostly quiet, and didn't look to me to be very prosperous. I bought something just to give something to the people. We then went into an actual building and I looked at one piece. I looked at Don Manuel.  He was looking at me and shaking his head. Not the real deal is what I understood.

Don Manuel laughed alot!  I have a picture from a friend who was on the same journey.  She caught him laughing.


TO BE CONTINUED