BETWEEN DIMENSIONS

We just had lunch at FarSide Bistro, (our friend Carol thinks its possibly a wordplay on Farsi). It is amazing! Authentic, absolutely fresh gourmet quality Mediterranean and Persian Cuisine.  Every town is as individual as its people are. Cottonwood is rich in antique stores, wine tasting galleries, second hand furniture and exotic restaurants. Of course, there are lots of simple working class restaurants and shops as well and much of the town has a grass-fed feeling.  The owners of this restaurant are a young couple originally from Iran via the Midwest. The woman has a degree in fashion design and the man is a computer geek but boy can he cook. The décor is as tasteful as the food and the owners are warm and friendly.

Oak Creek Canyon Nearing Sedona

So here we are in Cottonwood again but it wasn’t an easy transition this time. From Taos, we drove the entire way in a state of ecstasy. I took big gasps of air to steady my heart as we made our way down Oak Creek Canyon, through Sedona and at last to Cottonwood. Time stood still and waited for us to catch up. We were approaching our personal paradise, but was it real? The next day reality bombed us. No, nothing perceptibly bad happened. The reaction was as if we had surfaced into this world too quickly and had a kind of subtle body version of the bends.

I was already experiencing some strange physical symptoms in Taos. Each foot seemed to weigh forty pounds and all my joints snapped, ground, crunched, and made me wish for a dose of WD-40.  My vision was very hazy. I suspected I was coming down with a virus but the symptoms were not familiar. On the way to Cottonwood, all these symptoms went away but as soon as we settled in, a new group of symptoms replaced them. PQ experienced even more coughing and stomach cramps than he had in Taos. So, what was going on? 

Perhaps we are in process of remake for life at a higher frequency. There are other changes as well as physical symptoms.  When I am here, I see more dimensions and their associations with greater clarity but struggle horribly to find the most common words.  Just as I open my mouth to say something, the words evaporate.  I’m not talking about high-toned or complex words but even simple words I’ve known since age five.

We live in New Mexico. Our chili is hot. The deliciousness is enhanced by the pain. Right to the edge of intolerable is where we must go to avoid hypnotic numbness. This life is a short ride, full of dangers and awesome views down dangerous drops.  Yet safety and comfort are also necessary for recovery and progress. Balance is the key, but don't expect it in this lifetime. It is a goal for the ages. Medicine is sometimes bitter and poison is sometimes sweet, the paradox provides enough confusion to launch a search for the middle way. Again and again, we reach for the truth and it wisely stays just out of reach while promising everything. The key is to keep grasping until practice morphs into wisdom.

PQ, Leslie Dillon and
Mabel Dodge Lujan's Great Granddaughter

Now we are looking for a place to live in Cottonwood. I’m learning that no event that dips us into the surging waters of life intends to drown us or wash us away. The key to survival is learning to swim. I think that is where we are now. The place we need to be exists and PQ has a clear vision that has stayed with him for five years. I’m learning to trust that we must honor the future world we choose to live in and not confuse it with the world we want to leave behind. That serves no one and wastes valuable time.  

I already miss our cats, my garden in Taos (the lawn looked like a hay field when we left) with the iris that are blooming now and our dear friends and family in Taos and Santa Fe. Just before we left there were two events to promote the movie, “Awakening in Taos.” We believe in the importance of this story, and PQ performed a blessing and song with inspiration and power at both events. He also met Mabel Dodge Lujan’s great granddaughter and Leslie Dillon an actress who frequently performs Mabel.  No, we are soul children of Taos and can never leave forever, but we have an equal pull to Cottonwood, AZ and miss it when in Taos. We must find the way to marry these places.