El Día de Abundancia Infinita

I struggled with the decision to leave Playa del Carmen. Part of me thought it was a decision I had made and I should suck it up, stick it out and find the beauty and gifts there even though I was hot, sticky and my sinuses were throwing a tantrum. A friend said, "we've sucked it up enough, get out of there!" and it was like my mom had given me permission to go out and play.

It now appears that the Universe agrees. Until a few days ago, I knew nothing of this place. A chance comment in San Miguel prompted a teaser from a friend about this place called San Cristóbal de Las Casas, in the highlands of the state of Chiapas, Mexico, close to the Guatemalan border. But, since I've arrived here … actually since I made the decision to come here ... it's like I'm in a different energy flow of people and connections. 

Before I even arrived at my destination, two angels went out of their way to come to my assistance. As a matter of fact, without the second one, I'm not sure I would have arrived at all. I was lost in the streets of San Cristóbal with a taxi driver who didn't speak English, didn't know how to find the address I gave him and neither of us had a phone. In the midst of this quandary, Blanca appeared and untangled the mess and stayed with me until I was safely inside my gate. As we were saying goodnight, I said, "Let's get together tomorrow," and she agreed.

Later I thought, hmmmm.  This is a Mexican woman I've met for about 10 minutes, what will we talk about? Whatever it was, it lasted over five hours as we roamed about the city. The more we talked, the more we realized that our backgrounds were leagues apart but our world views were uncannily close. The more I listened to her, the more I began to believe I was in the presence of a mystic … and that's not something I've ever felt before.

Blanca

This is a woman who has lived most of her life off the grid without a refrigerator or oven (by choice), has home schooled her children in a country where that is not common, and who, after only two months in this town seems to know, and be loved by, everyone.  She dresses in white like many of the indigenous people of the area and as we walked through the town, her hand automatically went to her pocket for a coin for the poor or obviously needy sellers of trinkets, even though she herself is selling baked goods and clay flutes and living just up the street in a camping area with two children.

One of the places we went today was the marketplace … a seemingly endless labyrinth of fruits, vegetables, meats, clothes … stuff. There were so much there I was almost overwhelmed by the abundance of it all. It vibrated with life in a way that is completely different from the well-stocked shelves of Wal-Mart. While there were many,

I have never seen so many beautiful
colores of beans!

many things i've never seen before, there probably weren't as many actual choices. Many of the vendors were selling the same things, so it wasn't about choosing between 50 varieties of toothpaste, it was about being in a place where everything was grown, sewn or made by the person selling it. There was a human connection between the seller and the consumer that has been lost in much of our world. 

Bought some of these incredible
orange mushrooms ... not sure what
to do with them.

I didn't take many pictures today.  I was too busy gaping at the "abundancia infinitiva" … like a rube in New York for the first time trying to comprehend sky scrapers. I've committed myself to further wallowing in this abundance and trying as many of these new things as possible during my time here. Más tarde.

Lunch was a seasonal specialty:
Chiles en Nogada ... pomegranate seeds
are the seasonal touch. Bueno!

And, in case you're wondering, these
will not be some of the things I'm trying!