Indigenous Response to Avatar Movie

As you may know, Fundacion Pachamama, brought 100 indigenous
people on buses from the jungle and the highlands to a special
showing of the film AVATAR in Spanish in Quito with many press
attending the special showing as well.

For some of the indigenous people, it was the first time they had
ever seen a movie. They wore their feathers and face paint and
donned the 3-D glasses and Bill and Belen and Nati and the Fundacion
Pachamama staff bought them all popcorn and soft drinks and they
entered the magical and mystical world of that extraordinary film
experience about their own struggle with the modern world.

There was a reception afterwards and lots of press.

Below is coverage from public radio, the BBC and another blog
article about AVATAR and Pachamama by Tom Atlee.

Whether you liked the film or not, the indigenous people saw their
own epic struggle powerfully displayed on the screen and it was very
impactful for them. They had truly fascinating comments afterwards.

The movie AVATAR really puts what we are all involved in in an
historic and truly epic perspective and makes it ever clearer how
important it is to Change the Dream.

___________________________________________________
Here is the extraordinary coverage of the film event in Quito:
You can listen on the radio story online
at http://www.theworld.org/2010/01/29/avatar-in-the-amazon/. The
video is already available on the BBC world's website, and on Youtube, and
you'll also find wonderful photos and the radio script there. For
a list of station and air times nation-wide go to: http://www.theworld.org/stations/


Here is Tom Atlee's fabulous blog about AVATAR and The Pachamama Alliance
http://bit.ly/AvatarJuicy

The Shift

I just learned about this new documentary and wanted to share it!!  THE SHIFT is a transcending movement that stems from an uncompromising longing for cultural reform all across the globe...it can be felt as a fundamental desire throughout humanity for peace, social justice and sustainability...and it is manifesting through a swell of activity at the most grass-roots levels of our society!

For more information about this movie, go to http://www.theshiftmovie.com.

Love is All You Need

I can't think of a more appropriate message to begin 2010 with!  Click on the title to listen to a wonderful video of Love is All You Need.

Relax, Restore, and Renew during this season

The Winter Solstice is a time when our body and spirit focus inward in a time of rest, relaxation, and self-exploration.  I'm sure many of you have been pulled in this direction lately and I encourage you to take the cue from your body and sleep more, spend more time in meditation, and examine your intentions for 2010. Many indigenous cultures believe the Winter Solstice and the winter months are a time to be quiet and self-reflect, which allows us to fully engage our new intentions and ideas during the spring.  This time of rest gives us the strength and focus we need to create our future, new ideas and projects that will need to be watered and grown into their full potential this spring.

I really enjoyed reading this section of Women's Quest newsletter and wanted to share it.  You can find out more about them at www.womensquest.com.

In ancient Greece, the Winter Solstice was called Lenaea, or the Festival of the Wild Women. Yee Haw! Whatever your beliefs, the winter solstice is a powerful time of the year, physically, emotionally and spiritually.  Use this time to revisit your life and your heart to better understand what is important to you at your core. This is a powerful time of change and rebirth. Use it help you become a radiant light force throughout the winter.

Restore! December is a month when cheerfulness is pushed on us in commercial doses, but it isn't really the mood of the season. The "natural" mood of the month is introspection, self-doubt, questioning, and withdrawal. The elements are turning us inward for our resting season. Animals know this is the season to hibernate so take their cue and retreat inside for some self-analysis and de-stressing. Be gentle with yourself. This is the time of the year for restoration and rejuvenation. Take time out from pushing your body, striving for success, and mental noise. If you have not learned to meditate give yourself the gift of a lifetime and dedicate some in-time to your mental, physical and spiritual well-being.

Sleep! *Solstice derives from an ancient Latin word meaning "stop," or "to stand still." Make sure you take time for yourself during the Holy-Daze, especially on the solstice. Luxuriate in a warm bath by candlelight to honor your inner being and go to bed early for some extra ZZZ's. Being the shortest day, nature intends for us to get some extra sleep. Here is the key to staying healthy:
Stop
Calm
Rest
Restore

“Soul Spark” Winter Solstice

Happy deepest darkest, longest blackest night 


May your dreams be rich, your healing arrive 


On velvet wings

May the brilliance of your light 


Sparkle like stars, 


Like reflections in the surface 


Of slowly rolling waves

May the blackness of this night 


Be a womb for your light, 


May we see with clearer sight 


And may we own, with delight 


The darkness within

Poem by Chris Prim

Day Two

This morning I woke to join several women, who would be traveling with me to the jungle, for breakfast.  We had all arrived the day before and our private breakfast table nestled in a closed restaurant across the street was buzzing with our joy and excitement of finally meeting each other.  The table was adorned with locally grown coffee and a colorful array of freshly squeezed juices and hand woven linens.  A very sacred way to start your day!  My excitement in meeting everyone was equally met with a pounding headache and queasiness, probably from the altitude adjustment of climbing Pinchincha.  These women already felt like my family as they poured me Coco tea and offered herbal remedies to ease the aching.  They became my Pachamama mothers within minutes!  Sitting at the table listening to everyone’s stories, spiritual quests that landed them in Quito sitting next to each other, and deep listening to their inner wisdom – I was attune to how each woman in the room held their power with care and compassion in a way that allowed their spirits to glow.  I sensed, even this morning, that these women would soon become my Council of Sisterhood, Sha-mazing mothers, and Divine Feminine Alliance. 

It wasn’t long after breakfast that we all gathered down the street at the infamous Magic Bean for lunch and to join the rest of our gathering of women.  We would encompass a Council of 17 Women in total, including two powerful leaders, Kathleen and Robin, and our Ecuadorian guide, Cuqui.  Fully surrounded by so many feminine leaders was a bit intimidating and beckoned the question of if I was really worthy to belong to this recently convened council of women.  They each held their power with such grace, had fully developed their intuition and were following their Divine paths, and spoke eloquently of their beliefs and awareness of their spiritual connection to the world.  I felt like such a newbie!  I just knew if I opened my mouth, they would realize I was much less “enlightened” than them and, yet, I knew I too had a deep connection to the Universe and Dreams.

Much of the day I blended into the background, listening to and observing the unique wisdom and medicine each woman had to offer.  We strolled through downtown Quito, with streets full of ornately decorated Catholic Cathedrals built on top of ancient Inca ruins.  Quito boasts of its historically significant architecture, comprised of towering stone walls that tell the stories of repeated conquering and of being conquered.  I was overwhelmed by feelings of sadness and heartbreak by the stark fact that for centuries our ideals of progress, dominance, and higher civilization had resulted in this concrete city, at the sacrifice of Mother Earth and people of conquered cultures. 

How long would it be before Quito’s current inhabitants are conquered again, the architecture once again rebuilt to reflect the new religious beliefs of the dominant culture?  How long before the United States will fall as the world leader?  When my nieces are grandmothers, will the Chinese have taken over the United States and established Chinese as the universal language?  If the U.S. economy fades and jobs are not to be found, will we know how to grow our own food and sustain ourselves?  Will we have maintained our cultural talents to be able to sell pottery, weavings, jewelry, and food to sustain our families? 

Tired and confused, I fell asleep at our hotel until we were gathered to listen to the instructions for leaving for the jungle early the next morning.  I could feel this trip was going to be big and change the course of my whole life.  Whew!  First, sleep.    

Joyful Journey to Ecuador - DAY ONE

Here is what you've all been waiting for!  I'll be posting a blog about each of my days in Ecuador.  Thanks for all of your personal interest in my journey and amazing insights and support so far!

Day One:  

Leaving New Mexico for the Houston airport, my phone was buzzing, my head was spinning with all of the tasks I still needed to accomplish for my business, I was checking email on my phone up until the last boarding call, and I had an aura of nervous energy flickering all around me.  I had been so busy living my all-important life, it felt ions ago that I had been surrounded in nature and her divine silence.  Was I really ready to go live in a remote village in the Amazon Rainforest with women I didn’t even know? 

Boarding for Ecuador, I stopped just shy of my isle seat, 24C, and overheard two grandmothers in the row bickering with each other.  One woman stopped complaining briefly, to take a breath, and shot a look of bitterness at me.  Suspended in the isle, I wondered how I was going to survive five hours next to these women and new my peaceful journey had been ruined.  Two guys sitting just behind the women broke my stunned silence and one asked if I wanted to sit with them.  My bag was nestled in an overhead compartment and I was sitting between them before he finished his question.  What Divine Perfection! 

The next five hours were filled with stories of their mountaineering adventures, rock climbing excursions, kayaking tournaments, and gut wrenching stories of being caught in avalanches, climbing down mountains with broken legs, and their daily lives protecting the Alaskan wilderness.  They had both recently left their fiancés, and were on their way to Ecuador to climb the volcano, Cotopaxi, kayak to the sea and spend their days surfing.  In their world, pushing the limits of huan body to conquer the natural wonders of Mother Earth, evoked a joy comparable to the enlightenment of Buddha – and could mend any broken heart.  We parted at the Quito International Airport and, given they didn’t know where they were staying and had no way of contacting me, doubted we would ever see each other again. 

You can imagine the amazement on my face when I saw them walking towards me at a local indigenous market the next morning about five blocks from my hotel.  They were staying at a hostel less than a block from my hotel!   They were going to have breakfast and invited me to hike Pinchincha with them, the magnificent mountain that towers over Quito.  After a short taxi ride, we arrived at the Teleferico – a tram that takes tourists from Quito at 9,000 feet up to 11,000 feet.  The severe drought in Ecuador contributed to alarming low levels at a lake that generates the majority of hydropower for the entire country.  As a result, Quito was experiencing planned blackouts with various sections of the city without power for 5 hours at a time.  Unfortunately, the Teleferico was without power and we had to wait over an hour for it to run again.  Even when we finally loaded into our tramcar, it moved so slowly I wondered if a few guys on a bicycle were pedaling away to keep a generator running. 

At the top, we found the trail and began our journey to the top of Pinchincha – 15,500 feet and higher than any mountain in the United States.  The path straddled a ridge line the revealed a patchwork of agricultural fields in golden, green, and brown hues on either side.  The higher we climbed, the more the sounds of Quito and a bustling life fell away to the gentle wind caressing our face like a long-lost friend, the whir of hummingbirds, and the vast silence of the majestic mountain.  The air thinned near the top as did the trail, which became a paper-thin, rocky edge only to be climbed by an expert climber with very little fear of falling to their death.  Needless to say, they went to the top and I was content at 15,000 feet with my feet on solid ground.  The sun began to set behind Pinchincha as we started a fast decent back to the tram to beat the darkness.  As the air grew colder with the setting sun, a sea of clouds washed over the hillsides, filling the valleys and washing down into Quito.  We barely made it to the Teleferico before it went totally dark.  I thanked the Universe for providing me exactly what I needed, when I needed it, and felt blessed to have spent the day unwinding in the beautiful vastness of raw nature.  We spent the evening enjoying traditional Ecuadorian cuisine, fresh mojitos, and nightlife thankful for the opportunity to have seen and experienced the enchantment of Mother Earth.