Day 1 ~ Hot Springs Ranch
I rose this morning at sunrise. Golden light spilling across the yellow and green sagebrush. Sleeping out on the front porch of the bunk house, ready for a soak and first light yoga. The task at hand is to pick 20 bundles of Great Basin sage for my Vision Quest on Navajo Nation. 7 sticks in each bundle honoring our planet and our life~ the four directions, mother earth, father sky and one's self. These will be placed around my blanket, miles out on reservation land, where I will spend 4 days and nights in meditation and prayer, to honor all the gifts I have received in this life, to heal wounds I have suffered and ask for my vision to manifest.
End of summer, I feel the subtle chill in the air rising in the evening. I'm taking time out to reflect on what has come to pass this year and where I'm headed. My quest is to find within myself the strength and courage to live my life with integrity so that I can be of service to others. My prayer is to slow down, and get out of my own way and be present. So I take on this Vision Quest challenge to test my perceptions, to reset my relationship with myself, to step in to life's forward motion even though it is unknown and to honor not lament what has and has not happen and embrace this powerful time where life is asking all of us to show up bigger and step into our higher wisdom and love more against hatred.
Day 2 ~ Nevada to Arizona
Not only a journey of becoming, but it's also a road trip!! From the high reaches of the wet Pacific Northwest through 1500 miles of forgotten
American history ~ copper mines, horse ranches, oddball diners, forgotten Casinos, exquisite red canyons, Mormon communities, following the arc of the sun down into the desert paradise of Arizona. Magnificent way to appreciate the efforts of our forefathers and mothers.
Day 3 ~ Navajo Reservation
Waking before sunrise, quiet beauty unfolding. Little gas camp stove bringing hot hot coffee to me! Ahhh! A moment of Marble Canyon yoga. Dogs fed. BG and I pack the night gear and drive down to the Colorado river, Lee's Ferry to honor the day and this sacred time. Washing cold water over our road worn faces. We both have needed to slow down and this trip is unwinding all the months of emotional and physical intensity. With mother's passing, moving his mother (92) to a smaller home, remodeling a 1911 craftsman, and opening Spirit Yoga Lodge, we've had our arms full and shoulders heavy, but our hearts overflowing with such abundance.
Arriving today with my heart full of wonder, to spend time the ancient way on the land without any extra. Dropping into simplicity. Just myself in my skin with my heart and my mind in gratitude. For my teachers, Alex Turtle and Chenoa Egawa, Ana Forrest, Dorothy Satten, Kristine Wilkerson, who have guided me to reach into my heart for answers; for my husband BG Tackett, my mother and my family; for my students and fellow seekers on the path to living a life of harmony with all things.
In these last golden days of summer, give yourself time away from the familiar to run loose, and let yourself wander so that you can receive inspired understanding, glimpse your true path of fulfillment and soar above "industrial" thinking. I certainly struggle with work life balance. Taking time away to reclaim a more loving and beautiful life helps all those we encounter When we show up with an open & generous attitude, so badly needed we help heal the deep anguish our world is experiencing.
I ask you all to walk this journey with me over the next 12 days. To honor your life, find sacred time, create it whenever and wherever you can. It is not how it looks or how much you have, but the actual moment you connect to your spirit. What are you questing for?
Blessing to us all and may you walk in beauty,
Gianna