Happy Winter from Puerto Vallarta
Happy Winter, everybody! And while winter is not celebrated as ‘happily’ for the most part up north where they actually have to live in it, winter in Vallarta is a sheer, unadulterated joy because it means money pouring into the city with jam-packed planes dumping thousands of people (and their money) into Vallarta so they can stay warm for a week or two. Our lifeblood, our tourists, some of whom will be so enamored of what they find here, will move to Vallarta and become your neighbor and quite likely your friend for the rest of your lives.
Each one of us was a tourist once. We were all shocked by the blast of hot, humid air as we walked out of the artificially chilled airport to await a ride to a hotel, Airbnb, resort, condo, or villa, our somewhere to sleep.
And so, the ones that settle here permanently bring a few tangible things; most of us pragmatically decide on the amount of stuff by the parameters of a suitcase or two.
Memories and traditions, however, have no boundaries; they simply have to be molded slightly to fit the new surroundings. A gigantic crackling bonfire, for example, needs to be downsized to fit safely on a condo terrace, but the flames do their work just as well.
A case in point – greeting the Winter Solstice with Chiara Diane Montante, who has led friends and family in the ancient rituals for nearly four decades. It was my second time in this warrior/goddess’s home, specifically for the solstice.
The ritual: First, write down what you want to change about yourself and your surroundings in the upcoming year and keep them personal. ‘World Peace’ is a nice sentiment, but, you get the idea, right? There was quiet for the first time that evening as we wrote, revised, wrote more, and then capped the pen and carefully folded our paper in half lest the wishes and dreams were to fly off and escape.
Second, take the paper and feed the flames of the fire, releasing the negative energies holding you back.
Third, get another drink and some food and prepare for the best part of the night.
Chiara lit her votive candle and shared with us, sitting in a lazy, free-form circle spilling from her living room onto the terrace, her hopes, dreams, and changes for the near future, like a verbal New Year’s Resolution list. Chiara then opened the floor for the rest of us to speak. Sandra Bradley was second, Chiara lighting her candle with a taper from her flame. And so it progressed around the room in no order and without pressure to say anything. What happened was magical – one person’s spoken thought triggered another’s memory. Slowly but surely, shyness and inhibitions fell away when we understood we were safe with friends who heard our words and held them sacred, giving them space enough to be honored and respected and like the flames, now flickering at the end of the evening to ashes, our words flew into the hearts of those present and into the universe where they will manifest somehow, someday.