Lake Tahoe, Phoenix and Sedona

I've just returned from a whirlwind tour of Lake Tahoe, Phoenix and Sedona, AZ. I went to a women's spiritual retreat with singer/songwriter, Karen Drucker at Zephyr Point Cfc Center in Lake Tahoe, right on the lake. It's the first lake I've seen since I've been gone from NE that reminds me of Lake Winnipesauki - clean, clear, mountain fed, deep and expansive. It took 2 1/2 hrs to drive around its perimeter thru the mountains - some of those passes are scary and give a new meaning to switchbacks. There was one on the Northwest side which was particularly challenging - for a stretch of about 2 miles there were cliffs on either side of me and I'm sure the view would have been fantastic if I had had the nerve to take my eyes off the road.... My heart was racing, my hands gripped the steering wheel and I can only imagine trying to drive it if it was winter driving conditions!

The workshop was lovely, restful and inspiring. Karen has a beautiful voice and the group of us(30 or so)did alot of singing, chanting, drumming and sharing. Maggie Cole, her cofacilitator, is a religious science practitioner from Santa Rosa, CA and added her insight and inspiration to the weekend. Many of the women were from the West Coast - CA, NV, OR, CO, and one from Canada and several from Chicago area. Not a one from the Northeast or South - very strange - usually I'm in meetings where the demographics are the reverse. Needless to say Reno and area is full of casinos - in fact this tends to be true of many of the areas I've visited in the West - how can so many casinos be supported by gamblers - there must be alot of them....

The best part of the weekend was that I was inspired to write the prologue to my book while sitting on the shores of Lake Tahoe and read it to the group at the Saturday night talent show. I was really pleased to have gotten it done - at least in first draft and will work on editing it for sharing with my writer's group this coming Monday.

I flew to and from Phoenix, AZ, so that I could visit with two dear friends that I haven't seen for almost 10 years. Both were trained by the same Reiki Master as I was and so we have a deep bond and shared history. I stayed at Rina's house in Sun Lakes after the workshop and had a chance to see some of the sights in Phoenix and "enjoy" the 90 degree weather. It is so dry there that only cactus and certain hardy bush/trees thrive - almost no greenery - or at least not the kind that I am used to. However, I must admit the suaro (large, tall, single stem cactus)are grand and prolific. I had my inaugural trip to IKEA, including a full Swedish breakfast for 1.99, and spent several hours gazing at the swedish inspired furniture and household goods - at very reasonable prices. I also learned that Phoenix is the 5th largest city in the US; the ones that top it in population include NY, Chicago, LA, and Philly.

On my way back to NM I stopped in Sedona and was awestruck by the Red Rock formations and the energy. I had planned to spend the afternoon but didn't want to skim the surface of this interesting area so I'm sure I will be back someday for a much longer visit. They even have a metaphysical subcommittee of the Chamber of Commerce! I've never been in a town which markets alternative health and spirituality as the norm - it was refreshing... I drove thru the mountains near Flagstaff and welcomed the much cooler air as the altitude increased.

As I wound my way back to Taos I noticed that although still desert-like NM is actually much greener than AZ - green sage brush abounds along with aspen trees. The landscape is much more dramatic as well with undulating hills and the Sangre de Christos Mtns (as well as the Sandistas and other mountains I don't know the name of). I noticed that I felt happy to be returning to my earthship in Taos, my view of the mountains from my yard and the small town feel of the area and its inhabitants.