I am starting off late this morning. I have spent enough time reflecting on various overland trips, especially those with Chris M. as they were/are the spiritual hearth of overlanding for me. The best one was back in January 2000; he and I quit our jobs, packed up our belongings, loaded up his adventure-style truck (the Bajataco) so we were "self-contained," and set out for Baja Mexico.
I remember feeling like a sort of pilgrim, one who's traveling to understand the land, who's here to learn about relationships and follow queues, to learn the forgotten wisdom of the ocean, and the secret essence within nature that is the cause of all magic. Chris' patience and amazing companionship helped me to understand, let me find "my way." He probably remembers seeing me fumbling sometimes, yet never griped. He knew I wasn't searching for a specific end (other than a couple hot springs), that I was not embarked on any special quest. It was an everyday venture for me. I was traveling and escaping... well, because I was traveling and escaping. The world tottered during that time as we drove back and forth between the coast lines to find outpost after outpost, yet beside me Chris stood firm, offered me solidity, a time and space where there has always been more time and space.
This turned out to be a 4-month overland journey in all, and if Chris were here (we are on separate adventures now) we would have plenty to talk about over supper. Love, Sharon
Showing posts with label Baja. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baja. Show all posts
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Friday, October 11, 2013
You Can't Choose the Fish...
I just returned from a saltwater fishing trip in the Sea of Cortez, having enjoyed another great adventure with gorgeous weather. The trip started a couple miles from San Felipe then beelined south to Baja's rock-and-cacti-strewn Midriff Islands region. It was truly epic for me energetically. Each moment spoke to me powerfully and sent me off each day in the panga buzzing from my heart, attracting new friends, fish to my lures and magic. I found my muse.
I also found the Sea of Cortez and the Tony Reyes boat literally "enchanting" in the esoteric sense, and recommend it as an excellent location to recharge your spiritual batteries (it's also non-touristy). Interesting that Baja, when it was first discovered by pirates, was rumored as an island (not a peninsula) ruled by Amazon woman with weapons made of gold and that the surrounding waters were paved with beads of pearls. This seems to have somehow breathed its way into every element of land and existence; it is just so palpable! My heart and mind were open to this paradigm because I spent a good bit of time in Baja on its enchanted land years prior to this trip. Blending magic from the past and present, here I was somewhere in the middle of the sea, on top of the world, entirely in the flow.
So high on the surprise of which fish might choose my line, I spent the next 4 mornings and late afternoons with my 2 boat mates and pangara in the late summer heat, juggling a celebratory beer, my water, my sunscreen, rented rods and reels, a bundle of fun MirrOlures (lures that imitate baitfish) and dead bait, which happened to be squid Jim bought at a store. Starting off as strangers, Chuck and Jim became dear to me as they where my wise-ole-owl teachers (and sometimes grumpy and late for the boat, but never late to a meal), along with some other colorful characters that enriched the fishing experience and brought their life stories to the pages of my story. I will never forget them.
Fish Woman Rising
This got me wondering...what is the significance of fish and their relationship to woman?
The fish was sacred to the Greco-Roman mythology, where it held symbolic meaning of change and transformation. I know a little about this as a I recall the myth of Aphrodite and Heros when they turned themselves into fish in order to escape from the ferocious typhoon. As an ancient Celtic symbol, the fish represents knowledge, wisdom, inspiration and prophecy. In ancient Eastern Indian mythology, the fish is observed in the ancient flood myth in which Vishnu transformed himself into a fish to save the world from a great flood. In China, it is symbolic of unity and fidelity as it is noted that fish often swim together in pairs. With this in mind, fish are often given as wedding gifts in the form of charms or figurines to present the newly-wed couple with an auspicious sign of fidelity and perfect union. And in Norse and ancient European cultures, the fish had symbolic meanings of adaptability, determination, and the flow of life. It was observed by these cultures that fish often display enormous attributes of adaptability in the wild, and they adopted these characteristics for themselves.
Untitled...(as darker thoughts flirt with me:)
Fisherman behind me,
Fisherman all around me,
Above me and below me hovers a gypsy angler, her hair in the water permanently waved.
I'm surrounded by the movement of the sea, I am immersed in it.
In my youth, my wallet contained a fishhook that tore the plastic,
And in middle age, I dare walk quietly the spectrum of the fisherman's path.
In hunger, it is begun.
In time, will my line will be cut when collated wonders fail
Like a dream that gets unpacked and spread at another fisherman's feet?
Thank you for reading my blog. It's nice to connect with you here. I'm thinking good thoughts about you. Love, Sharon of the Sea
I also found the Sea of Cortez and the Tony Reyes boat literally "enchanting" in the esoteric sense, and recommend it as an excellent location to recharge your spiritual batteries (it's also non-touristy). Interesting that Baja, when it was first discovered by pirates, was rumored as an island (not a peninsula) ruled by Amazon woman with weapons made of gold and that the surrounding waters were paved with beads of pearls. This seems to have somehow breathed its way into every element of land and existence; it is just so palpable! My heart and mind were open to this paradigm because I spent a good bit of time in Baja on its enchanted land years prior to this trip. Blending magic from the past and present, here I was somewhere in the middle of the sea, on top of the world, entirely in the flow.
So high on the surprise of which fish might choose my line, I spent the next 4 mornings and late afternoons with my 2 boat mates and pangara in the late summer heat, juggling a celebratory beer, my water, my sunscreen, rented rods and reels, a bundle of fun MirrOlures (lures that imitate baitfish) and dead bait, which happened to be squid Jim bought at a store. Starting off as strangers, Chuck and Jim became dear to me as they where my wise-ole-owl teachers (and sometimes grumpy and late for the boat, but never late to a meal), along with some other colorful characters that enriched the fishing experience and brought their life stories to the pages of my story. I will never forget them.
Fish Woman Rising
This got me wondering...what is the significance of fish and their relationship to woman?
The fish was sacred to the Greco-Roman mythology, where it held symbolic meaning of change and transformation. I know a little about this as a I recall the myth of Aphrodite and Heros when they turned themselves into fish in order to escape from the ferocious typhoon. As an ancient Celtic symbol, the fish represents knowledge, wisdom, inspiration and prophecy. In ancient Eastern Indian mythology, the fish is observed in the ancient flood myth in which Vishnu transformed himself into a fish to save the world from a great flood. In China, it is symbolic of unity and fidelity as it is noted that fish often swim together in pairs. With this in mind, fish are often given as wedding gifts in the form of charms or figurines to present the newly-wed couple with an auspicious sign of fidelity and perfect union. And in Norse and ancient European cultures, the fish had symbolic meanings of adaptability, determination, and the flow of life. It was observed by these cultures that fish often display enormous attributes of adaptability in the wild, and they adopted these characteristics for themselves.
Untitled...(as darker thoughts flirt with me:)
Fisherman behind me,
Fisherman all around me,
Above me and below me hovers a gypsy angler, her hair in the water permanently waved.
I'm surrounded by the movement of the sea, I am immersed in it.
In my youth, my wallet contained a fishhook that tore the plastic,
And in middle age, I dare walk quietly the spectrum of the fisherman's path.
In hunger, it is begun.
In time, will my line will be cut when collated wonders fail
Like a dream that gets unpacked and spread at another fisherman's feet?
Thank you for reading my blog. It's nice to connect with you here. I'm thinking good thoughts about you. Love, Sharon of the Sea
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