Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to you all! Tis the season....a time of peace, humanity, joy, giving of ourselves and love. I often dreaded Christmas because of the chaos leading up to the day of celebration. It was such a conflict of behaviours with the stress, overspending, aggression, greed etc. The simpler my Christmas became, the more I enjoyed it. This year the season is about as simple as it can get...no gifts, no decorations, no stress. One important value I still have tho is the feeling of compassion, peace and joy. The truth of the season.

One of my favorite things to do here at the ashram is to go for a morning walk along the beach in meditation. There are about 60 or so of us walking quietly in a scattered group with the same destination....we walk past Atlantis resort and around to the point to watch the sunrise. Doing it alone or with someone special would be beautiful but doing it in a large group is absolutely powerful. There is an energy that cannot be expressed, only experienced as you do this. I have a special bond with the waters here....there is something magical that occurs when I am quiet and just listen. I have made it a habit to come out to the ocean at night and go for a walk, at times with one of my friends here but often times alone. The sound of the surf, the salt air and the stars twinkling is so peaceful and it allows my mind to slow down and often come up with decisions.

That being said, I had an important decision to make on Monday. I landed here and went through customs and the policy in Bahamas is to grant you a stay on the islands up to a national predetermined duration. What I didnt realize is that they are not obligated to allow you to stay the full duration. So off I went to Bahamas immigration on Monday with my documents supporting my stay here, and I ended up with Grumpy Pants as an immigration officer. He was very formal and sat me down at a desk, looked over my documents and told me that I would have to leave Bahamas and return in order to fufill my planned schedule. Well...I was floored...I sat there and watched his untrimmed moustache bobbing up and down as his lips moved, not really hearing the words. He was rambling off policies and political jargon which gets me all fired up on the best of days. I had considered asking him if I could just go for a swim off the island and seeing if that would qualify as a leave but thought I should keep my sass to a minimum as he has the power to deport me. So I returned heavy hearted to the ashram...and yes Dale, I had another cry. Your sister is an emotional sap at times. I really did think I had all things planned out but they had other plans for me. I talked to a few friends here about it and tossed different ideas around in my head but had no definate answer. Then, that night, I went out to the ocean and walked a ways down the shoreline and then just stood there and faced the great waters. The stars were incredible and there was a crescent moon lighting up the sky. The ocean was crashing against the shoreline in random patterns, sometimes soft, sometimes aggressive. I stood and just listened. I decided that I would return to Canada in late February and implement what skills I have aquired, and make the best of the balance of time I have here. I will miss out on achieving 3 certificates as the majority of them started around the middle of February but they are still attainable. It just felt like the right decision and each day after it has felt like the right thing to do. Besides, the thought of a hot bath, keeping my feet clean for more than 5 minutes, being woken up by someone hitting an old cut off scuba tank as an alarm clock and sleeping on a mattress are pretty tempting most days. I learn each day here, regardless if I am enrolled in a course or working....so the experience is still very valuable. I have already found 2 locations for the other courses in the States that I can take at a later date, and have enough certifications now and education to start things up in March of 2010.

We are currently celebrating Christmas here with symposiums each night after meditation and there are some incredible speakers that have come for the 12 days. It is the only reminder here that the holidays have arrived.

Merry Christmas to you all! And the very best for the New Year.

One Love,

Sherri