Holiday Letter 2017

My Review of the Past 3 Years!

Photo by George Gliszczynski

Dear Sacred Heart,

​I trust you are having a wonderful Holiday Season making time for rest and rejuvenation and a little playtime. I am thinking of you and sending big ethereal hugs your way. I hope you can feel it!

It has been about three years since we left Canada and since I wrote my last newsletter. There is much to catch up on, so this will be a more Personal Newsletter.

The last time I wrote, my partner and I had just got married on our 20thAnniversary! The very next day we had our Moving Away Party. It was a very special weekend of family, friends, and out-of-town visitors. After that, we spent the remaining time packing up our stuff for our move to our new home in Ecuador. We are genuinely grateful for the large turnout of our adorable Canadian amigos who helped us load our container on time to get to the port… mucho gracias! Finally with a much needed rest, we headed off for our honeymoon vacation and new adventure! We took a cruise throughout the Caribbean and totally indulged in island hoping with romance, rest, food and entertainment.

Afterward, we finally took our flight from Florida to our new home in Ecuador! I felt as if I was twenty again! We lived in our big empty house for a few months sleeping on the floor on a foamy mattress, eating sandwiches in the stairwell (which became our dining room :). Soon we began to enjoy the Zen-like feeling of emptiness, waiting for our container to arrive. Due to a strike at the port in Vancouver, it took much longer than we had expected.

Photo by George Gliszczynski

So, here we are! Our Ecuadorian  house is located at the edge of the city on the side of a big hill. Our large outdoor terrace overlooks the entire quaint city with truly a breathtaking view. My husband and I have taken many pictures of the glorious daytime and night time sky. It is like a meditation watching the many paintings the majestic sky creates for us to view. We especially love that there are no chemicals being sprayed in the air as in North America, so it is clear and unpolluted to view and clean to breathe. We can actually see bright blue skies now, and stunning sunsets. Even though Canada will always be our home, we’ve found a new sacred land that is our sanctuary…a little piece of heaven on earth <3

​Our first year, 2015, was super exciting! I wasn’t sure if I was terrified or thrilled?! We just couldn’t stop smiling! :-) My dreams were amazing! However, without knowing Spanish, it was a challenge doing more legal paperwork, and running around attempting to get grounded and learn about our new homeland and where to buy stuff. We found a wonderful all purpose handymen, Tarquino, who basically with our help, totally renovated our house mostly by himself. This full-time job took nine months to finish and made the space our own.

During this time, my husband suggested I go out as much as possible to get to know our new community. I began by accepting many invitations to lunches, dinner gatherings and house parties. As well, I found a lovely shamanic community and went to regular ceremonies. So much love was and still is exchanged with my fascinating new international friends. Most people I know are from the United States, and some are from Canada and Europe. I also have a few local Ecuadorian friends.

Photo by George Gliszczynski

​The natural plant life is gorgeous, as we live in a type of bowl in a sunken valley with little mountains all around. Four energetic rivers flow through the town, so vibrant and alive! Due to the 8000 ft elevation, there are few insects and the weather is temperate with warm days and cool nights. It is kind of like the ‘land of eternal spring’. We get to have summer during December, so it’s quite hot right now on most days. And it’s like having four-seasons in a day, so I get to change a lot. There is no need for central heat or air-conditioning. The produce is awesome as there are so many fruits and vegetables to choose from including many exotic ones at amazing low prices. The cost of living is incredibly affordable, especially when it comes to the basics (ie: rent, property taxes, food, transportation, entertainment, hotels, travel). However, anything imported can be quite pricey too, such a clothes and electronics. But mostly it is greatly appreciated not having to stress about basic living expenses.

Photo by George Gliszczynski

So with this new found liberation, our next phase began in 2016 when we joined a local theater club called Fishbon del Sur. My husband's career specialized in the ‘movie industry’ (aka Hollywood North), so it was perfect for him to explore theater. As for myself, this was my first love in high school and early twenties, enjoying the visual and performing arts! In Ecuador, we have met a lot of artists and entertainers… many quite funny so it was great to laugh again :-). Together, we created an original off-Broadway musical comedy called "Expats" with a great story on what it is like to be an newcomer and retire and play with friends in a new country and culture. We had many short live skits, video skits and wonderful songs with a few burlesque dance numbers! I did a little singing and dancing, and assisted with some rehearsal video and editing. This opened up a whole new world by reconnecting with my love for creativity. My partner videoed and edited the entire live production and the video skits, and produced the final DVD which was completed in early 2017.

Photo by Nathan Resnick

​My dear local friends were very thoughtful to put on a 50th birthday party for me in May. It was a celebration of a lifetime!!! Coincidently, one of my close friends also has the same birthday and was turning 70,  so we had a ‘double decade’ birthday party together…what a blast! A few friends were also part of a band that played beautiful jazz music on the rooftop on a warm evening. Additionally, several friends performed for us for a good hour in the living room, with poetry, prayers, songs, dance, juggling and a monologue. Wow, what a treat! I did a duet dance with a girlfriend and we did the Charleston (…the happy dance)!

I started to become a hermit after doing so much socializing. I began feeling quite burned out from my life in North America and the move to South America. Finally my health caught up with me. Too much emotional and physical exertion just overwhelmed me, and I had to begin declining the many invitations. I needed to recharge.

It can be a little challenging when most of my local friends are retired with all the time in the world. Yes, I did take a three year sabbatical here, but I’m definitely not retired. I still desire being active with more inspirational projects to fulfill my life purpose. But as life would have it, I was forced to slow down. I inadvertently injured by shoulder by carrying too much weight in my knapsack and severely pulled several back and shoulder muscles. So, whether I liked it or not, I was out of commission for the last half year while my shoulder healed from the pain.

Photo by George Gliszczynski

It was a great opportunity to rest a lot, and I managed to journal and dream about my new online Mystery School. I am grateful for my husband of twenty-three years, as we’ve travelled in the inner and outer world with our relationship through many wonderful moments shared. He is my best friend, and I’m thankful for our sweet partnership on a personal and professional level. For this new internet project would not be possible without his gracious support!

Even though resting has been part of my healing process, I needed more. So at the end of this year, I stayed a friend’s house for almost two weeks as part of a one month cleanse. I ate raw foods, warm broths, thick vegetable juices, then fresh fruit juices, a water fast, then a dry fast, and then reverse… back to eating normal again… just before the holidays. Now my shoulder is no longer in pain, but I will have to do some rehabilitation from lack of use. The cleanse helped detoxify me on the inside, so my energy level has greatly improved. I hope to do another cleanse mid-January to focus on a few internal organs for more detoxification.

Photo by George Gliszczynski

​We have been mostly focused on continuing to fix up our house and getting settled. Our travelling adventures since coming to Ecuador have managed to take us to several quaint towns, indigenous villages and ancient ruins, all within a two hours radius. There are some stunning waterfalls, forests, valleys and exotic trees and flowers to enjoy. Although there are not many wild animals in this region, the birds are wonderful and the few insects are usually benign, big and fascinating. The all seem very conscious and aware. It’s always nice to get away and have a break. There is a little town nearby that has several hot springs pools to bath in. That’s always a treat! We sometimes check out the movie theater, live musicians, bands as well as the choir and symphony orchestra which perform in the magnificent 500-year old cathedral. Most entertainment is free!

Photo by George Gliszczynski

​As for you, my dear friend, I hope you too can take a breather during the holiday seasons to get some rest, celebrate your year and enjoy friends and family. Wishing you a happy belated Winter Solstice (Summer Solstice ~ for us in the Southern Hemisphere), Christmas, Hanukkah, and any other special holiday that is sacred to you.

Thank you for taking this journey with me, and I hope to share some exciting things ahead… such a my new Mystery School, which will include newsletter updates, blog posts, YouTube videos, photographs, and more!!

If you’d like to comment on this Newsletter, please post your thoughts in my new Blog! I’ll send the link tomorrow. Thanks kindly.

Much love,
Sahara