Portrait of an Angel in Coffee – can you see the wings?
Birthdays always make me a little uncomfortable. I feel awkward with all the attention. Wishing on the candles always feels … odd. I try to be gracious and go with the flow. But secretly I hope everyone will just forget.
This year my birthday arrived while I was in Guatemala traveling with a group of kind and intelligent persons with Mexi-Mayan Travel. Including my mother, who insisted we make a surprise stop at a bakery for cake, while on the way to our destination in the Guatemala forest, Takalik.
Takalik Maya Lodge is near the ruins of Takalik. An old coffee plantation turned lodge. Tucked on a steep hillside our group would have struggled to make the hike up the hill to the restaurant, so the staff generously brought coffee down to the porch for my birthday celebration.
While waiting for the coffee I slipped off the porch for some yoga and meditation.
Birfday Yoga Studio
Forest Meditation Here
The Path View
Meditating on the energy of the land, I was surprised at its gentle and feminine energy. The forest, while not quite jungle, was thick and dense. Yet so generously soft…
Everyone was very patient while I kept running down the hill to finish my yoga poses and meditation.
Then the cake and coffee.
The heavenly earthly coffee, the cake also. But the comradery was supreme. Such good will!
It was here that I finally found the solution to my birthday awkwardness. From the sweetness of the land and my comrades and the generosity of the Guatemalan people hauling coffee down the hill.
I blew out my candles and wished for myself to be generous of spirit. Done. Happy Birthday to me.
Later I talked my loving, wise mom into reading my coffee grounds. Thick coffee sludge in my cup. She hunched over the cup and saw everything that she knew I wanted…
Pics of the Lodge
The Plantation Chapel
The Plantation Where Beans Were Processed
And One Little Bean Trying To Grow!
To travel with Mexi-Mayan Tours contact me directly or visit the website: Mexi Mayan Academic Travel