Santa Teresa - An inspiring finish to a whole month here!

Snowdon and I have been recording and interpreting our dreams.  Christiane (Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom) states, 'Dreams are a doorway to the unconscious, listen to them'.  She says that the brain and the inner guidance system give us a map of the activities or goals that we desire or need for a healthy balanced future, and that they show us the beneficial and non-beneficial directions towards which we are focusing our energy and how and where we need to make adjustments.

She includes a quote from Clarissa Pinkola Estes, 'The night dreams speak wild women's language.  She is there broadcasting. All we have to do is take dictation'.

I like the idea of a healthy balanced future, so I've been taking dictation!  It's been very enlightening.  I get up, record my dreams in my journal first thing (before I forget), check out www.dreammoods.com to give me some help interpreting them, then I'm off for my morning surf.  Mia (Ugo's dog) and Polo (Andrea and Frederica, our neighbour's dog) come with me, which is lovely.  It's so nice to have some dogs - I love dogs! Here is a pic of me with our lovely new friend Mia.

This morning was one morning that I wasn't setting of for a surf with the dogs.  We still had the quad for half the day.  I was setting of for a surf, with my husband!!  We loaded the boards on the quad (by this stage I'd surrendered the reins to Snowdon and decided to sit back and enjoy the scenery) and set off in search of waves and to find the lovely Manzanillo.  Well we found a beach (Hermosa I think) for a surf, I jumped in but not for long (I'm so biased and happy by this stage with our local spot), and we found the sleepy little fishing village of Manzanillo.  The highlight for me though, was being out and about and exploring the area.  A month in one place with just your feet is quite a lovely but also long time!

With the rest of our 'quad time' I attempted to surf at another spot (for the first time here I couldn't get out the back through the break, and after getting hit on the nose with my board I gave up and came in - already convinced that our local spot is the best and finding evidence for my decision..), we swam x2, found out a surf shop will look at buying Snowdon's board, returned the quad, had an iced coffee, read and lunch out at Cafe Zulu, and then...Art Class!

On 3rd April I'd had a dream in where I was completing a  painting assignment that an old primary school friend had very kindly come up to help me with.  In the dream I was so happy to be being creative and recall very clearly the keen desire I had to get the paint onto that painting.  I woke up thinking that I'd love to paint something.  On 4th April I dreamt a dream that I wanted to paint.  That afternoon we  visited 'Cafe Rendezvous', and what do you know - right there I saw a poster advertising Art Classes, Tue/Thur 3pm, $5.  Wow Art classes, and even better, at a price that I can afford!  Here's a (not very good) shot of a painting of Fernanda's (the artist offering the classes) striking painting from inside the restaurant. She has a whole lot more - check them out on her facebook group (Galeria de Arte de Fernanda Lalosevich). 



So there I am (see photo) last Thursday 8th April (the Tuesday was a theory session which I didn't do) sitting with Fernanda Lalosevich, painting an oil painting. It was such a lovely art class.  Great ambience. We were outside sweating it out in the heat, with people wandering by, and painting.  Fernanda, who's Argentinian, had come prepared with a great idea for the lesson - she'd brought along a 'hat' for me to paint - how cool.  But I choose a flat piece of canvas - I explained that there was no place for the hat in my pack.  We talked (mostly in Spanish which was great for me, I don't speak much Spanish here.. ) about our relationships and she shared with me her experience of working in a design job that didn't 'light her up', and so she changed her life to do what she loves to do (paint!) and now she is very content.  She didn't 'teach' me, she empowered me to 'paint'.  She has such a warm, accepting presence that I felt fully comfortable to create what I'd seen in my dream.  She was patient too - I took about 2hrs.  In the end Fernanda was happy that I was happy and that I'd finished my painting (I'd accomplished what I'd come for). I paid the colones, I nearly paid more, she was worth much more, but my travel budget survival mechanism kicked in and I didn't (you're worth much more Fernanda!)  When I left I said I might come next week but if I don't it wasn't because I didn't love it this time 'I loved it'.  She said: 


'Of course - you will be doing whatever it is you need to do then'.  


Which translated from something like 'si, vas a hacer que tienes ganar a hacer'.  Wow - what a way to be, what a freeing response (for this occasion but I mean for life also)!  She offered me some sips of her delicious chilled ice coke (I'm not usually into coke but man it was good - perfect for that hot sweaty day).  


I bade Fernanda farewell and was on my way with my wet oil painting grasped firmly in my two hands (it was hot, hot, but a bit windy and I didn't want it to smudge).  I was so happy walking home, I smiled at everyone (I felt like I did the day of the watermelon off the back of the truck purchase in Monteverde).  I was so proud of myself for painting my dream, I mean what a clever thing to do!


So there it is - my pride and joy! I won't give you my interpretation - I don't want to inhibit yours..

I rushed home, called up to Louise (Ugo's employee), "Louise mire lo que pinte".  She smiled and congratulated me, looking happy for me and my obvious excitement. I showed my honey my painting, told him how proud of myself I was, and then I rushed off for a surf before the sun went down.


This day, the last day of a whole month in Santa Teresa finished off with me admiring how, when the sun goes down, the whitewash reflects the pink of the sunset.  Then me feeling very courageous when I met Jim said, "Hey you found your jandals?  I remember you, you were one of the only girls paddling out there on those big days".  Actually I think I might have a photo of you surfing on one of those days (fingers crossed that that turns into something).


What a day - exploring Manzanillo and Santa Teresa via quad. 'Surfing' in three different spots.  Being out in the heat all day sweating it out with my honey - feeling what it's really like in this town.  Expressing my creativity, carrying out my recent dream of painting, and being acknowledged for courageousness.  Nice.  A great end to a great month in Santa Teresa.