Some Thoughts About Gratitude and Thanks Giving

"Some Thoughts About Gratitude and Thanks Giving"

Happy Thanksgiving, a time of gratitude. It is always magical and mysterious for me how life can combine different experiences, emotions, and outcomes to offer us the opportunity to grow and become stronger in our love and acceptance of What IS.

A case in point: I am in Southern California at the home my parents built and I grew up in. My mother died of old age (95) comfortably here in her bed on Sunday. My brother is here. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, a big family day for many. This family is reduced to two.

The potential for emotional reactions and suffering is great in these situations. I accept them as sweet reminders of the value of living our lives fully as they unfold, and letting go of our silly ideas that we can predicts or control the outcomes. 

In that surrender, I find great peace. In that peace I find love. In that love I find the perfection of the Divine. In the Divine I find the Oneness of life. In that experience of Oneness I am back once again to great peace. 

This day I live in gratitude, for the life of my parents, and the life they gave me. I am grateful for Life. I hope that no matter what your situation or experience you will find a way to your gratitude, giving thanks for Life and all it offers you. Let's open our hearts and receive the multitude of gifts, without resistance or fear.

In gratitude there is only love.

Happy Thanks Giving, 

no matter where in the world this finds you!

         Allan

allanh@sonic.net -- Or  (707) 528-1271

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I'm so grateful to be able to share with you here. My life and work and Joydancer and TACO (my online Toltec spiritual and networking community) are all dedicated to helping us learn and remember the truth of our oneness as the Divine essence that creates and animates this universe... and each part of it in each moment. Including you and me!

I am available by phone, Skype, and e-mail if you would like support for your life journey. I look forward to hearing from you.

Details about consultations and apprenticeship are here.

The Coolest Hat

"The Coolest Hat"

[EDITOR'S NOTE: This hat story is taken from an e-mail conversation between members of Allan Hardman's online community "TACO" who participated in his October journey to the pyramids at Teotihuacán, Mexico, and the extension to Tepoztlán. The group jokes that nobody is allowed to have a cooler hat than Allan.]

"Can someone tell us the complete story of the coolest hat?"

Allan: "Hello all....

I guess if no one else will tell the story, it must be up to me. We were hiking down from the pyramid of Tepozteco in Tepoztlán, and at one of the rest stops I left my hat behind. I didn't miss it until we stopped at a little stall near the bottom of the trail where they were making the quesadillas we had fallen in love with at the market place the day before. Four of us sat down and ordered and enjoyed our treats immensely (corn fungus, grasshoppers, farmer's cheese, and squash blossoms, cactus leaf, and more -- yummmm.) Perhaps someone has photos to share of the adventure. Ah yes, here they are!

Allan wearing "The Coolest Hat"

The bottom of the trail to the Pyramid of Tepozteco

Our Favorite Quesadillas

Corn Fungus, Grasshoppers, Farmer's Cheese, Squash Blossoms, Cactus Leaf & more!

I surrendered my hat to the Angel of Death (scroll down to watch a video about the Angel of Death if you are unfamiliar with the Angel in Toltec mythology) shortly after I realized it was missing, because I've heard that part of the lecture many times (from myself, of course), and have come to believe it. The Angel had taken back the hat she loaned me many years ago -- the Coolest Hat in Teotihuacán and Peru. It was okay.

However, while we were sitting eating, I was casually watching to see if anyone coming down the trail past us was wearing it, just in case the Angel was just testing or kidding me, or wanted to return it for some reason. I was more concerned with the eagle feather on the hat that a shaman in Peru had given me. There was a minor attachment there, partly, as I write this I realize, because I believed it was a sacred duty to use and protect that feather.

About the time we were finishing up our quesadillas I glanced over at a family that had been stopped by a vendor on the other side of the trail and were looking at her wares. As I looked again, I saw my eagle feather dangling below the arm of one of the women. 

I went over and bowed in gratitude to her, and told her it was "my" hat and thanked her for finding it (Creative Assumption). She said her son had actually found it -- so I offered it to him. He smiled and declined, and so once again the Coolest Hat was mine, along with the eagle feather and Peruvian hat band. 

We finished our meal and returned to the hotel.

And that's my story of The Coolest Hat and The Angel of Death."

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To learn more about the Toltec concept of The Angel of Death, watch this video of Allan teaching about the Angel of Death in Teotihuacán, Mexico:

http://youtu.be/8ZEUDnpfcDI