August 25, 2012
On Friday, August 24, Ricardo flew to California to attend a family reunion, while I stayed behind to watch over the house and to take it easy for a few days.
On Saturday, August 25, after visiting with a couple of friends, I got a little bored and decided to return to the hot springs in Tonopah, Arizona, for a night of camping, soaking, and reflection. With just twenty-three meditations remaining in my journey, I needed to take some time to focus my energies on making sure that I saw my trip through to the very end. I found myself becoming a little distracted at times.
Located just 40 miles west of Phoenix, the hot springs had become one of my favorite destinations. I had previously visited Tonopah twice during my journey: the first visit on Day 19 and the second visit on the day after Day 42. I looked forward to my third visit with great anticipation. Located on the 33°29′ Parallel, I always felt that this once sacred healing place for the Hohokam would make an excellent location for one of my meditations.
Native Americans revered hot springs as a sacred healing place. The natural hot springs in Tonopah, Arizona, are a prime example. The name “Tonopah” derives from the Western Apache name Tú Nohwá, meaning “Water For Us” or “Water For You.” Though there are no ruins or evidence of dwellings in the vicinity of the hot springs, the prevalence of grain-grinding mortar holes, pottery shards, and other human-made objects in the area suggest that this site was frequented for many years by native peoples, such as the Hohokam. The hundreds of high-quality arrowheads near existing springs in Tonopah attest to its popularity as a hunting ground.
When I visited the hot springs, other people were around, so I longed for the day when I had the entire place to myself.
Upon arrival, I paid the $30.00 for an overnight RV space and then walked over to the hot springs for a quick soak. Afterward, I went to dinner at a local restaurant and spent the next hour or so eating and working on my computer.
By the time I finished dinner, the sun had set, and night had fallen. I returned to my RV site to set up camp and then headed over to the hot springs for the second round of soaking. That’s when I noticed that two new people had arrived while I was at dinner. I wasn’t sure if these people were hourly or overnight customers, so I patiently waited until 9:00 PM to see if they stuck around for the night or went home. At 9:15 PM, the manager made his final rounds and informed me that I was his only overnight guest. Finally, I thought, I had the hot springs to myself for once.
Once the manager retired to his cabin for the evening, I went to my van, gathered all my meditation tools, and prepared for an impromptu invocation of the “Enough Is Never Enough” angel. Before I began the invocation, I said a short prayer and asked all of my Native American ancestors to join me in the Light. I also invited the local animals to gather during my ceremony to offer companionship, wisdom, and enlightenment. I performed the “Enough Is Never Enough” meditation between 10:23 and 10:43 PM.
About halfway through my invocation, three wild cats appeared over the fence on the western wall of the fenced-in area.
The West is the spirit of water. It is the direction from which darkness comes. It is the power of change, the place of dreams, introspection, and the unknown. The West signifies purity and strength. The spiritual meaning behind number three deals with magic, intuition, fecundity, and advantage. The number three invokes expression, versatility, and pure joy of creativity. Three is also a time identifier representing Past, Present, and Future. Consecutive Threes may symbolize the need to express yourself creatively or consider your present direction concerning past events and future goals. Three may also represent promising new adventures and assurance of cooperation from others you may require help. Three typically symbolizes reward and success in most undertakings. Cat offered the following messages:
- independence,
- seeing the unseen,
- protection,
- love,
- allows us to dream its dreams,
- assistance in meditation,
- and the ability to fight when cornered.
I completed my meditation soon afterward and returned to the tubs for the third round of soaking. That’s when I discovered three large frogs hanging around the showers and tubs.
Frog offered the following wisdom:
- understanding feelings and emotions,
- cleansing,
- connection to all life,
- and rebirth.
Once I settled into my tub of warm, soothing, mineral water…
I suddenly noticed four beautiful doves quietly roosting in a tree directly overhead.
The symbolic meaning of the number Four deals with stability and invokes the grounded nature of all things. Consider the four seasons, four directions, four elements, and all these amazingly powerful essences wrapped up in the lovely square package of Four. Fours represent solidity, calmness, and home. A recurrence of Four in your life may signify the need to return to your roots, center yourself, or even “plant” yourself. Fours also indicate a need for persistence and endurance. Dove offers the following messages:
- brings peace and love,
- Understanding of gentleness,
- Spirit messenger, and
- communication between the two worlds.
After combining the various animals’ messages, directions, and numbers, I knew I had finally connected spiritually to this once very sacred place. Coupled with the message delivered in my meditation, I began to understand that all of my journeys were about destroying the darkness within and never settling for anything less than total Light.
Since the “Enough Is Never Enough,” mediation helped promote courage, concentration, and the ability to focus, I looked forward to resuming the next segment of my journey with a new boost of positive energy, remembering that I deserved anything that I put in my mind, heart, and spirit.
I returned home the following morning. I paused my journey once again to allow time for new direction and insight.