MSIA travel staff is currently in South America, providing MSIA Services (Innerphasings, Polarity Balances & Aura Balances) as well as MSIA events. Staff member, Angel Gibson, provides this update from the trip:
DAY 1 – Los Angeles to Caracas
Well, if it’s Saturday at 5:45am we must be at LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) and off towards the friendly skies of South America. Lesley Freeman, Vincent Dupont and I are traveling together; Celia Allen-Graham is paralleling our journey on other flights that will take her through Dallas. We will rendezvous in Caracas tonight. Ah, we’ve done our regular stint of late night before travel packing and chores before getting a requisite 2-3 hours sleep. We arrive at the airport meeting up with Jack Favor who like a true hero got up early to help out NOW Productions (who have a mega-schedule this weekend with some events) to drive the audio/video equipment to the airport. Once checked in we have some quiet wait time before our flight is called. We can hardly wait to get nestled into our seats so we can continue our sleeping. Mercifully the movie on the flight is one I’ve seen, so I’m not even tempted.
Our five hour trip seems like 2 hours and we find ourselves in Miami gratefully close to the gate of our connecting flight to Caracas. First time ever that we’ve been in the same terminal as our connecting flight — at least in my memory. We stretch our legs, grab some water and it’s time to board this flight…so easy…so graceful. Three hours later and a few choppy air bumps and we’re across the water and landed into Caracas. It’s now 9 pm. I’m fantasizing a nice steak after we drive up the hill into Caracas….but first let’s get through customs. We’re waiting….waiting… Hey, there’s Celia. She made it and happily joins us with all of her luggage. We’re doing more waiting…where’s our luggage? Well, we made it gracefully to our connecting flight in Miami, but somehow our luggage and sound equipment didn’t make it 4 gates down…go figure. So we have a little talk with the luggage service people, send Light, and then with relatively free hands we glide through customs into the welcoming, happy arms of our friends, Santos Gomez and Armando Guzman. Hearing our story of no luggage-which we’re immediately seeing as mixed blessings (we don’t have to unpack, we can borrow any of Celia’s t-shirts — simplicity at it’s best). Santos and Armando spring into action making lots of phone calls to organize locating and retrieving our luggage as fast as possible.
Nothing else to do, we head for the hotel, check in, meet up with Ani Pacheco who is our fifth staff person on this trip who flew today from Bogota, and have a little food–no steak available for me so I settle for a tried and true homage to my teen-dom–a coke and fries with ketchup. The others go for the grilled vegetables (I dutifully eat a few just to balance). Santos chats with us and fills us in on the status of Cesar Mendoza. Send Light! Cesar has been coordinating our visit here in Caracas — the Services and workshop logistics. He was taken to the hospital this weekend and the doctors are in process of finding out what happened. He’s in intensive care. We help Santos sort out some Services schedule glitches, and I set up an early morning meeting with the new Services coordinator to work out the rest. Then it’s up to our rooms, the ever-ready emails and finally some sleep. Thanks, Travelers, we’re safe and sound.
DAY 2-Caracas
Santos, Armando, and Mercedes Montero have been at work to rescue our luggage. Good news — it has arrived at the airport. Now we just need to get it to us. During breakfast I go over the Services schedule with Mercedes and Gabriela Griescou; initiations and ordinations are lined up. Virginia and Armando are greeting the people coming for Services. Soon Services are underway for all of us. We come and go hugging — embracitos and besitos (hugs and kisses) — and lots of catching up as we go up and down the elevators. Word comes that the luggage is on its way; more Light to be sent to Cesar who we hear needs it.
Lunchtime brings a breather for a moment and Magaly Sanchez arrives with a surprise birthday cake for me — yep, it’s my birthday and very fun to celebrate it in Caracas as countless variations of Feliz Cumpleanos are sung to me today. Our afternoon goes by in a blink; we get time to change, sit for a moment, and then it’s off to the evening workshop that Vincent is facilitating — The Power Within You. Quite a number of new faces tonight, and some long time friends (Marie Winfield and Chuyo) — looks to be about 50+ participants. Santos is the MC and without further adieu introduces Vincent and his translator, Andreina Garbon. They both do a fabulous job tonight. Lots of laughter and energy as Vincent directs our looking at what is the true essence of success and how we bring that forward for ourselves in our lives. Of course we staff are the epitome of an attentive support group (NOT!) as our heads bob up and down as we try in vain to stay awake. Ah well, the Spirit is willing…..On Vincent’s “Baruch Bashan” we’re back in the body, saying goodbyes and thank you’s and then it’s back to the hotel for the wonderful birthday present of an early night’s sleep. By the way thanks for the Light — keep it coming. We hear Cesar is doing a bit better….and we’re having fun. Tomorrow is chock full too, so time to sleep and give it up to God for the night.
