Can the miracle of love transform a room full of strangers into intimate loving friends in only one weekend? Yes, it can. I know this after participating this past weekend in the Human Awareness Institute’s (HAI) workshop “Love is a miracle”.

Love is a miracle. Love can transform people’s hearts and minds and heal old wounds that years of clinical psychoanalysis can barely diagnose. But love requires us to be open to giving and receiving it. If we hide behind our walls because we fear rejection, shame or vulnerability love will not pass through.

I’ve come to realize that I’ve spent many years hiding behind the protective walls that I built. But recently my walls have begun to crack and fall down (see Born Again Burner for a glimpse of this heart opening). In venturing out beyond my crumbling walls I’ve discovered that love is abundant when we are open to making and receiving it. There is no shortage of love when we create and share it. It is a truly abundant and renewable resource when we let it flow.

During the HAI “Love is a Miracle” workshop many walls cracked and crumbled. Love, forgiveness, compassion and empathy flooded the room like water let free from a breaking dam. Its powerful currents washed away the residue of old hurt, dissolved blocks, and smoothed away our sharp edges.

Love is a miracle. It’s priceless and far more valuable than any material gift. What we all gave and received in the “Room of Love” that weekend was the ultimate present – to be present for each other. We were the ultimate gift.

In the “Room of Love” there were no clocks and no rushing past each other to complete the next task. The frantic treadmill of modern life was checked some where outside the door. We were fully present for each other. Listening intently and sharing compassionately. Wow, to really listen and be heard. What a moving gift the miracle of love truly is.

Forty strangers entered the room of love on Friday night and by Sunday night we were transformed into heart felt friends. It began with sharing our heart and soul with one other person, then with a small group and ultimately with the entire room.

Like ripples moving outward, the love and intimacy we shared became more expansive. Could such love and empathy ripple out and envelope the whole world?

When will the “Room of Love” become the world of love? When will we slow down, stop and take the time to look into each other’s eyes and see that we are one? When will we stop judging and start loving? When is the time to “Be Love”? Could it be right now?

Yes, Love is a miracle.

To read what others have to say about the HAI Love, Intimacy and Sexuality workshops, click here.

Human Awareness Institute (HAI) Workshops are held in the San Francisco Bay area, Michigan, Massachusetts, Toronto, the UK, Germany and Australia. To learn more visit www.hai.org

Always biased toward the dramatic, Hollywood portrays December 21^st, 2012 as the end of time predicted by Mayan astronomers over one thousand years ago. The Hollywood version of 2012 envisions most of California cracking up and sliding into the ocean, while the rest of the world fares little better. “2012” the movie is the ultimate disaster apocalypse movie, far out doing even the disaster movies of the anxious 1970’s.

But what did the Mayan’s actually predict would happen in 2012? What do today’s 2012 experts believe? Fortunately the truth may be far more hopeful than the Hollywood version.

While many see our present way of living and thinking coming to a head by 2012, some believe that we will move through this turbulent time and into an era of enlightened global human consciousness and a new harmonious world. How chaotic and traumatic this transition may be is not clear, even to 2012 experts. Some believe it depends on the willingness and ability of people to let go of the past and evolve a more enlightened consciousness that will transcend our past attachments and delusions.

Contrary to popular belief, December 21^st, 2012 does not mark the end of time in the advanced Mayan calendar. Rather this date is the end of the Mayan Calendar’s “Great Cycle” and the beginning of a new cycle that coincides with a galactic synchronization in which the earth and sun align with the center of our galaxy. Such a galactic alignment is confirmed by present day astronomy. Some “2012 experts” speculate that this galactic synchronization will have a powerful positive and evolutionary influence on human consciousness.

Is it possible that our modern era of ecological and human exploitation is fast approaching its day of reckoning? Are humans waking up to the idea of creating a new world in which love and connection push fear and greed into the shadows?

I suspect that most humans will not evolve past our current way of life until our current way of life is recognized as being unsustainable and bankrupt. But it appears to me that the veil on our unconscious illusions/delusions are being pulled back through out the world. Ultimately the choice is ours.

What are your thoughts about 2012 and beyond? Feel free to post your comments below.

For a more optimistic view of 2012 see below:

The 40^th Anniversary Celebration of Woodstock in San Francisco

When I was in my early twenties during the 1980’s era of Ronald Reagan, AIDS, “Peace Keeper Missiles”, and preppy conservative kids – I wondered what happened to “Woodstock Nation”. What happened to this great wave of peace and love that was going to wash the whole world clean of war, hate and poverty? What happened to the nearly half a million young people who celebrated love, peace and music near Woodstock, NY during 1969?

Had it been merely a fad that fell out of fashion like bell-bottom jeans and day glow? Or does Woodstock still impact us today?

I now believe that love – the very glue that holds us together – is a classic that never completely goes out of fashion. Love and the spirit of Woodstock certainly made a strong come back at “West Fest” the 40 year anniversary celebration in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. This free event drew over 70,000 people who came to listen to speakers and the 42 bands that played on 3 stages.

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The Magic Love Bus –

Some of the sweetest moments for me were on top of the Magic Love Bus, while basking in the sun surrounded by lovely people and an intimate birds eye view of one of the main music stages.

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Scotty, the Magic Bus Tripmiester, waved the flag of peace and love above the sea of people and invited others to also wave the flag.

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On this day of celebration, love and peace reigned supreme and the spirit of Woodstock could be heard in the park and seen on the faces of those who came to reincarnate Woodstock Nation.

Peace Out.

Now for a Woodstock Flashback Video –

The annual post Burning Man “Decompression” Party in San Francisco

Going back to the “default world” of traffic jams, strangers and the hustle and bustle can be a shock after living for a week in a utopia of human creativity and acceptance during the Burning Man Festival. To ease the shock many burners attend “decompression” parties a few weeks after the Burning Man Festival in various cities to get a one day fix of Burning Man creativity and culture.

While it’s not the full on Burning Man community that lives and thrives in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada for a week each year, it’s enough of a fix to keep most burners from spiraling into withdrawal.

The culture and spirit of Burning Man live on before and after this annual one week event. A “Burner” is still a Burner, even when returned to the “default world”. Most take the spirit of creativity and unconditional acceptance they experienced home with them when they leave the Burning Man Festival. Burning Man is far more than a one week festival. It’s a cultural phenomenon.

For those who want to tune in and get their fix of life in the Black Rock Desert, we’ve created Black Rock TV.org. This webcast will be feeding the good news from Black Rock worldwide through out the year. Highlights from Black Rock TV were projected during this years San Francisco Decompression party.

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Check it out at www.BlackRockTv.org, subscribe for updates and consider joining the Black Rock TV news team in the desert during next years Burn.

Be Well and Burn Bright!

Photos from the 2009 San Francisco Decompression Party

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Love is alive and powerful. I saw it streaming like a raging river through the streets of San Francisco and spilling on to the steps of City Hall. It flowed from the hearts of tens of thousands of lovers who streamed up Market Street to City Hall during the annual SF Lovevolution Parade.

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Will love conquer fear, despair and greed? I don’t know. But I know in my heart that only love can. In the long struggle between love and fear I want to serve on the side of love.

So on the morning of the Love Parade I marched off to the parade wearing a “Love Army” uniform. I had sewn a “Love” patch over the words “U.S.”, while below the words “Airborne” I sewed a blue butterfly patch. I believe the “Love Army” is the only army that will ever bring lasting peace. It’s the only army I care to serve in.

I climbed on to the “Magic Love Bus” that was to lead the love parade and reported for duty with the man at the wheel leading the charge – Scotty Miller the Magic Bus Tripmaster. It’s easy to follow and serve with those you love and respect. The military has its parades. Today was ours.

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I was joined by a few beautiful loving friends and surrounded by those I’d love to know as friends. With great joy, humor and love Scotty put the Love Bus in gear and we flowed through San Francisco on a river of love.

“Lovelution” – let’s hope this revolution over turns greed, violence and fear with love. Climb aboard brothers and sisters and take the ride! But watch out for the Love Security (see below

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See images from the 2008 Love Parade.

Our future hope for peace and harmony is rooted in the children we are now nurturing. During the annual three day Earth Dance Festival for peace in Northern California, I saw great reason for hope in the serene faces of the children. These love children are born into a world of love and liberation created by their enlightened parents and their extended village. They are born free. And with peace in their hearts they can make peace in the world.

I realize that, like myself, many were not born free. We have had to struggle to liberate ourselves from limiting religions, ideas and expectations. Many never achieve true liberation and the beautiful state of freedom that these love children are born into.

It takes a whole village to raise such beautiful children. What an amazing tribal village Earth Dance is during its three days. Populated by loving children of all ages, music, dance and metaphorical puppets.

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The prayer ceremony for the children honors the hope and beauty that the children represent. The festival’s prayer for peace is synchronized worldwide at the same moment with gatherings in 50 other countries. Let’s hope that this prayer envelops the entire globe and transforms our world.

Peace, love and magic are alive and well when you look in the right places.

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Last year my first Burning Man was transformative. I felt like I drove through a portal into a world of freedom, joy and creativity (see “Born Again”). This year (2009) I felt like I returned home, as in “where the heart is”. But this year I took ten burning man virgins with me, hosted a graduation party for the “Roads Scholars” and screened several movies. We bit off a lot to chew. But it tasted delicious.

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Our 2009 Camp

This year our little tribe of Digital Vagabonds camped with our close cousins the TechNomads. Like me, these vagabonds at heart use telecommunication technology to make the world their office and playground. This year they even hosted a very well attended workshop on how to become a Techno Nomad. For those who want to learn how technology can enable them to be “location independent” visit http://www.technomadia.com/links/links. I look forward to crossing paths with these Nomads on and offline.

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Roads Scholars Graduation Party

This year we hosted a graduation ceremony for the first annual “Roads Scholars“. This past spring four talented writers were awarded “Roads Scholarships” to road trip North America during the summer and share their journeys online at Matador Travel.com and DigitalVagabonding.com. Their road trips converged at Burning Man where they “graduated” from Vagabond U.

The author of Vagabonding in America, Ed Buryn, acted as our honorary dean. Ed was appropriately attired in a tuxedo T shirt and briefs reading “Why am I God”? Video footage of this zany graduation will be available on this page soon.

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Outdoor Movies at Burning Man

On Tuesday night during Bat Country’s “Hunter S. Tuesday” celebration, we sponsored “Gonzo Movie Night” with screenings of “Fear and Loathing” and “Gonzo – The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson”.  Scotty – the “Magic Bus Tripsmaster” and myself stirred up some live audience participation by re-enacting the insanity of Hunter S. and Dr. Gonzo. The Bats flocked to the screen and the insanity.

Wednesday night was “Evolution Cinema” in honor of this year’s evolution theme (see “The Evolution Trip” for more info). We showed cult classics that question our evolution as humans, including a new and challenging movie, Fierce Light – When spirit meets action, by acclaimed filmmaker Velcrow Ripper. In Fierce Light Velcrow Ripper, filmmaker and spiritual seeker, journeys through the world exploring what Martin Luther King called “Love in Action” and Gandhi called “Soul Force”.

Prior to screening Fierce Light – When spirit meets action, we screened “Humanity Ascending” with Barbara Marx Hubbard. This documentary features author and futurist Barbara Marx Hubbard and offers a vision toward our birth as a new humanity – Homo Spiritus.

After screening Fierce Light we showed Zeitgeist – the underground classic the banks don’t want you to see. Unfortunately it’s not your imagination or the drugs, the shadow government and banking system are really out to own you and the world.

After all this burning intensity in the desert we did some serious soaking. Right after Burning Man some of our vagabond tribe made it to the nearby Sierra Hot Springs to soak, unwind and relax after an intense burn. I’m a big fan of their brother/sister place at Harbin Hot Springs, which I wrote about as “Human Soup“.

We hope to see you out on the playa next year.

Be Well and Live Large, Pat the DV.

Now a word from Jack Kerouac who was apparently a Burner before Burning Man -

“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars…” - On the Road

The culture of Burning Man celebrates individuality and radical self-expression. These values are vibrantly expressed in the clothing “Burners” wear. Burner fashion ranges from post apocalyptic Mad Max to furry desert bunnies. To show case these unique expressions, Burning Man has it’s own fashion show in San Francisco. I hung out back stage and photographed these fabulous women. Burn Bright!

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Warning/Disclaimer this update on our “Roads Scholar”, Kyle Smith, contains adult subject material with references to stabbing hookers and pedophiles. Note – While Digital Vagabonding does not condone stabbing hookers or pedophiles we do support those who are able to travel about North America and make people laugh about it.

As if traveling America and living out of a car isn’t ballsy enough, now our Roads Scholar Kyle Smith is doing stand up comedy. Now I remember why I picked him to be the lead 2009 “Roads Scholar”. He’s not only educational but entertaining and even inspiring. I have a feeling his trip is just gathering momentum.

Kyle was recently in his old stomping grounds of San Diego and got up on stage to try out some untested comedy bits. What can I say, this kid’s got loads of talent – see below. To follow his ongoing road trip visit his blog.

As I soak in a pool of warm spring water, naked humans float silently past like noodles in a soup. In this primordial water, heated deep within mother earth, we float beneath fig trees whose leaves look like lily pads floating in the starry night sky. Reflections from distant lights shimmer on the ripples of water that suspends us together timelessly under the infinite night sky.

The unspoken rule is silence. There is no mindless chatter, cell phones or any frantic noise. In this quiet refuge in the mountains north of the San Francisco Bay, we all float serenely in mother earth’s primordial womb. In this pool, silence is truly golden as it enables each person’s mental chatter to dissolve away in the water and the infinite open sky.

All shapes, sizes and colors of humans move through this pool – all seeking serenity, peace and rebirth. Couples embrace in the water, while some hold each other and gently guide them as they float on their backs and drift beneath the fig trees under the night stars. Across the pool a white man holds a black man in his arms and gently supports him in the water as he guides him beneath the stars. An old man with a long white beard drifts in front of me, spreading soft gentle ripples across the pool like old man time. The ripples created by any one person touch all of us.

Though alone among “strangers”, I feel completely sufficient and in harmony with the universe and all those around me. At this serene place, deer do not fear the humans and come up to the pools and roam throughout the 1,200 acre grounds, while musicians play acoustic instruments among the flowers and trees like little musical ferries. At Harbin Hot Springs people enjoy their days conversing, reading, mediating, relaxing, swimming, gardening, doing yoga at the temple, chanting, singing, having massages, dancing, hula hooping, hiking, watching movies, eating wholesome meals at the organic restaurant and making love. Some stay in rustic lodges, while others camp along the streams and amongst the trees.

Earlier in the evening I danced with abandon at the “unconditional dance”. There were no steps or moves to memorize and no proper or correct way to dance. Each person was free to just let the music move them. I danced “as if no one was watching”. I danced without conditions, expectations or rules. I danced with real joy and freedom. I even learned to hula hoop.

On my way from the dance floor to the hot springs, I spotted a beautiful young woman reclining in the crooked flowing branches of a mulberry tree. In the moonlight I could see that she was eating the berries from the tree. Her long brown hair draped over her shoulders and naked breasts. She smiled and extended her hand to offer me some of the tree’s fruit. Was this paradise rediscovered, with Eve offering me a potentially forbidden but sweet fruit? At the risk of being kicked out of paradise, I tasted the berry from her hand and it was delicious. She laughed when I called her Eve.

She came with me to the pools and we slipped into a heart shaped pool where silence was not expected. The moonlight seeped through the tree branches and leaves and light the pool. Along the edge of the pool near the trees a deer fawn grazed calmly on the under brush.

Eve shared that she was originally from Montreal and now lived mostly in Hawaii, often camping alone among the trees. One of her great passions was composing and performing music.

She had recently recorded an album in which she made music with whales along the coast of the Hawaiian Islands. She stood in the water and played a long didgeridoo that was shaped like a long elephant tusk and blew deep melancholic tones that resonated through the air and deep into the ocean. The deep rich tones drew the whales toward her as they echoed her music back to her with their deep submerged bellows. She and the whales were accompanied by a violinist who stood in the waves and serenaded her and the whales. Their acoustic harmonies were recorded in real time using underwater and acoustic microphones. As this wet goddess, light by the moonlight, told me this fantastic story I was mesmerized by the beauty of it all.

She offered me a CD of her fantastical collaboration with the whales. We left the pool to listen to the sound of the whales playing and singing inside my motor home.  We smoked up and  sunk into the sofa while the rich tones of her didgeridoo elicited distant calls and bellows from whales far out in the ocean. Their rich tones mixed together as the sounds danced intertwined in the air and water. The sound of the whales grew louder and bolder as they drew closer to shore. How incredible that this acoustic symphony, created by this naturally beautiful woman and the whales she called to her like a mythical siren, now echoed within my motor home. I closed my eyes and pictured sleek whales slipping powerfully and gently through blue waters illuminated by sunlight streaming through the water.

Then I imagined the image of whales and the sound of their rich songs projected into the desert night sky during the Burning Man Festival. Yes, whales moving through blue water and singing in the desert. How perfect! She agreed to let me share her music on the desert playa. How fantastic, soothing and truly far out!

Would you like to experience it? Come to the Black Rock Desert during the first week of September during the Burning Man Festival and experience the sound and sight of whales swimming and singing in the desert night sky. Isn’t life on this planet amazing?

The Spiritual Soul of Harbin Hot Springs:

“Heart Consciousness Church owns and operates Harbin Hot Springs. It is not a church in the traditional sense of buildings, structure and congregation. It is an embodiment and a manifestation of the New Age: that common thread uniting the Human Potential Movement, the Holistic, Natural Movement, and Universal Spirituality.

We identify so completely with this point of view, we call it Heart Consciousness, which we resonate with most deeply, and try to manifest consciously. “Heart” is the inner place where Oneness and Love are experienced. Love of ourselves, of each other, and of the natural environment, is the everyday experience closest to complete identity with Oneness.

The purpose of the Church is to teach spiritual life and how it can be realized by individuals; and to spread wide the practice of Heart Consciousness. Further, our purpose is to provide opportunities for the practice of work and organizational skills, including the discipline and character development necessary not only for effective work, but also for spiritual practice.

The Church honors the spiritual dimension in everyone and each human being’s unique expression thereof. It accepts individual differences in interpreting the essential unity of the Human Potential Movement, The Holistic Natural Movement, and Universal Spirituality. We believe the New Age already exists in these three movements, and our work is to combine them, giving strength to the whole that they form, and then to reach out and to teach.”

Note – To respect the privacy of those visiting Harbin Hot Springs, visitors are asked not to take photos. I encourage you to come see it with your own eyes. You can also visit their website at www.harbin.org