The breath of Tikal

After surviving our stay at adventure mike’s house, we headed to Tikal national park. When we arrived, we met our tour guide Louis. Louis was a native Ketchi Mayan and knew more about Tikal than I could even comprehend. He started the tour by introducing us to different plants that grew in the area. He plucked a leaf and spread it on my bug bite and my swelling slowly went down. He introduced us to different fruits, cocoa trees, and other herbs that were traditionally used as medicine. He told us many Mayans still self treat with these plants today. Once we reached Tikal, we started hiking along a jungle path. Louis told us about the different types of monkeys, birds, and jaguars that roamed the national park. We ended up seeing tons of spider and howler monkeys (and luckily no jaguars). We came out to a small clearing where Louis began to talk about the Mayans. I turned around to a gigantic temple peering out above the trees! I had missed it completely. For the rest of the day, we climbed upon the temples and walked through the ruins learning about the Mayan history. Louis told us about their amazing knowledge of math and how they built the temples in specific numbers and directions to mark the stars and track the moon. The Mayans had figured out intergalactic distances and time tables centuries before any other human beings. They were far beyond their time with many things still unknown about them. It was absolutely mind blowing to stand where they had once stood... I could practically feel the history in my shoes. At the end of the tour we were free to roam the “central hall” for a few minutes. Louis had told us that the Mayans viewed these grounds as a very sacred and spiritual place. I had seen dozens of Mayan people gathered in the center square lighting candles and praying together. The majority, if not all, of my patients here have been Mayan so getting to see some of their traditions and learning about their history was truly a blessing. I felt I could connect better with them after diving deeper into their culture. Who knows, it may even make me a better practitioner. As I continued to climb the massive rocks, I took time to reflect with my own God in this spiritual place. I would be lying if I said I didn’t feel an overwhelming contentment while being still in the temples. The jungle was so quiet and the buildings so ancient it felt like I had traveled in time. A rush of awe overcame me and I took a moment to appreciate my life. I breathed in the air of the ruins and thanked the Lord for giving me this opportunity. The sun beat down on my face and the rock of the temples glowed beside me... in that moment I was present (A feeling we do not linger in these days). Louis told us the Mayans believed everything was alive; the animals, plants, temples, rocks, soil, etc. They blessed every tree before cutting it and thanked every piece of land they built upon. Everything was sacred. I think we could all use a little bit of that feeling in our own lives. We are so quick to forget our blessings... sometimes our life needs to slow down in order to be fully present with eachother, nature and the gifts before us. I want to breathe air and actually feel it expand my lungs. I want to smell pine and give myself a moment to reflect on the memories it brings me. I want to listen to the people I love and take their words to heart. Too often I do not give myself the time to feel this things all the way through. I struggle with planning every detail of my life to reach an ultimate goal of perfection instead of simply LIVING it. Today I set a new goal of stopping, breathing, and simple being.