Even though we were covering miles in a matter of seconds, it looked like we were flying over the landscape in slow motion.  The peaks below looked so close I could almost feel the chill of the snow that had claimed them.  The sun was harsh in its brightness.  It had made the rivers below light up like liquid titanium. 

I was home in the United States for Thanksgiving and I have to tell you, landing on US soil after my European Tour was completely different this time.  Like an energetic oil spill, the collective consciousness of the US has been poisoned by the fear of the future.  So much so that I decided to film an Ask Teal Episode specifically about the topic and release it this last Saturday instead of the video that was scheduled for the week.  The best way to describe the United States right now is to say that the emotional atmosphere is boiling like it does before a civil war.  There are two sides developing; one side whose rage has finally been given permission to surface and express.  And the other side, which was in denial but is now drowning in doom while trying to fight back in a state of shock.  The US election was the defining moment for this conflict to be unveiled.  Instead of taking place in the recesses of the human psyche, it is taking place physically and in plain view.     

The fear of the future is in the air around the globe.  I can relate to it myself, but today I have good news. Last month when I came to Costa Rica, I was not simply looking for a site to hold retreats when I came here.  I was looking to actually purchase a property that I could turn into a retreat center.  I had been waiting for guidance for over a year.  Then, at 3:00 am six months ago, I began to get the message “Costa Rica is the place”.  I had never been to Costa Rica.  I had very little pull to Central or South America, so it was a surprise that I was guided to this place.  But stronger and stronger, the guidance came until I was so convinced that I got on a plane and flew here.  On one of our scouting endeavors, I drove into a little town called Atenas about 30 minutes away from San Jose, high up in the mountains.  The minute I drove into the center of the town, I was hit by a feeling of being at home.  With that ‘confirmation’ I contacted a Real Estate Professional to see if there was anything for sale in Atenas.  Sure enough, there was.  A little hotel called El Cafetal. 

We drove in and met one of the owners. The minute I saw him, it was like I had found someone from my own family again.  As he was guiding me through the property that they had built in response to a vision years ago, he kept calling it “your home” (referring to me).  He knew I was going to be there.  The contract was done between myself and this place far before it was done physically.  The two owners were very spiritual people who had been praying that someone would come who would want to use this place for spirituality and healing instead of tourism.  I walked through the main foyer and out onto the back deck and immediately knew this was the place.  I turned around and without seeing anything else, told the real estate agent to write an offer.  In a flood, visions of my community laughing and myself writing books here came through.  I saw people healing here.  I saw them meditating in the little meditation areas all over the property and doing yoga on the yoga platform in the morning and swimming in the pool.  I saw them eating fresh foods grown locally here.  I saw everything I had been envisioning for years.

Long story short, I bought a retreat center.  It is the new development in my own mission.  I have taken the next step.  I officially have a healing center now.  Our first retreat is scheduled to start on December 31st.  Eventually, we will be creating permaculture here as well.  I already have an amazing and competent staff ready and eager to do this work with me. 

I have named the retreat renter Philia.  In Ancient Greece, there were four words for love... Eros, Agape, Storge and Philia.  Philia stood for deep friendship and affection.  It represented a mutual heart to heart connection that gave rise to fondness between people.  It represented the kind of caring that causes you to take someone as a part of yourself and thus care for their highest good.  The thing that people are lacking the most is connection.  Isolation is the single biggest contributor to illness today.  For this reason, I decided that Philia would first and foremost be a center for this deep connection between people.  Like anything, having a brand new endeavor will come with intense challenges and intense rewards.  Philia is ‘on the path’ of my own destiny and every cell in my body is awake and alive.  Take a look:  http://philiacenter.com/