My Chacala Nightmare

My Chacala Nightmare

I awoke trembling from a terrible dream this morning. I was dreaming I returned to my winter home in Chacala (Nayarit, Mexico) and it was totally modernized. 

It was awful!!

The streets were all paved, the restaurants had hardwood floors and redwood decks over the beach. There were SUV's everywhere, waiting to park to get their lattes, and T-shirts for sale with stuff written on them about getting drunk and going fishing. There was elevator music piped into every building and into the streets. Talk about an awful dream!!

The reason I was dreaming about Chacala is that when I return from Teotihuacán and our extension to Tepoztlán, I'll be organizing my business and home and preparing to drive to Chacala in early November -- a four day marathon from northern California.

I was very relieved to wake up and realize I was only dreaming about the redwood decks and elevator music, but also know "progress" is marching north from Puerto Vallarta toward Chacala, and the inevitable will happen -- we just don't know when. The coast of the state of Nayarit has been named, "The Riviera Nayarit" and is a new promoted tourist destination. This is one of the last unspoiled beach towns like this, easy to get to (via Puerto Vallarta) from most of the US and world, and yet like a forgotten paradise. It won't last forever.

So, please keep this a secret: Chacala is a lovely little fishing village of a few hundred Mexican families, and some very smart and low-key tourists and winter residents like myself. The beach is lined with thatched restaurants on the sand serving fresh seafood and frosty cold ones, and the sunsets are spectacular. There is no parasailing, no expensive pirate boat ride -- just the peace and quiet of a beautiful half mile of beach, the semi-tropical jungle, and some whales fooling around out there, and sweet people to meet and share with.

Like I said, please keep this a secret! When I return from Teotihuacán I'll be sharing more about Chacala, and inviting you to visit on vacation, experience the power of a personal intensive with me there at my "House of the Eagles," or join me for my Valentine's week retreat on Love, Romance, and Relationship.

In the meantime, I wish you a wonderful fall -- and remind you to start thinking about what you are going to do this winter to get away from the cold and relax... I know where I'll be all winter: Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico!! Join me!

PS: This coastal tourist part of Mexico is very safe, so don't believe everything you read or see on the news. In fact, Puerto Vallarta has been rated one of the five safest cities in the world. It is a big country, and what happens in one part doesn't happen everywhere!

Much love!!

Allan

allanh@sonic.net  -- Or (707) 528-1271

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I'm so grateful to be able to share with you here. My life and work and Joydancer and TACO (my online Toltec spiritual networking community) are all dedicated to helping us learn and remember the truth of our oneness as the Divine essence that creates and animates this universe... and each part of it in each moment. Including you and me!

I am available by phone, Skype, and e-mail if you would like support for your life journey. I look forward to hearing from you. 

Details about consultations and apprenticeship are here.

Valentine's and The Authentic Self - From Chacala, Mexico!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope this finds you well, and remembering that your very nature is LOVE!

I am writing from my winter home in Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico, once again. We celebrated the conclusion of our five day Valentine's Retreat on Friday evening, at a thatched restaurant on the beach - where everyone opened and read the Valentine's card they had written to themselves during the week. It was pretty darn sweet. And of course, the seafood is always fresh and delicious, and the sunset was spectacular.

The patio and ramada roof on top of my house was almost finished in time for the retreat. It still needs tile and paint, so this was our maiden voyage for the new teaching space, and it worked out pretty well. The evening meetings were especially delicious, when the town quieted, the stars came out, and the soft tropical breeze wafted through the space and our group.

When we were sharing our intentions at the beginning of the week, a common theme that came up for everyone was, "I want to access and become my Authentic Self." Our focus for the week was on our true nature as Love - to know that we ARE love. We looked at many old agreements built on the lie that love is a commodity outside of ourselves we have to bargain for by getting it right for others.

And we changed those agreements! We are love, we came into this world as love, we were made by the love of the very Life that creates and animates this universe. Our experience was based on my work with...

The New Relationship ~ Five Agreements to Make Love Come True.

I love Rumi's poems, and often use this one to set the focus of my teaching these days:

"Your task is not to seek for love,

but merely to seek and find

all the barriers within yourself

that you have built against it."

We are not learning to love, we are learning to stop denying that love is our nature, our gift, our Life itself.

So the search for the authentic self does not lead us outside, but inside. And not inside to find that missing self, but simply to find and love into softness the barriers we have created to deny love within.

I hope you are using this sweet day of Valentine's Love to open your heart to yourself, and to honor your true nature. You ARE love.

We discover our Authentic Self when we have faith in the love that created us and that we are. When we listen deeply inside to the unique inspirations that arise in us, and then have the courage and faith to take action on them, we will become who we came here to be. And I guarantee the authentic life you create will be a masterpiece of art.

Try it, you might like it.

Let me hear from you: allanh@sonic.net

Be part of the Joydancer Family 

and sponsor a student to higher education

In Chacala students can only study through the 6th grade, and then must go out to another town to continue school. If the parents don't have enough money for books, the shuttle van, or uniforms, the kids stay home.

There is an organization here called "Cambiando Vidas/Changing Lives" that supports students with scholarships to go to school beyond Chacala. Our Joydancer Family is about 3/4's of the way to the $720 US that it takes to sponsor a student for one year - I want you to help us hit our goal before the second big fund-raising dinner this Friday night.

The Cambiando Vidas website is here.

We have established donation buttons in our Joydancer Store if you would like to join us to support a student. We need another $170 for a full scholarship. The future is in the hands of the young.

Will you help?  Donate here

Valentine's Week in Chacala with Allan Hardman

Check out this wonderful video about Allan Hardman's Valentine's Week Workshop for Couples and Singles in Chacala Mexico.

Christmas in Chacala

I am writing this Christmas greeting from my winter home at the beach in Chacala, Nayarít, Mexico, once again. It is quite warm here, there is no white Christmas, no sleigh bells jingling or red-nosed reindeers, no halls decked with boughs of holly. There are no chestnuts roasting by open fires, one frosty snowman (below), no partridges in pear trees, and certainly no silent nights (but the dogs and roosters are for a different story). Without these familiar triggers into the sentiments and activities of Christmas, it seems very far away and foreign. I appreciate all the e-mails wishing me a Merry Christmas! Thank You. I will remain merry, trust me on this. Wherever you find yourself this season, and whoever you find yourself with, I wish you a peaceful and beautiful time-- inside and out! I am very grateful this year for the intentions and accidents that created my home here in this little village, with sweet friends, warm weather, a gorgeous empty beach, juicy sun, and fresh seafood. I am grateful for the people visiting from the north country for transformational intensive work and/or to simply hang out together. It is all good. I want to share a story -- not really a Christmas story, but for me it represents what maybe we call the Spirit of Christmas, and why I love living in Mexico: I am living in a studio upstairs above my house in Chacala, because the downstairs needs to be gutted and remodeled. The roof leaked during the summer rains (when I wasn't here) and again during an "unseasonable" deluge earlier this month (when I was here). I actually had to sleep at a neighbor's then, because it was too wet here. Last week we started construction on a rooftop terrace patio, with a red tile ramada roof, and all the trimmings-- including absolute roof waterproofing, not easy here. I had finished a late dinner and was talking with a neighbor last night, when another totally unexpected deluge hit. I don't use the word "deluge" lightly here -- think Noah's ark. I knew I had to go protect my home, but it was raining so hard I didn't want to go out in it to walk home. Finally I knew I had to, and was drenched through and through when I got to the house-- after wading through a brown river that had been the road only minutes before. There were already some drips coming through the brick ceiling, and I dried off a bit, then had to go back outside to collect tarps from downstairs. As I came out I heard a truck turning the corner, and wondered who could be out in this dark and stormy night. I was even more surprised when the truck stopped in front of my house. It was after midnight by now, and out of the truck spilled the crew of five local guys and their boss that has been working on my rooftop dream! The boss said he woke up to the pounding rain, and knew they had to come and take care of the situation. They live in another town, about 20 minutes away. They had built the low walls around perimeter of the roof yesterday, but hadn't created the drainage yet-- the roof was becoming a lake. They waded through with flashlights and a big drill and made holes in their new concrete to drain the water, they bailed with buckets, and I bailed and swept with a broom. As we finished bailing the last of the water, the clouds parted and revealed the most beautiful starry night! We shook hands and they headed home and back to bed. I stood there under the stars for a few moments, feeling their love and their willingness to do what needed to be done. I accepted it all with gratitude. Something in my heart got so big, standing there in the night. I can still feel it today. Something about a love unspoken, no bargains, no obligations. I am certain they wouldn't call it love. It is simply Life here. They all came back at 7:00 am this morning, and somebody said "Mucha lluvia anoche!" ~ Lots of rain last night. THE END. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞§∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ I am wishing each and everyone one of you who reads this newsletter (and all the ones who are too busy), a loving, heart-centered, and generous Christmas and holiday time. Merry Christmas Happy New Year Joyful Divinity And Love. Allan

“Joy in My World”

Christmas in tropical Chacala looked like it was going to come and go without any of that “Spirit” that we equate with the season. Little did I know. On Christmas Day evening, I walked to the new Chacala Cultural Center— a little place with a big name and a big idea—and joined 100 locals and visitors for an evening “concert.”

When we arrived, a bit early for the concert, we learned we had just missed Santa Claus. A visitor had brought his outfit and enough presents for a huge passel of kids. Someone had contracted one of those uniquely rural cars with the loudspeakers to go through town announcing the event in Spanish, so lots of kids showed up for Santa! I was disappointed I missed it. The story I heard about it tonight was great. It sounded like it was an experience of a lifetime for many of the kids.

As the concert crowd gathered, it was fun to know and greet so many people I have come to know and love here, both local Mexicans from the village and gringo guests who have discovered and fallen in love with Chacala. The outdoor back yard of the Center was decorated with colored lights winkling on the fences, a little stage (was that the cover for the old septic?) with lights and microphones, and rows of chairs on both sides. An actual sound system was ready, crackling in pure local style, and beer and wine was being served in the back. Donations were accepted for the Center (it needs a bathroom! Hey, if you want to help, send a donation to my office in Santa Rosa, CA, and we’ll make sure it gets here).

I have no idea where 100 people came from in this little town. As we settled down, Rudy and Sandie began their first song, and I realized we were in for a treat. They sang for an hour, sweet songs, some rockers, original songs, some spiritual reminders, and Rudy brought out his Johnny Cash. The audience appreciation was clear. Nothing awesome happened, no records were broken, and no autographs were collected, as far as I know.

At the end, simple candles were passed out, and as we lit them, we began to sing Silent Night together, followed by the more up-tempo “Feliz Navidad.” As the final chords faded into the balmy night air, I realized that I was sitting in a plastic chair in a funky yard in a little (some have said primitive) village with a crowd of not-necessarily-like-minded souls a long way from “home” — and was experiencing pure unmitigated unquestionable JOY.

There was nowhere else on this planet I wanted to be and nobody else I wanted to be with, but right there, with those people, right then in that moment. I was content, I was happy, and I was feeling joy.

I still am.

Merry Christmas to us, and the joy in us, every day.

Life in the Slow Lane

From Chacala, Nayarít, Mexico

I was working on the internet as usual in the morning yesterday. As the day progressed, I knew when I would take a break, do my beach walk, buy some fruit, and stop to see if the woman at the trinket stand found any good yarn paintings for me in Tepic. I had a plan.

Earlier than the plan called for, a niggling feeling started that wanted me to leave the house. I recognized it as one of those possibilities that Life offers for adventure, so I let go of my project in progress and prepared to leave. Then, more e-mail came, a house detail was crying out, and time went by.

I was aware of a voice telling me I was blowing Life’s invitation, but I let it be, and continued to do what I was doing. In time, I walked out the door, in the flow, wondering what to expect. I have tenants in an upstairs unit here that are here from the previous owner. They are an architect and engineer working at a subdivision of villas behind “The Gate” at Marina Chacala. It was Saturday, and they were preparing to leave to be with their families in another town.

They were waiting for someone to arrive with their door key, so we had a chance to chat a bit for the first time. I asked them if they knew an English-speaking expert that might consult with me about some drainage problems in my back yard. The new neighbor has changed the grade of his lot, and now there is no place for the summer rain (deluges) to drain out of my yard.

After I showed one of them the situation, he said, When would be a good day? What? A good day to bring a machine in here, clean out the dead trees and trash, and then bring in the fill dirt you need? Er. . .uh. . .Tuesday? OK, we’ll be here.

A gift.

The key arrived, and they left to be with their families. And I stood in amazement. And simple gratitude to Life.

I thought, No point in stopping now. I walked into town, and my future neighbor was sitting on the stoop of his store enjoying a beer. I walked past, said Hello (well, Hola, actually), went about twenty feet (well, seven meters, actually) and Life tapped me on the shoulder. Ahem!

Oh! I went back, and we began our first real conversation, talking about his family, his building plans, my drainage, and more. He suggested that now would be a good time to bring in trucks of fill, before he starts building next month, so the trucks can cross his property to get to my back yard. I smiled and said “Tuesday.”

He gave me a tour of the very beautiful home he built above his store, which he intends to rent to Chacala visitors after we are neighbors. I left knowing that everything was in place as it should be in the universe.

The beach walk was great, even if it was ahead of schedule! And the two Huichol and Tepehuano yarn paintings were gorgeous, so I brought them home to grace my walls.



FOOTNOTE: In Santa Rosa, CA, if Life niggled me to walk outside, I would usually find an empty street because everyone would be somewhere else. So I would walk to my neighborhood Community Market, say Hello, and buy some chocolate. I like this better. However! Life does not care about location, only realtors do. Life is here, as us, always saying Ahem! to us through our bodies. I am grateful for this lifestyle that is slow enough and flexible enough that I get to listen.

Thank you, LIFE!



Now, back to that project.

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LATE BREAKING NEWS: Susana from Casa Pacifica just dropped by to let me know her breakfast restaurant, Mauna Kea, opens tomorrow on her rooftop overlooking Chacalilla beach, the ocean, and the whales. She will have great “American” breakfasts, wireless access and phones for those addicted, and flyers, maps, and event information for new visitors to Chacala. Photos to follow—after my first breakfast!

PS: Susana is looking for someone who wants to take over the restaurant. There is a living space on the roof, too. Ready for a new life?

CHACALA: Where I Am and Why I’m Here

I first broke through my fear and resistance about traveling in Mexico sometime back in the early 1980’s. Where I grew up in Southern California there were angry young people from Mexico, and I was afraid of them. I surely did not want to go where there was a whole country full. Wow, was I wrong!

A Spanish speaking girlfriend convinced me to go, and a friend who was living in the state of Nayarít, on the west coast of Mexico, insisted we come visit. The train ride down and the time in the coastal village was the beginning of a life-long love affair with this country and its people.

After many years of vacationing in the beach towns of the west coast of Mexico, and one six-month stay, I met don Miguel Ruiz, Toltec author of The Four Agreements and other books (1995). My long apprenticeship with him meant many journeys to sacred sites throughout Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras. During that time all my travel was devoted to my work with don Miguel, and I missed my beach vacations.

During a six-month stay in Santa Cruz, Nayarít, in 1990, I bought a parcel of land, dreaming of creating a retreat center there. Because of my travels with don Miguel, and my focus on my work at home, the land came and went from my awareness and care for many years. In 2003 and 2005 I added small parcels to the land, and in the last few years began planning for the future. We have been planting trees again, adding many banana varieties, irrigating, and generally improving the land.


In the winter of 2007-2008, I was free enough to “risk” moving to Mexico for the winter. Santa Cruz is a bit isolated and lacks some of the amenities and social possibilities I needed, so I rented a house in Chacala, an hour closer to Puerto Vallarta. I used to say “I can’t move to Mexico until they have high speed internet access.” Well, it is here! I can work from “home.”

Three days before I was to return to California in March of 2008, someone offered to sell me their house in Chacala, and I accepted the offer with gratitude. I returned to Chacala in November 2008, and began painting and upgrading my new house. I love being back in Chacala. The new house has two vacation rental units upstairs—and I look forward to making them available to like-minded visitors. Right now I am living in one, and renting the other long-term, while I bring possibilities to life in the main house downstairs. Check here often to find out availability.

There is a beautiful half-mile beach here, with very few people on it most days

Chacala is a fishing village, so the palapa restaurants on the beach serve fresh fish and shrimp every day (and a cold beer or two if you are so inclined). The streets are not paved, and roosters are the main wildlife.

There are many wonderful small places to stay (and even a larger hotel or two) scattered throughout the village. A program called “Techos” (= roofs) has enabled local landladies to add a second story to their houses, with kitchens and often an outdoor patio. They rent for $45 and up per night.

Chacala is 90 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico’s west coast. It is part of the new “Riviera Nayarít,” a tourist designation recently created by the government. It seems unfortunate that development may come soon and without much vision for its impact on the community, its way of life, its economy, and its future. These things can best be evaluated in hindsight, so I will wait!

But I invite you not to wait to explore and experience Chacala, a jewel of laid back Mexican culture and environment. Be warned, there is no parasailing here, no discos, and no party animals at foam raves—simply a beautiful beach, with gentle surf and the sweet sun, palm trees, and a community of warm and happy people who welcome you to share and enjoy their way of life. We hope you will join us soon.

I invite and welcome dreamers, visionaries, visitors, investors, and hard workers who feel inspired to join me in this dream of now and the future—La Casa de las Aguilas, the House of the Eagles.

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