Alchemist Moments

“I need someone to be patient with me. Someone to get money with, not take it from me."

Drake

My birthday trip to Vegas turned me into an "I like art" type of girl! After getting lost trying to find the Mafia museum, I settled for a random adventure at the Venetian Hotel. I discovered a photo exhibit with one of the richest photographers in the world. Before learning that fact, I knew there was something different about the pictures. Each one was so visible that it felt like I was teleported to each destination.

Since I was alone, I got the chance to emerge in each photo. I immediately understood why people collected art. Several pictures gave me the chills. But the one that left me memorized was called 'New York Central Park After Dark.' The picture sounds exactly as it sounds. Me and a tiny woman with black-rimmed glasses stood there for what felt like hours. It was simply park benches in the dark but the photo was so perfect! I found myself wishing I would one day own a home fabulous enough to have this photo inside! As I made that wish, the tiny woman turned around and said, "This is perfect ."The next thing I knew, the woman was talking to someone who worked there and brought the picture! I'm telling you right now, the picture wasn’t cheap, and she got it without a blink!

She didn't look like a woman from the Real Housewives franchise. She was just a regular degular looking woman, spending big-time money! Witnessing that in person gave me new dreams. I no longer just wanted to see amazing art, but I wanted to own it! I had time to kill the next day before a reservation, so I went to the Richard McDonald exhibit. The entire exhibition is based on Cirque du Soleil dancers in sculpture form. I was fascinated by the moving pieces in the gallery and even a little freaked out by how realistic they were! I took time to read the description and to watch the videos that revealed a time-lapse of the entire process. It was a great reminder that great art takes time!

After seeing half of the exhibit, I asked the gallerist if I could take a picture of one of the pieces. That turned out to be the best thing that I could have ever done! Because he showed me how you could see different details in the sculptures as you moved them under the light. He even gave me tips for when I start buying my pieces in the future. He then asked me if I had a few moments to spare, to which I gladly said yes. He then took me around the exhibit, highlighting his favorite pieces and telling me a story about them. He transformed from a gallerist to a storyteller within a blink of an eye. Like a child during story time, I stood at his feet and lapped it all up. That afternoon I was teleported into a world of desire, love, and the great beyond.

I don’t know why this man took time out of his day to do this. It was clear I wasn't buying any of the pieces. Looking back on it, it's something about the entire thing that was magical. I like to refer to these as 'Alchemist’ moments. When I meet a random person who imparts great wisdom to me. Within thirty minutes, this man told a story that somehow became an ode to every area of my life. Each story was poetic, spiritual, and linked to the moon's cycles. I wish that I would have recorded the conversation. But then again, it wouldn’t have been the same if I did! He told me many stories, but the one that stuck with me and brought tears to my eyes was the story of Blind Trust.

Oddly enough, it was my favorite piece in the whole exhibit. It's two separate pieces that must be sold as one. The piece is of a man and a woman, each holding objects in their hands. The cube represented life, and the ball represented reality. Each of the figures held the objects differently. For the man, he held the cube loosely because he knew that life could knock you off balance. As the man stood on one foot, the storyteller said life will not always be balanced. Sometimes, one area of your life goes well while the other suffers. He explained that the man knew that to stay centered, you must focus on your current position to re-position yourself for any obstacles or situations thrown your way.

The woman held the ball in her hand while the man had his tucked behind his back. The woman held hers loosely because she knew she could control her reality by manipulating it. Knowing she doesn’t have to pretend to be in control is her superpower. He called the woman Blind Courage. She was strong, careful, and able to adjust her life as she saw fit. She knows that her flexibility is a strength, not a weakness. Flexibility is a tool she uses to survive. The ball on the man’s back was barely holding on. The man represented Blind Trust. Because, unlike women, men are not always able to plan everything, and sometimes it gets them in trouble. But the strength of a man is his ability to trust in the great divine. His ability to trust is what carries him through.

Together they create Blind Faith, which is necessary for a fulfilling and successful relationship. The storyteller then pivots the pieces away from each other. What was facing them was the ball, which revealed how sometimes life can get in the way of a couple’s progress. The storyteller explained how if the past is not healed, it can cloud and potentially damage the future. He explained that sometimes couples cannot always see eye to eye because of some past issue (or trauma). The storyteller then re-positioned the sculpture to face forward to show that when the couple can leave the past in the past, they can move forward to create a new future. Together they can fight anything, and that was the part that made me emotional.

Because in this one piece, it thoroughly explained relationship dynamics. It revealed to me the relationship I desire and why my last relationship failed. This piece showed me that for two people to truly come together, they must be able to move as one. It would not be easy, but if a couple can use their blind courage and blind trust (aka their strengthens) in service of their relationship, they can create faith that can overcome anything. Both pieces had on a blindfold which represents the future, which is not something you can see or know. While for many of us, it's scary, I have learned to see the beauty of life unfolding.

While I used to pride myself on being a planner, I realize you can't know the future until you know it! So why waste your energy trying to project it? A wise person once said: "When you try to plan everything with your mind. You don’t leave room for the impossible, random, meticulous miracles to occur in your life." I have witnessed that these past couple of days in Vegas! As much as I planned and plotted to ensure that this trip went perfectly. Things sometimes didn’t go as planned. My Air BnB got canceled a few weeks before the trip. I got lost looking for museums. I missed my reservation! But all of these inconveniences turned out to be divine interventions.

Strangely enough, seeing that piece in Vegas showed me how I want my husband to approach life. When I was younger, I was so focused on the physical! But now it's essential to know about him, his mind, and his emotions! Does he believe in spirituality? In love? I crave to know a man that is so deep and vulnerable that it scares me in the beginning! I want a man who trusts life, God, and, most importantly, the power of love. My future love will be like that man in the piece. A man who is about his business but doesn’t take himself too seriously, one not bound by his past! A man who is fully entuned with himself and the universe.

In return, I will come to the table offering the same damn thing! So that together we will become the by-product of blind faith capable of accomplishing anything!

-AM

JOURNAL PROMPT:

• Have you ever experienced an Alchemist moment?

• What did it teach you?

• How did you apply it to your life?