The Story of The Jewel Project

Two years ago in June 2004, I took a trip to Italy with 300 people in Global New Thought to An Awakened Journey. On that journey, we were to join some of the ministers from various Unity and affiliated churches and the Dalai Lama for another Synthesis Dialogues with a spread of political,social,spiritual,thought leaders. It was at a time when I was in the exploration of what the universe had in mind for me as my next project, my next purpose. Already, I had created a promise to the world that by 2012, a world where people's inner gifts and resources are reflected in community. I wondered what the divine had in store for me. How was I to reflect my inner gifts in community?

That day that we went to the summer home of the Pope outside of Rome on a beautiful mountaintop, the 300 of us sat with His Holiness and the ministers and the global leaders. His Holiness spoke about many things and one message to me was that..people are longing to discover themselves and religious organizations won't work, they end up leaving someone out. He said,to paraphrase, that we must provide people with an education, an education where each one gets to freely choose his/her path and discover ones true values and ethics.

Later he spoke about leaders of the world: before they hold meetings they should bring their families together and enjoy vacation together and THEN start their meetings.

I held these words in my heart. A few days later I went to the samadhi of St. Francis and afterwards I climbed to his hillside retreat. Once I reached that place, I felt compelled to go alone still higher until I reached to top. Along the way, I came to a wall and the only way was to scale it, and as I was attempting I prayed for help, and at that moment, I saw a hand reach down to pull me up and over the wall. I thanked the man and continued on my way until I reached the top, where there were rolling meadows and no one was there! I had a view to forever and I was frightened. It was a fear, as I sensed the ultimate aloneness of the human spirit, once the spirit is resonate with the divine. I reached my arms wide open and sent the blessing of mantra to each corner of the earth. (this is something I love to do, to send the chants out, wherever I go.)Once I finished that journey in Italy, I felt that I would soon know my purpose.

In July, I had a converation with a dear seminar leader in Landmark. I had expressed a desire to work with him and he responded with ,"Annie, that work is not you. You're not about working in corporations." And when I asked him, what did he think was my purpose, he said,"I don't know exactly what this means, but you are all about ashram and retreats" (I spent nine years serving in an ashram in India and in New York) Once I admitted that yes, he was so right on, I was excited. I remembered a dream home I had drawn..and the dream home was situated on a hilltop overlooking a body of water. The home was Spanish Colonial style and there was no front door, there was only an entrance into the courtyard and surrounding it were rooms for many visitors, plus a huge rustic kitchen,dining,library and so. There were also animals roaming freely: roosters,peacocks,and goats in the meadows.

So in late July, a friend reccomended a coach who would help me figure out what I want in life, and help me get it. And Mattison was truly that for me. I began one session with her just before departing for Mexico for two weeks. In that session I began to express what was in my heart, and there was still a lot of mystery to unfold.

My favorite place in Mexico is San Miguel de Allende. I love it, because everything and everyone can be reached by foot, and because people are out and about so much..I loved sitting in the main square and chatting with the families,the visitors, the children. It was such a vibrant,playful experience. Almost every day I would walk up to the outskirts to the nature preserve where I would again have the view of surrounding valleys. One day, as I descended on a cobblestone street in the hot midday sun,I heard the cry of a kitten, a desparate sounding cry. The sound led me to the back of a pickup truck and there was one frightened, panting kitty. I poised to snatch him so I could comfort him in my arms. He let me cuddle him as he panted.

This was the beginning of the story of Principe. I named him that evening as I prepared his little hotel room in a large closet with louvered doors, where we could both get sleep. I had a week left and everyone I spoke to about Principe, no one could come up with someone to take care of him, until I realized that Principe was supposed to be with me. Hmmm, how was I to get him on the airplane? The vet gave me tiny bits of sleeping pill for animals and said, just keep him in your carry on.He's so small,no one will notice..

So funny,the way it went.Principe slept on the way to the airport,until we were almost there he woke up meowing to everyone's surprise (on the van). So I began Plan B and cuddled him in my shawl and began reciting in a low monotone the mantra the way the pujaris in the temples of India recite for hours and hours. The mantra is 'Om Namah Shivaya'. Principe became still just in time for me to put him back into his basket in my carry on. Then I went to Continental check-in and they never heard a peep. (I had attempted to reserve a space in the cabin for him, but the reservations were already taken.) So then at the xd-ray machine,I had to take Principe out of the bag, and it didn't matter to the airport officials. As we boarded the plane Principe was once again quiet and for the first hour on the plane, I thought...whew! he's gonna stay quiet, when suddenly he burst out into meowing, loud enough for the entire plane to hear...funny though, almost no one paid any attention to him..only my neighbor who thoroughly enjoyed him. As we disembarked, he stayed in my shawl and I kept the mantra going in a low tone. He was still through customs and through the agriculture section where they waived him through without checking the vet papers I had arranged for him.

Little did I know that Principe fell out of the sky in Mexico to join me on my new mission! I like to say he fell out of the sky. Somehow, that's how it happened.


As soon as I returned, I began coaching sessions with Mattison. It didn't take long to reveal what was really in my heart. I knew I wanted to create a community in a foreign land...and I asked myself over what body of water, since I drew it in my picture. And the only body of water that came back a 'yes' was the Mediterranean. And then I thought, well it must be in Spain,since I speak Spanish..so that was easy to figure out...

I then began preparing for a trip to Spain for the first time in my life. I began searching for places that I wanted to visit along the coast. I recalled the book "The Alchemist" which I have read over and over and over. It is the most magical book of my life. And I reread the part where the shepherd boy who has a dream to find the pyramids, stands on the castle wall on the very southern tip of Spain. And there he feels the levante, the wind from Africa, and it comes to him, "why be jealous of the wind, when I can go there myself". That's when he determines to follow through with his dream. At that point,I realized I wanted to be in Spain where I could see the mountains of Africa in clear view.


So in December I departed for Spain. Principe was still young and friends visited him in my home to take care of him. At that time Principe was just a kitty-cat, and yet something told me that he had something to do with Spain.
Once I landed in Malaga,Spain, I rented a car and drove in the night through winding mountain roads to my friend's brother who lives in Competa. Wow, here I was, once again Annie, adventuring forth in new lands, with no experience with the highways, with the vehicle, following driving instructions given to me by internet, to find a small village nestled 2,000 feet high in the rocky mountains, at night! Am I crazy? Is this really going to be fun? well, I shifted from being nervously shaky to saying,"Yahooooo!!! I'm here! I'm here! and I'm soooo close to Africa, as I climbed and took in the sweet mountain air.

I spent several days in Competa, a small village brought back to life by mostly British ex-pats. Then I began my journey to different spots that I had plotted from the ease of internet in Texas. I went to a number of spots on the coast and with each one, I didn't linger. I could feel it wasn't lighting me up and continued past many tourist towns along the Costa del Sol. Hmmm, I was about to reach the very southern tip, just past Gibraltar and Algeciras. I doubted that Tarifa at the tip, could be the place, because I had read about the winds, some of the strongest in the world at certain times of year. Well, I was still curious, so after passing through Algeciras, my little Peugot started climbing a large summit and when I reached the top, I could see through the trees the gently rolling green hills down to the Strait of Gibraltar and the mountains of Africa so near. I cried out,"I'm home!"

The next time I write I'll continue with the story. Read more to find out how Principe got found in Galveston, like a needle in a haystack, and how Principe got to Spain!