By Mike Casto
Alchemy: a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation or combination.
In 2004, I thought I had been to Sedona. My wife and I had passed through on our way to the Grand Canyon a few years before. Honestly, the only thing I remember is Uptown and I specifically remember thinking, “It’s a tourist trap. What’s all the hype about?” I was soon to discover, though, that there’s a huge difference between “driving through” and “being in” Sedona; between seeing it pass by on the other side of a window and walking in its energy, experiencing it firsthand and intimately.
Every year, in September, there’s an event held in Sedona called Tai Chi Alchemy. You’d think that it’s a Tai Chi event and, in fact, some Tai Chi does happen there every year. The event, though, isn’t really about Tai Chi. It’s really about the Alchemy and, for me, that meant so much more than Tai Chi or even the amazing community of practitioners who attend the event each year.
In December, 2004, I met a man named Stephen Watson, “Stephe” for short. We met at a martial arts event in Miami, Florida. Stephe and I hit it off immediately. He’s a Tai Chi instructor and also teaches other martial arts. I have been training in martial arts pretty much all my life but had always considered Tai Chi to be “boring” and, at best, something I’d get around to when I was “old.” Almost from the moment I met Stephe, though, he started sharing Tai Chi with me and he started talking about this event in Sedona. He rarely even mentioned the name of the event. He just said, “You’ve got to go to Sedona.”
I said, “Why would I want to do that? I don’t train in Tai Chi. The event is several hundred dollars, plus travel and lodging. Why would I want to spend that kind of time and money for something I’m not directly involved with?”
He said, “You’ve gotta go. It’ll change your life.” Incredibly prophetic.
Over the next 6 months we talked regularly via phone or e-mail but we also saw each other in person about once a month. Several times it was by accident. We would just happen to be in the same area at the same time and we’d hook up. We randomly encountered each other in San Francisco, New York and Colorado. We also visited each other; he lived in Connecticut and I lived in Kentucky. Every time we talked, whether in person or on the phone or via e-mail, he’d bring up Sedona.
Finally, after all Stephe’s cajoling, I ponied up the money for the travel, lodging and event. First, the event was amazing. It was so much more than I could ever have expected. It’s indescribable and I would highly recommend the event to anyone. Google it; it’s easy enough to find information. It’s organized each year by an incredible man named Rick Barrett and his family.
So in 2005 I spent a long weekend in Sedona, basically attending Tai Chi Alchemy (TCA). At one point, though, the group went out to Bell Rock and we all went our separate ways to do a hike. While on that hike, I thought, “So this is what people mean when they say ‘home.’” Prior to that moment I had never associated the concept of “home” with a geographical location.
In 2006, I spent a week in Sedona. I thought I was just doing it so I could hang out with some of the TCA folk who stayed after. I had an incredible experience at Bell Rock, though, and I e-mailed my wife about it. When she read the e-mail she was in a business meeting. She said she read the words but literally couldn’t wrap her head around what they meant because she was in such a different space.
In 2007, my wife, Margaret, came out to Sedona with me. She figured she’d at least be in the same geographical region and might be able to actually share some of the experience with me. We rented a house for two weeks. Our second day here, Margaret said, “So, when are we moving here?”
In 2008, we rented a house near Chapel of the Holy Cross for a month. We were hooked. We weren’t sure how we would manage it but we knew, without a doubt, that we were ready to live in Sedona. It called to both of our souls like nowhere else we’d ever been and we’re both very well traveled.
In the spring of 2009 we moved here. We lived in Rimrock for about four months, then in Oak Creek Canyon. After returning from some extended traveling we rented a house in Village of Oak Creek. Through our windows we can see Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte.
People ask me if I ever take the amazing scenery for granted. I say, “No. Every day I go outside and I have at least one moment when I just stop and say, ‘Wow!’”
I’m generally not a person people would describe as “woo woo” or “new age.” Most people would describe me as being very intelligent, level-headed and practical. However, in Sedona I have walked with ghosts, flowed like water down Bell Rock and seen a UFO driving down the street. I routinely give rides to strangers, something I almost never did before moving here. I have found sheer, unadulterated wonder in the flight of a raven, the running gate of javelina and the awesome power of an elk. I have watched breathless as a large mule deer buck ran across the road in front of my car and felt the reverent peacefulness of the Buddhist stupas amidst the red rocks. I’ve stood meditating on a ledge half the width of my foot and marvelled at the sound of an unseen flautist; apparently sourceless music drifting through a cave when I was sure I was alone.
“Believe as a child believes and the magic will find you.” — Theresa Langdon
I think Sedona is a huge catalyst that makes this phenomon incredibly easy to bring into being.
January 24, 2012
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