You should never meditate with a cell phone in your hip pocket. It was 3:00 Saturday afternoon. We were to hold our first sober event later that evening. After much discussion within the community careful planning the day had come to put into action what had only been discussed via posts on Tribe dot net and various emails.

The cell phone buzzed in my left pocket. I’d received a text message. I held my breath and pressed “view.”

“Probs, generator not firing up. Been trying for 30 mins.”

It was Troi with the first of many bad tidings. My mind was still... my breathing even. I took in the news without reacting. Be a part of the solution, don’t dwell on the problem. I repeated this to myself two or three times and picked up the phone.

“Hey, what’s up?” I instigated the conversation casually non-reactive.
“Hey Bro..?--My genie is in fifteen parts in the driveway.” Troi sighed, I let him continue “last night I got an earplug stuck in my ear. I went to the doctor today and he couldn’t even get the thing out. He says that he can’t see it and doesn’t want to pull on it because it may be stuck to my eardrum.”
“What? Damn, that’s not good, did he offer any ideas on how to get it out?”
“Well no, but I am going to have it looked at again after the weekend, and now my generator is busted. I opened it up and there’s sand all over inside. Maybe something shorted out..? I don’t know, everything is frickin fallin apart today. What do you want to do?” My friend sounded miserable and understandably so, I commiserated.
“Pray on it. I will do the same. Put the thing back together, try and blow it out the best you can and I will keep my fingers crossed that the thing fires up.” I offered.
“What do you think I have been doing? I will call you back in fifteen.” The line went silent as the generator.
I tucked my legs underneath me and rested my palms on my lap then began chanting. “Nam myoho renge kyo... nam myoho renge kyo... (visualizing a little red generator coughing then purring mechanically) nam myoho renge kyo...
The phone buzzed again, it was Samantha. Samantha had been tasked with “pit-sitting” to ensure that we had a spot to hold our event at.
“Ummm--hey, I can’t make it down to the beach today. My car won’t start, I think it is the alternator. I am sorry.”
My recently calmed mind shuddered, expectations were crashing about like Soviet test pilots. “It’s okay, I can find someone else.” I offered an olive branch, knowing that it was too late and that there was no way we could secure the pit we needed. Instructions to the northernmost pit at Dockweiler had been posted all over the net, we were expecting a sizable crowd. Things were looking down.
I began the chanting nam-myohos again, this time adding the visual of an open fire ring to the animated generator visualization. This I continued for some time, the sun began its’ downward slide into tomorrow.
The phone rang again, it was Andrea. I almost didn’t pick up.
“Hello..?” I held the phone an inch or two away from my ear as if it might lash out and bite me.
“Heyyyyy...” voice chipper and optimistically friendly as always, “where are you guys? I am here at the guard shack.”
I looked at my watch, it was already 7:00, somehow I had chanted myself to sleep; wierd! I should’ve left for the beach at 6:00. I felt a surge of panic at the rapidly developing fluster-cluck this evening had become then choked it down. Recognizing the thought process in motion then silently reminding myself that there was a pony somewhere in the this pile of poop.
“See if there are any pits open when you get down ther--”
“Daaaaaaaamn! This place is packed! I have never see this many people here before.” She interupted, I groaned inwardly.
‘The solution... the solution...’ another call coming in. “Andrea, I will call you right back.” I clicked over.
“Dude, the generator is not working. I tried everything; my ear is killing me. You call it bro.” Troi’s voice sounded like inclement weather.
“Can you aux into your boombox with your laptop?” I asked, rapidly lowering my expectations; praying for a drum circle to materialize out of thin air.
“Yeah, I can.” Solution.
“Great, I will get batteries and we’ll just have to make do.” I made the mental adjustment. It wouldn’t be great but it would do. “Okay, load up I will see you in thirty minutes, people are showing up already we have to show up too.” I switched back to Andrea.
“Andrea, hey..?--Sorry about that. Everything is falling apart. Can you do me a favor?” I didn’t wait for a reply. “Try and see if you can convince someone to let us join them. Tell them that we have a deejay and firespinners, see what you can do and call me back.” She agreed, G-d bless her heart then hung up to be about it, no questions asked. What a soldier!
I began packing, then fired up Internet Explorer to post the latest developments on Tribe. Great! Tribe was down, the only thing I could get was something about a donut. Donut freak out? What the hell? The phone rang again, I ignored it and took a much needed moment to swim around in the murky waters of disappointment and misery.
I held my head in my hands and bemoaned the stillbirth of the first sober event. People were showing up, everything that could have possibly gone wrong had gleefully done so. I straightened my back and meditated, surrendering to the moment and trusting in the Divine Mother to reveal more. Insight!
The phone rang again. I answered.
“Hello?”
It was Andrea again. “I walked over and asked everyone and nobody is willing to open their pits to a burner freakshow. I tried, sorr--” Someone called to her as she spoke. “wait, a second...” I could here a clipped conversation taking place. She returned to the line, “You’ll never guess what just happened. This group of kids offered us their pit, and check this out; they have a generator!” The words tumbled from her excitedly.
“No effing way! I can’t believe it... actually--I can believe it. Thank those guys for me and tell them that we will be there in fifty minutes. I have to make some calls.” I clicked off and called Troi.
“Hey. Brother you will never guess what just happened. Andrea is down at the site right now, not only has she scored us a pit, brought a Christmas tree to light on fire, but she found us a generator to use.” I spat the words out.
“No freakin way! I am two blocks from home, I’m turning around to get my speakers. I hope there genie has enough power to run my system.”
“Troi, I am pretty sure that these events are sanctioned by a Higher Power. Everything is going to work out fine. See you in thirty minutes.” I mashed the red phone icon on my cell and smiled.
An hour later we arrived with the system, firewood and another lesson into the intricate nature of the universe and humbled by our place in it. Little discussion was necessary to sort everything out, this sublime confluence of events has happened too many times for us to be in any sort of doubt. The Universe is always providing all that is required of us is to have an open heart.
We set up the audio system in a flash adding to the crazy vibrations emanating out into the Pacific ocean. Troi Ge spun fat beats that sped out across the waters like and invisible tsunami with a bad sense of direction. People, good people, materialized out of the utalitarian grid to the East. A group of souls formed a tight knot and began to dance with one mind, liminal shuffling. Dozens of feet stomped the sand into strange patterns. The night washed over us all, returning our smiles with a blanket of healing energy.
Soon our vibe spread like gossip in a small town, people from surrounding firepits came in twos and threes. I closed my eyes and listened with deep satisfaction to such questions as, “What’s Burning Man? How can I learn to spin one of those torch thingees? What is Tribe?”
I opened my eyes, people were dancing, a circle of neophyte hoopers were giving it their all with Andrea in the middle giving freely of what she’s been given, Chains spinning his staff in rapidly arcing circles thumbing his nose at gravity and common sense, Brigid practicing double staff moves with a small group of young kids watching her throw down, Troi bobbing his head and be-ing his digital wizardry, Albert chilling with a little hottie on his arm; hanging on his every word.
Everyboy who was meant to be there showed. There are no coincidences, this much I am certain of.

P.S.
First of all, let me apologize that this event, as planned, did not survive its’ first encounter with reality. I would especially like to make amends to Luli and Bella, the scene was a little rowdy and there was innebriated people about and even though the vibe was what it was; the environment in my opinion was not one suitable for families. I will try harder and use this as a learning experience to bring the event more in line with our original intentions.
Also, if you showed up and couldn’t find us I am truly sorry. I placed a sign at the northernmost pit on a lightpole at the end of the parking lot. The position of the sign was not a good one but it was the best I could do. I tried hanging a sign at the southernmost pit but within the last week the trash net/fence had been removed and there was nowhere to hang the sign.
I look forward to the next event. Please contribute freely with your ideas as to how we can pull this off to everyone’s satisfaction. Thank you sooooooo much to all of those who helped put this together, you know who you are. I hug all of you very much.

Namaste