The Red Sanctuary: 225,000 Miles of Becoming

The Red Car

The Red Sanctuary as Container of Life

Spirituality and consciousness exploration have always held my interest more than anything material. So the attachment to my little red car surprised me. The memories flooded my body as I cleaned out my Red Toyota. For ten years, she wasn't just a car. She was the silent partner in a turbulent rebirth. She held me through the end of a 28-year marriage, the quiet ache of an empty nest, the fear of new jobs, and the physical exhaustion of moving house. She carried the weight of a decade I wasn't sure I’d survive. She was like an old friend that had been by my side and held me sturdily in life's uncertainty. For 10 years she carried moments of my life: teaching the lucky last child to drive the automatic instead of the previous stick shift cars I had, adventuring on the logging and seasonal roads near where I live (not recommended with a Corolla! ), the final trips to see my dementia ridden dad, speeding to the ER for the finger that needed too many stitches, the crock pot spills on the way to sweatlodge, the mice that found my car as comfortable as I did, and 225,000 miles of mindful practice

Finding My Voice

In rural upstate New York, "anywhere" is at least a thirty-minute drive away. With all that time I was safe from a world that needed me to show up polite and respectable, I learned to yell. Within those red metal walls, decades of repressed trauma finally found an expression. I breathed deep, gripped the wheel, letting the container of the car hold me. And she held it all —the rage, the sobbing, the grief until it spilled out onto the rolling fields and forested hills. I broke all the barriers of my childhoods mantra of the "Be seen and not heard" paradigm. I found my voice in that car. Safe from the listening world, cocooned within its steel nest, I fumbled awkwardly with Lakota sweatlodge songs until I felt confident enough to actually sing with other people in the ceremony,.

Born from the Wreckage

The Red Sanctuary Toyota Corolla came to me out of near disaster. Someone was texting and driving on the highway and ran me and my Suzuki into the guard rail, totalling it. Luckily I was ok, and no one else was in the car with me, but I the incident left me carless. - not really an options in rural upstate New York. And of course crisis never happens in isolation, when it rains it pours . My landlord decided he didn't want to rent his apt out to me anymore, so I had to find a new place to live as well. Insurance gave me a sizable amount for the totalled Suzuki which I kept to help with moving expenses. By miracle I was able to get a no money down loan for the Red Toyota. So the crash ended up opening the doorway to not only a new car but a new living space as well.

Unified Mindfulness Miles

During that time I began my study of mindful practice. And, yes, you can be meditative with eyes open and driving in the car. The Unified Mindfulness System I am trained in has alot of options and it was a perfect skillset to practice with all the upstate New York drive time. Breathing deeply into my body while keeping a keen focus on the road not only developed my skillsets, and ability to consentrate but avoided many wildlife fatalities from being able to detect movement in the periphery of the road ahead of me.

The Next 225,000 Miles

It feels strange to say goodbye to a machine, but she was so much more than metal and glass; she was consistency when my world was crumbling. Through every mile of that long decade, she remained steadfast—never asking for more than the basics, never failing to start, and never leaving me stranded. It was that quiet, endless reliability that led me straight back to another Corolla. As I drove away in my new Black Toyota I watched the red paint fade in my rearview mirror, my heart was heavy. But there was also a surge of quiet excitement. I am stepping into a new seat now, what will the next decade bring? I am ready for the next adventure, knowing I have a new travel partner to carry me through whatever the road brings next.

Need assistance with your healing journey? Eileen is a Certified Unified Mindfulness Teacher and Alternative Healer who has completed multiple vision queststo be a clear and effective conduit for your growth and healing. Visit https://relaxandexpand.com to contact.