Only in New Mexico

As New Mexicans, we have moments where we smile and say to ourselves, “only in New Mexico”. Whether you have lived here for a month or your entire life, there are just some things that you see here that would not happen elsewhere.

I had one of those moments this past week as I read a reputable news source (KKOB) story about a hot air balloon causing maybe the tallest man-made structure in our state, the KKOB radio tower, to come tumbling down.

For those reading out of state, yes, you read the previous sentence correctly. No need to adjust your glasses.

But, that wasn’t even the “only in New Mexico” part. In the KKOB story, here was the sentence that put this over the top:

“A woman who saw the balloon crash, said it was the blue balloon with the moon on it that had the accident.”

Yes, for those New Mexicans and out-of-staters, you read that sentence correctly. 

I am imagining the police officer called to the scene.

Officer: Ma’am, you say it was a blue balloon that caused this to happen, huh?

Lady: Yes, officer. It was so traumatic [sniffle]. I am struggling to remember anything else [sniffle, sips her pinon flavored coffee and takes a bite of her Golden Pride #1 burrito].

Officer: Ma’am, it’s going to be okay. There are other radio towers still left un-harmed. You will still be able to get your news. Now, please please…try to remember anything else about the “suspect”.

Lady: Well [sniffle]……..now that I think about it [sniffle], I think there was a…moon on the blue balloon [sniffle]. Yes, there was a moon on it.”

Officer: That really helps us ma’am. Would you be willing to come down to the station to identify this balloon in a line of potential suspects?

 

The next sentence in the article was an “only in New Mexico” sentence as well:

“It was the Smokey Bear balloon that crashed into that same tower array 20 years ago yesterday.”

I hope this makes you smile this morning, and makes you think of a few of your favorite “only in New Mexico” moments. Share those as comments to this blog!

 

Hot Air Balloon Strikes KKOB Tower

Posted on October 11, 2024

A hot air balloon knocked down one of KKOB’s AM radio towers this morning. No one was hurt when balloon caused the guy wires to fail, sending the structure crumbling to the ground around 8:45 AM. A woman who saw the balloon crash, said it was the blue balloon with the moon on it that had the accident. It was the Smokey Bear balloon that crashed into that same tower array 20 years ago yesterday, forcing a pilot and child to climb down the tower to safety.

Out of...Into...

As we transition to a new season, I look to the trees for wisdom and guidance.

They must now begin to transition out of their green-leafed stage and into the radiant colors of fall foliage, before losing their leaves altogether in the weeks ahead.

Like most drastic changes, I am sure the trees wish it could go just a bit slower, letting the transition happen over months, not weeks.

I imagine the grandmother tree, 90 years wise, trunk wrinkled with life wisdom in every crevice, begging Life to turn down the speed of the transition just a bit.

Life answers, gently and lovingly, “Dear, it is not your timeline on which things happen around here. Let go and let me guide you out of the summer and into your next chapter.”

Taking that in, let’s write together today.

First, imagine a tree or group of trees that you have shared Life with. Maybe an old oak that was your playground in your grandparents back yard. Maybe a Cottonwood on your street whose bright yellows have started to greet you in these last weeks.

Breathe in the energy, the essence of that tree as it shows us the way of transition. Out of the summer green. Into the fall colors and losing of leaves.

Now, it is your turn to write on your transition. Envision sitting at the tree’s base, your back resting on its trunk.

What are you transitioning out of at this moment?

What are you transitioning into?

 

A few lines that arise for me:

Out of…

Out of despair

Out of picking fruit before it has time to ripen, sweeten and mature.

Out of my own head

Out of forgetting gratitude as I rush out the door for the day

Out of holding onto yesterday + worrying about tomorrow

 

Into…

Into Love’s warmth and Life’s embrace

Into spaces that radiate the glow of Life’s Beauty

Into writing more and worrying less

Into slowing down and praying up

Into healing of others

Into receiving healing energy from Life, from others

 

Have fun writing your Out of/Into piece today! 

Share it with a few people and with your tree once finished.

Fall into Balance

Mornings crisper and darker

Evenings that come quicker

Pumpkins and apple cider

Fall is here!

 

This week is a moment of astronomical, celestial balance.

Fall equinox is one of two moments in the year when the sun illuminates northern and southern hemispheres equally.

On a global level, a moment of balance.

And on a local level, this is a moment where light and dark, day and night are also in balance.

Twelve hours for each.

I invite you to slow for a moment and take in the equinox on a deeper level.

Close eyes if you wish.

Feel the balancing of Mother Earth in her playful conversation with the sun.

Where do you need the equinox energy to restore balance in your life at this moment?

Imagine the gentle pull back from 

tilting, leaning, falling

                            …back into balance

Visualize the     

teeter

&

totter

tethered

to the center

until the sway

is gone altogether

until

you can let go

until

you can just be

until

you just are

until

love is all that is

until

all

is

still

Green Chile Wisdom

 

air crisp with a hint of fall

permeated

perfumed

with green chile’s aroma

flavor and spice mixing in a way that words cannot capture

the land and those who farmed it manifesting like apparitions, Field of Dreams style

how the nose can sense the spice level as if it were the tongue never ceases to amaze

 

Uniquely, green chile is a food delicious but also one that deserves a degree of caution. Not to be consumed blindly and endlessly like chocolate, but one that we sample first to get a sense of the “heat” that particular batch is going to bring.

Green chile demands that we enjoy without over-indulging.

And unlike chocolate, this centerpiece to our NM fall season is never the centerpiece in our dishes. It is added, again, with caution, to flavor the

enchilada, burrito, huevos, 

candy, chocolate, pizza,

salad dressing, peanut brittle, coffee,

popcorn, pistachios, ice cream,

burgers, bread, hummus

chips, paletas…yes, we do go a bit overboard!

Green chile teaches us that we can be great by adding flavor to others, supporting and centering them while we give a nice little spice kick on top.

In being roasted, the chile also reminds that while going through the fire is never pleasant, it does add some delicious flavor.

But here is my biggest takeaway from green chile season:

Giving our prized possessions away to others only enhances their flavor in our lives.

In giving bags of chile to my patients, family, friends (and occasionally to complete strangers), I can almost taste the chile upon my taste buds in return. I like imagining how good they are going to feel when that chile is put on their [see list above]. I enjoy seeing how people treat the gift as something precious, even sacred.

The joy in sharing with others what is most precious to us; Let us savor that flavor this green chile season.

Three Simple Rules for Speaking

My neighbor had a decision to make.

He had paid for a wall to be built and it wasn’t built correctly. In fact, it was leaning and looking ready to fall.

In talking with him, I asked what he was going to do. He mentioned that he could ask a state agency to come out and determine if the wall was constructed correctly, which would be a “no”.

“And then you could get your money back, right?” I asked.

“Not sure. What I am sure of is that it would cause a lot of trouble for the guy who did the wall who was falsely claiming to be licensed.”

Pause.

“But why would I do that? It would ruin him. And I would likely still have a wall that needs to be re-done.”

 

In the last weeks, I have thought a lot about his decision not to pursue retribution for being misled, for paying for wall that was now falling.

Moreover, I thought about his consideration of the harm it would cause another person in this moment where he was the victim.

 

A gentle reminder and an important teaching for all of us today.

Asking ourselves three questions before speaking:

Is it true?

Is it necessary?

Is it kind?

This sentiment is found in many of the world’s religions; a quick web search will result in Buddha, Rumi and others linked to such questioning.

These three specific questions were posed by a Victorian poet, Mary Ann Pietzker, who published a poem “It is True? Is it Necessary? Is it Kind?” in 1872. I will share that piece here, and get out of the way.

 

“Is It True? Is It Necessary? Is It Kind?

 

Oh! Stay, dear child, one moment stay,

Before a word you speak,

That can do harm in any way

To the poor, or to the weak;

And never say of any one

What you’d not have said of you,

Ere you ask yourself the question,

“Is the accusation true?”

And if ’tis true, for I suppose

You would not tell a lie;

Before the failings you expose

Of friend or enemy:

Yet even then be careful, very;

Pause and your words well weigh,

 

And ask if it be necessary,

What you’re about to say.

And should it necessary be,

At least you deem it so,

Yet speak not unadvisedly

Of friend or even foe,

Till in your secret soul you seek

For some excuse to find;

 

And ere the thoughtless word you speak,

Ask yourself, “Is it kind?”

 

When you have ask’d these questions three—

True,—Necessary,—Kind,—

Ask’d them in all sincerity,

I think that you will find,

It is not hardship to obey

The command of our Blessed Lord,—

No ill of any man to say;

No, not a single word.

Healing Tears

 

The tears of grieving

water the seeds of growth

 

The tears of grieving

cleanse the dirt, 

using it 

2

nourish new life

into being

 

The tears of grieving

dilute the pain

2

become

homeopathic

dosing

4

healing

~~~~~~

Healing Tears is a visual art and poetry collaboration as part of a larger project, Our Natural Body Through Art and Word. This collaboration allows visual and poetry art to translate and transform one another. 

Lindsey Hancock (visual artist, UNM Medical Student hailing from the Choctaw Nation) and myself take pieces that the other has done and create the complement. 

In the case of Healing Tears, Anthony created a poem and Lindsey then created art in response.

Fan Mail: Fleg Sighting at the Olympics??

This week, I will address a fan mail letter on the show. (You mean, you haven’t sent a letter in yet? Shame on you!)

 

Dear Dr. Fleg,

I was excited to see that you are taking part in the Paris Olympics. How do you find time to do it all? And will you also be a part of the medical team there? Finally, could you get me a signature from Snoop Dogg while you are there?

Sincerely,

Katie S.

Portland, Maine

 

Dear Katie,

It is wonderful that you took the time to write. 

I didn’t realize the internet stretched all the way to Maine. You mean to tell me that when I post something on Writing to Heal, it actually makes it all the way over there? Wow!

Anyway, I want to clear up the confusion. I am DR Fleg but it is DJ Fleg who is participating in the Olympics. 

I know – only one letter difference, but we are different people. I use a stethoscope and he uses turntables. I sign patient charts, while he signs his fans' biceps with a Sharpie.

Katie, as you may know, breakdancing is making its debut in the Olympics this year. My youngest brother, Steve (DJ Fleg) who is known around the world in the hip hop community, was asked to be one of the two DJs to spin tunes for the dancers as they compete for gold. He surprised us recently with the news that he was heading to Paris.

Finally, a Fleg made it to the Olympics!

But listen, if you want to come to Albuquerque for a health maintenance visit, I am here for you. Just call our clinic and tell them you want the stethoscope Fleg, not the turntable one.

In health,

Dr. (not DJ) Fleg

p.s. Here's an article from LA Times on breakdancing + DJ Fleg for you - click here

A picture of DJ Fleg's Olympic credentials, snapped from my parent's kitchen counter