Peyote, 1961

They were there ... in a jar ... floating ... Dark and mysterious. A shaft of sunlight fell on the table and into the jar illuminating Nahautl Pyotl Mexcalli nectar. Cactus buds staring with buttoned eyes and spiny tufts like the heart of an artichoke floating in brine. Picked in Texas and sent through the mail to be shared ceremonially ... without drums ... in a Victorian home on Sutter Street. Once eaten, the journey began to mystic melodies of merriment. Eaten slowly as if in reverence to the power of sacrament. Blood and wine. Bone and wafer. Before and after. Alpha and Omega. A shaft of sunlight fell .... while the sounds of the cosmos and the colors of eternity were gifts given from the Spirit of the Universe. Given to an unfolding soul no longer locked in a prison of false beliefs, the bondage of every Other ... now free to be ... in the sunlight ... with her own drum.