The second training program I underwent in DC, years ago, entailed a visit to the U.S. Marine Base and a briefing on border security in San Diego, California. My co-participants and I were allowed to walk all the way to the beach, along which ran a huge cyclone-wire fence, directly behind which was Tijuana. We conversed with the Mexicans on the other side of the fence and shook hands with them through the wires. It was a phenomenological experience for me, standing on the border between two countries, conversing with Mexicans, and, in my case, straddling time zones.

I picked up this red, triangular stone from the border and brought it home. It helps me a lot in magic, particularly magic that involves crossing boundaries.