The most common set of rune stones in circulation today is the Elder Futhark, named for the first six stones in the collection of twenty-four.  Each stone is a letter of the alphabet, and the twenty-four stones are broken into three groups of eight called Aett’s.  The first group is called the Frey’s Aett, the second is the Hagel’s Aett, and the third is the Tyr’s Aett. 

Thurisaz is the third stone in the first set and represents boundaries.  It resembles a thorn, which are often planted along walls to divide properties, or anything that pierces or makes a strong defense, such as a sword or the fang of a snake.  It speaks to the importance of keeping personal boundaries, and also a warning to take no unnecessary risks.  One should be sure they are not acting against their own best interest by making hurried or uninformed decisions.  A proper assessment is in order before taking any action.

In the healing interpretation, Thurisaz represents wisdom.  Usually, wisdom only comes about through hard-fought experience.  As the saying goes, once bitten, twice shy.  Wisdom can’t always give the solution to problems as much as offer the best approach to take to them.  Of all the gifts that Solomon could’ve asked for, he chose wisdom and it led to him being the wealthiest and most well-regarded man on the planet.

If anything, I’d spent too much of my life defending myself from commitments and alliances of any kind.  What had often been my experience was that others either got in my way or slowed me down.  It had reached the point where I could no longer live without the involvement of others, so I would need to make some concessions.  Where to start?  Perhaps staying in one place long enough to make allies.  There had to be others out there who felt the same way.  It is possible to protect yourself so much you cut yourself off from the source of life.  That was my quandary.

To get to the Templo Mayor from Autobuses Del Norte, I took the yellow line to the olive one to the green one, exiting at the Zocalo, past the same healers, or Curanderos, from the day before.  Outside of the museum, I walked along the labyrinth walls of the old city. 

Inside, there was a wall of skulls at the entrance, then an exhibit of a funeral site, shells, stones, animal bones, teeth, clay gods and pots.  Next to it another funeral display, three skulls strewn amidst a collection of stone idols.  There was a wall of flint knives, used for human sacrifices.  Now a skull with stones for eyes, looking like they were popping out of the head, and stained teeth.  There was a coiled stone serpent, in a case a stuffed golden eagle, a coyote, a bobcat, a jaguar, animal spirits and Aztec gods. 

In the lobby were two busts, one of the Spanish conquistador Cortes, and another of the Aztec king, Montezuma.  These are the fathers of the Mexican people.  In 1519, Cortes landed on the Yucatan Peninsula with five hundred soldiers and then founded a base in Veracruz.  He made alliances with a few tribes before marching on to Tenochtitlan, slaughtering thousands along the way.  Montezuma welcomed the invaders, but was placed under house arrest.

Cortes was then called away to battle other Spanish forces, and in his absence his subordinate, Alvarado, butchered many of the Aztec warriors and nobility.  This started a rebellion and many Spanish forces were killed in retaliation.  When Cortes returned, Montezuma was assassinated.  His brother, Cuitlahuac, took charge and drove out Cortes and his men.  Tenochtitlan at the time was on an island, surrounded by an artificial lake.  In 1521, Cortes returned, with a great number of allied tribes and laid siege to the city.  After 93 days they broke through and destroyed it, eventually capturing and hanging Cuitlahuac.

After touring the museum, I returned to my neighborhood and found a restaurant to get tacos al pastor.  My flight to Cancun wasn’t until noon the next day, but I still felt like resting up and trying to recover from the first leg of my journey.  Outside of my afflicted feet, the parade being too crowded to see anything, and the pyramids being closed, the trip had been a success so far.  At least I was learning about the rune stones. 

The waitress brought me my tacos then went back to the register.  Taking off her COVID mask, she began eating a caramel apple.  It is always Day of the Dead in Mexico City.