At this point in my life, I definitely feel this is true, and I am experiencing a community of people in which many share a vision of such a world.
This morning I had the delight of participating in a Community Circle gathering concerning how Songaia wants to move forward with matters on infrastructure and facilities. It was heartwarming to witness the amount of care people had about how things are handled in honorable ways. These are certainly not the types of people to throw money at a problem and expect it to be resolved! I witnessed a deep desire from many angles of people wanting to be involved in these processes. And, by love, how they included me as one of them! Even having been here for under a month, I am constantly warmed by how so many here value me and my influence. There is so much effort put forth in allowing each other to be seen and heard, and this is incredibly impactful amidst the large culture of today of sweeping discomfort under the rug.
I took more notes on the process itself than the content of the meeting.
Anita describes the garden as a learning garden, and I feel that when I’m in it, and I feel that sentiment expands to Songaia as a whole.
Though I have yet to join a designated spiritual gathering here,* I feel my own spiritual process being encouraged, and I notice the deeply spiritual lives the people here embrace. There is the aspect of the spiritual in all the work I have joined in on so far, and I smell deep potential on the wind for me discovering more spiritually connective rituals in this place.
*Actually, as I typed that, I realized it’s not totally accurate. I haven’t joined a dedicated meditation session (of which Songaia often holds), but a lovely person living here hosted a creative workshop on the Hermit Archetype and Symbology in the Tarot, and that was a very actively spiritual process as well as engaging my left-brain learning. Really rich stuff, Friedel!
Anyway, I’ve participated in planting dry farm squash and tomatoes, weeding out garden beds that are ready for sprouts and seeds, learning about how I make those decisions between who I let live and whose life I end… Having love for all the things even as I do so. Giving the trees haircuts for their health, and working with others to string nets over the ones we want to protect from bugs. I learn how to harvest in a way that encourages the plants to continue to thrive. I share the joy of finding a gorgeous bug or mushroom with my fellows. I plant and weed and water while playing with a young child having fun finding rocks and making circles with them around the newly planted squash. I hear a desire to help the Sweet Cicely from overtaking the herb garden, so I get to know this plant that is new to me and harvest her seeds at dusk when I’m winding down for the day. I find her to be delicious, and still have no idea what I’m going to do with all I’ve gathered and packed away in the freezer for now. I spend 5 hours of a Friday afternoon experimenting with making Parsnip chips out of all the roots a couple of the other gardeners have pulled to make room for new plants. I learn that you can make pesto from Lemon Balm, and it’s delicious!!
Also I love living in the A-frame tucked into the trees. Always serenaded by bird song and the rustling of leaves! (And being helpfully lent a box fan to help drown out the unfortunate traffic noise at night.)
-Kendall T.