Songaians gather frequently - we have an active life together in which we share of each other's lives.
Our most frequent gatherings are over meals - we share meals five times per week in our common house dining room. All community members participate in the Songaia food program, and most of us attend most meals. Small teams (typically 2 or 3) prepare and others clean-up after each meal. On Monday nights we gather to sing and celebrate - often welcoming friends, family, and other visitors to our table (please contact info@songaia.com to arrange a visit).
In addition to dinners, we have a number of monthly gatherings::
- Community meeting
- Talking/sharing circle
- Men's circle
- Women's circle
- Women's book group
Less frequent gatherings include:
- Healing circles - for members in need
- Solstice celebrations
- Equinox celebrations
- Game nights
- Weddings (we've had several in our commons)
- Parties (of all kinds!)
Annual gatherings include:
- Annual meeting
- Festival of the earth (also below)
- All Hallows Eve
- Halloween
- Thanksgiving (below)
- Easter egg hunt
- Fourth of July picnic
- New Years Eve & Day (below)
- Community retreat
- Men's retreat
- Women's retreat
- End of school year
- Beginning of school year
But don't be mistaken by the number of Songaian social activities, we also gather to work. Our community work takes three primary forms; (1) committee meetings, (2) group work, and (3) individual projects.
Songaia Committees are:
- Biogaians
- Community Relations
- Community Works
- Fabulous Food Folk
- Facilities
- Kids Connection
- Navigators (our steering committee)
People gather for small and large group work. Sometimes its a spontaneous project that starts because two or more people are nearby, other times its a well-planned group activity. We also rely on the efforts of a lot of individuals who have the initiative to take on various projects..
At the Festival of the Earth, or Earth Day, we recognize our responsibility to care for the Earth. We participate in earth-tending and tree-planting, gathering with song, earth dedications, and feasting. We celebrate with music and dance, including a Maypole Dance.
Making popcorn strand decoratations in preparation for the Thanksgiving feast
At Thanksgiving, or the Harvest Festival, we express our gratitude for the harvest, for our family, friends & community, for our work, and for all facets of Life. We celebrate with song, poetry, and feasting.
New Year's Eve and Day
We bring in the New Year in a BIG way at Songaia. We even
have our own "sphere of dreams" which descends in our commons
to count down to the New Year just like in New York City! We also
have lots of fun and make time to reflect on the past year and record
our dreams for the coming year.