Community Dinner with Spring Equinox ceremony

We were one day late, but heck, not too bad! Thursday is our regular Community Dinner day, and the Equinox itself fell on Wednesday, March 20, this year, late afternoon, only a couple of hours prior to the Full Moon! 

I had already said what we had planned to do during our ceremony , and podmate Gabrielle had sent out a notice to the dinner list to that effect. So .  .  . when the time came, just about everyone had thought about the challenge, and came internally prepared. But first: photos, of the larger than usual group, over two dozen, including three adults and two kids who joined podmate Solan — unfortunately, I did not get their photo, except for this phenomenal knitted coat! —

— neighbor Mariella and her mother, visiting from New Jersey,

— and as usual, our sweet three-generation line-up, Wanda, Eva and Sophia.

The meal itself was more elaborate and scrumptuous than usual (perhaps in response to the fairly skimpy offerings of last week’s meal! unusual, for us) —

some of the diners filling the den —

others the kitchen —

— and the atmosphere was so convivial that when the time came to do ceremony, it took a bit to quiet everyone down. But that DID happen, and when Gabrielle brought out the tiny pieces of paper upon which we were to write down something that we had been working on internally over the six months of darkness, and that we choose now to let go and bury, composting to regenerate new growth over the coming six months of light, we were ready. Everybody assiduously passed the clipboard and pen and wrote down their offering. We invited anyone to speak about their process over the winter, and a number of people did. I remember especially three people, who spoke of their need to get out of their own way and allow life to happen without trying to control or predict it — and I’m remembering now as I write this, the neighbor who did not attend, but who told me, when I mentioned what we were going to do to honor the Spring Equinox — indeed, she did not just tell me, she growled, “There’s so much I would like to bury . . .”

Given her very private nature, I doubt she would have spoken up, had she attended.

Afterwards, three of us trouped outside and buried all the tiny pieces of paper in a common hole, in the garden that holds the gigantic elephant ears, soon to be arising once again, out of the miraculous soil.

Two more community dinners, and another (likely) “Oops”

Valentine’s Day dinner at 2601 DeKist (“the first DeKist house,” or DeKist 1) I took only two pics, one of them way too dark, and the other one a pic of Mariella’s kids Asiri and Juakim on their screens. They hardly noticed their surroundings, plus she had fed them earlier. Oh well! Mariella tells me that they only rarely get to spend time on their screens, so she let up on them this time.

Last Thursday’s dinner at 2615 DeKist (“the second DeKist house” “DeKist 2), was somewhat sparsely attended. All but four of the nine of us were either out of town or working. BUT: Dear Aaron, who has returned to the Bloomington fold having spent a think a year or so in Asheville North Carolina, is back, and brought a wonderful woman whom none of us have met before. Also, a friend of Mariella’s — damn, can’t remember her name right now — brought another new person, again and woman, can’t remember her name either — and a bunch of us women had a conversation at the dining table that reminded me of the olden days in the 1960s and 1970s, when we women were starting to get to know each other, in a brand new way, beyond the roles we were playing for our boyfriends and husbands. A wonderfully stimulating conversation. Thank you! Here they are:

First new woman, on left, with Gabrielle and Aaron, in background.

Second new woman, in back, on the left. Justino and Andreas in foreground.

Justin’s massive meal . . .

The likely bigger oops came in the past two days, when the temperature plunged to 5°, and our poor peas, just planted, will they survive the ordeal? Right now, early afternoon, it’s 19° and tonight’s forecast to go down to 10°. After that it’s clear sailing, for awhile anyway. Solan popped his head under the double cover that the just planted peas are under yesterday and pronounced them “alive, but stressed.”

I just took this pic. We still don’t dare uncover them, even for a few hours, in this cold.

Two Community Dinners: We rotate among the three houses . . .

. . . and here are photos from the last two dinners, first at Overhill, next at DeKist 2. Next Thursday will be DeKist 1’s turn.

Overhill Dinner, January 31, 2019

It’s interesting. Much like potlucks (ours are not potlucks, but giftings; you aren’t required to bring anything to come), the amount and kind of food varies from week to week. This week was spectacular in the sheer amount of delicious food present, including three chickens! See the chicken in the red pot? That’s the one I made with Dan’s chicken, and it turns out we didn’t even touch it! So I made it into a hearty soup to follow our next work party, painting the garage, on Sunday last (no photos).

And see the humungous salad? Some of that made it into the soup as well. Way way way! too much! for the 13 people who were present.

What surprised us this time was young Sophia’s contribution, a very special chocolate cake with, she says, “not too much sugar in it.”

Neighbor Devin and Sophia’s mother Eva beam to see Sophia’s evident pride in her accomplishment.

She cut it into slices, and I think it was all gone by the time everyone left.

Oh, and BTW: on her way out the door, Sophia yells, excited:  “Wait until you see what I bring next time!”

DeKist 2 Dinner, February 7, 2019

Well, Sophia sure turned it on this time, and now, with her mother Eva contributing lemon bars as well. Absolutely, the three desserts “took the cake” at this week’s dinner. Each of them was unusually, indeed spectacularly good, the two others being some kind of fluffy pink cookie and a complex cheesecake that frankly, was the best I’ve ever eaten.  I don’t know if any of the 14 people present had less than three desserts . . .

We started speculating. What if Sophia (on right in photo). . .

. . . and her Mom Eva started a bakery business together? What would that look like?

The rest of the food was “okay,” filled us up; the exception being, of course, Andreas’ famous pork dish that comes  from his Cypriot grandmother (he tells me its one of three dishes he knows how to fix).

Three new people graced our presence. Chris, standing up talking with Devin at the table, who is Eva’s new husband and his daughter Siah (sorry, didn’t have my camera when she I noticed her doing a quick backbend in a dark corner). Here, Sophia’s Mom Eva is in one white sweater, and her mom Wanda in the other white sweater.

The other new person, Camden, who found us at the ic.org site (Fellowship of Intentional Communities) —

Camden, on right, with big smile, talking with Andreas.

—  is a senior at IU majoring in Religious Studies. He and Devin, who also majored in Religious Studies, but 30 years ago and is now a poet, got into an immediate conversation. Turns out both of them are mostly interested in comparative religions. I asked, “What is one universal that they all hold in common?” Camden thought a moment, “Well, the idea of being good,” he said, and went on to mention several other qualities. A little while later, Devin found a thick book sitting on top of others in the living room, Homo Deus, by Yuval Halal Narari, and when he told me it’s about men becoming gods via AI and transhumanism, and that he was half-way through it at home, I shuddered, and declared that I would  not read this book.

Would much rather get back in communion with each other and the Earth herself. Plus push technology, and especially AI and transhumanism, into a back corner.

Camden, who hails from nearby Bedford, lives now with his granddad, and says his entire family — with many aunts, uncles, cousins, grandkids etc., all live within 25 miles of each other! That they not only get together for holidays, but many of them get together weekly. He says the ongoing presence of his family makes him feel “blessed.”

Meanwhile, Camden says he doesn’t have much to do in his final semester, and wants to join our work parties! Terrific! We’ve put him on the list.