Category Archives: Village

PHOTOS Green Acres Village: Equinox Ceremony and Celebration!

By 1 commentVillage

And yes, our celebration was two days late, the actual Spring Equinox (when day and night are of equal length, day ascending) occurred on Monday, March 20.

We started an hour earlier than usual. Actually, we started earlier than that, when Helen, a newcomer and new permaculture graduate, arrived 20 minutes early, closely followed by maybe a dozen other people, many of whom are first-timers! All together there were upwards of 40 people participating in last night’s celebration,

including around ten children from two to sixteen, and a number of folks from other neighborhood associations, two of whom had come to our Green Acres Village presentation at the local library on February 7. (BTW: podmate Logan has now established a youtube channel for GAV, so that show will soon be up there.)

Before dinner, we trouped over to the new (third, still empty) house and sat in a circle on the beautiful big new/old oriental rug that housemate Brie had purchased from Good Will and then hauled home (on foot!). Village member Mariella presided over the ceremony, introducing us to the way Andean villagers in her native Peru honor the Earth and her gifts at Spring Equinox. Each of us made a tiny bundle with various Earth offerings (seeds, shells, leaves, twigs), all of which represent her gifts that we actually hold inside us. Our instructions are to either burn or bury our bundle. I’m going to bury mine, and so savor  its slow decomposition. I do need to balance my usual tendency to burn, fast, through any encounter with the wild, the divine or the mundane!

I took no pictures during this wonderful ceremony that felt spirited, joyful, and marvelously energizing.

Meanwhile, the kids were all over the place, inside and outside, playing the way wild children do, with both abandon and full expression. So wonderful, to have children drum up Earth’s new spring energy for us older folks who tend towards stasis, habits, routines . . . all good, and all needing their own kind of balance.

Remember, a meditation on balance is key at the Equinox. Let us learn to balance and integrate the two poles of all oppositions, starting with day and night.

The food was, as usual, extraordinary —

— including two curries with rice, all sorts of veggies and chicken, and, the piece de resistance: persimmon pudding, with lemon sauce and whipped cream, “The way my grandma used to make it!” says Sydney, who came to us again, after a long absence. Here she is with my son Colin, of the Garden Tower Project, who attended for the very first time. (Also, he was here to pick up puppy Shadow during my coming four-day trip to Madison Wisconsin.)

I discovered that Sydney and Colin are old friends. Had no idea! Wonder what they talked about.

Onwards!

 

 

 

 

 

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Mid-March Photo Essay: Community Dinner — plus acrobatics!

By Uncategorized, Village

You just never know what will go on at one of our Wednesday Community Dinners. This past Wednesday, we enjoyed a more intimate dinner, during which a number of females got together talk about, guess what? RELATIONSHIPS with men. I noticed that the men present tended to congregate in the other room! Wow just like dinners in old-fashioned social settings, where after dinner the men retired to the den to smoke cigars and the women to the kitchen to gossip and do dishes. Well, in this case, everybody does dishes, nobody smokes cigars, and I’d like to think our talk was a bit more elevated than “gossip.” More like “consciousness-raising,” what we newly self-ordained feminists used to do in the late ’60s. Helping each other understand our processes as we go through various experiences.

One pic from the table. Sorry, my hand tremor sometimes produces out-of-focus pics!

Next, while the adults were eating, Mariella’s youngsters Asiri and her brother Juakim were preparing a performance in the room west of the kitchen (the men were in the room east). Finally, Asiri told me to get the adults in there in five minutes. Okay.

So here goes. First, the kids show off, then the adults. Who woulda thunk it?

 

In case you can’t tell, Asiri is driving Juakim forward, holding on to his legs.

Next, Asiri rides on top of Juakim . . .

Then their mom, Mariella, decided she’d hunker down on her hands and arms . . .

Hard to tell what’s happening here, either. Sorry! But it inspired Juakim to do it too.

Well, then, it really got wild. First Briana . . .

Then yours truly, who aspired to a cartwheel . . .

Then Aron. Wow!

And finally, Dan, a Virgo, and the only acrobat to exhibit perfect form, despite puppy Shadow trying to lick his face.

 

 

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Sufis celebrate “Green Living” in Green Acres Village

By 1 commentUrban Farm, Village

My Sufi mentor, Darvesha MacDonald, asked me to contribute a story about our Green Acres Village to the launch of a beautiful new web magazine, Ruhaniat Ziraat. This publication is devoted to celebrating and exploring the Sufi founder’s profound understanding that Nature is our Teacher.

As Above, So BELOW

The Evolution of an Experiment in Grounded Community

BTW, in case you were wondering: I call myself a “Bufi,” i.e., one who gravitates towards both Buddhism and Sufism — as well as Gnostic Christianity, plus Native American, Pagan and other aboriginal practices. — A.K.

 

 

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Community Life, February 7-9, 2017: Village Event at Public Library, Community Dinner with fancy clothes, making mead!

By 1 commentUrban Farm, Village

This week was jammed packed with community events.

February 7

First and foremost, on Tuesday, for a very receptive audience of 40-45 people, our Evolution of Green Acres Village PP presentation with my commentary plus Q&A  at the public library auditorium downtown. Unfortunately, we forgot to take pics of the presentation itself, but here’s one of the Q&A afterwards.

That’s Jelene, on the left, a neighbor from Eastgate Lane who has held several spring Green Acres plant shares in years past and attends our Community Dinners, plus Green Acres villagers Brie and Ari, Kat (who used to live here), and Rebecca.

The entire presentation was filmed by CATS (Community Access Television), and I need to fill out a form and pay $10 to request a digital copy or DVD. Then it will take about a week. Meanwhile, I am so grateful for this city service that films not only government meetings, but community events!

February 8

Our regular Wednesday evening Community Dinner —

— attracted about two dozen people, three of whom I have never met before. Two were dressed extravagantly!

Here’s Joe, who says he’s in Bloomington to help spread peace, with meditation, chanting and Kirtan. Would have liked to talk with him longer. Hope he returns next week!

And here’s Sarah, whose coat I told her I wanted to steal. She’s Kat’s friend, and is very knowledgeable about herbs.

February 9:

Yesterday evening Dan, our resident alchemist, decided to start the process of fermenting the mead (honey wine), taking up a collection from all the villagers for two half gallons of local honey ($67) to get it going. With Ari stirring, Dan gradually poured the honey onto the fruit (apples and pears). This “primary fermentation” will take about two weeks, he says, until the mold covers the fruit enough and the bubbling dies down. Then comes the second fermentation process, where he decants it into a giant glass jar, and it sits for at least six months. Homemade Mead Party for Halloween?

Logan’s guitar songs wound into the stirring.

Darn! Forgot to take pictures of the clean-up party for the Overhill back yard this morning, and the compost forking this afternoon.

 

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