Ah, Fall Equinox, Bittersweet Friend

The last day of 2010 summer washed away here at Walker Creek. Rain, rain and - more rain. Our monthly Community Meeting rolls around at 7pm. We each trod in, heavy sodden steps - our boots, our souls. The weight of a thousand wet dark nights presses down on us. Warmed by the fire, the air lightens slightly after sharing a hot pan of cashew ginger fried rice and a bowl of sunshine-y organic peaches.

Fall is a time when the land at Walker Creek shines brightest - the greens at their most vibrant, the air at its most fresh. The dying copper salmon are on their return.

And still - we leave behind us a sweet summer - two celebrations on the land: Joe & Miyabi's wedding celebration, and the 2nd Annual 4th of July Wingding at the Sunshine House; neighboring Majawood's music fest; and each of us making more music and roadtrips and outdoor adventures -- Meltdown, Country Faire, Burning Man. Oregon. Idaho. Montana.

Adieu, long bright days of summer.

Hello, darkness, our old friend.

Food for Thought

I like NICA's spring conference 2010 theme:

“FOOD AS CELEBRATION: how food helps build community.”

* Share a happy memory around food
* How does food create a sense of community for you?
* Do you have a ritual around food?
* How does food nourish your Spirit?

I'm a sucker for these prompt questions and would love to hear about food and you in community.

Sheet Mulching Our Berries

Sheet mulching with actual sheets makes me giggle. Plus, it's brilliantly easier than piecing together cardboard for odd-shaped areas. Here, raspberries are bedded down with torn old sheets and await a topping of sawdust. Last summer, our 13 blueberry bushes in the back orchard got the royal sheet mulch treatment (comfrey + manure + old fabric + straw).

Sticks and Stones

... and mud and water is about all the kids need at Walker Creek (besides each other :)

A stretch of summer-like days last week prompted some serious fun in warm mud of our garden.

Easter Sweets

Frosting easter-shaped sugar cookies at The Sunshine House today.

New Noah piling it on thick. Dayna decorated the psychedelic tulip. Hannon, old Noah, and Caleb already outside chowing on their frosting-mounded goodness, breathing in the crisp spring day.

Celebrations at the community for Easter will be quiet this year. Lots of folks away and busy. As a newbie, I've only heard that usually Easter is a lovely community celebration here, complete with egg hunts and gathering to feast on leg of lamb a la Karma. Here's to spring and budding plants, which will emerge from the cold ground regardless, hallelujah!!!

Communication = Community?

Listening to my mom describe the odd dynamics of her new tennis team... how some people "get" information first, say, when an announcement is made. And some people already knew the news. And some people didn't yet. And it's often the same division of people. Makes for the "others" late in knowing to feel like, well, others. And makes me wonder: does communication make a community?

In the example of her tennis team, it does. It's simple: the experience of being on the outs makes you feel as if you aren't a part of the group.

I've been a part of many groups and teams, yet haven't belonged to many "official" communities. So I don't know. Can community cohesion be boiled down to something as simple (and as complex) as "communication flow"?

Our community at Walker Creek can sometimes have choppy communication lines at best. And, mostly, it works anyhow. And, mostly, it suits people's busy lifestyles and preferences for "flow" rather than "rules." And - I still find it an interesting question to consider.

Teresa's post on the Evergreen Land Trust blog about "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" intrigued me: the first and foremost trigger dysfunction being Lack of Trust. http://evergreenlandtrust.blogspot.com/2009/03/looking-towards-building-strong-elt.html

I could easily argue that crappy communication is a major contributor to lack of trust. How can you trust your team if you're not sure you're getting the correct information? Or, that you're being included in whatever process in occuring in the community? My mother's tennnis team situation is an interesting petri dish for the theory. My guess is she's going to be jumping to another team soon.

P.S. I'm here for the long haul at Walker Creek.

A Proper Farewell to Elden Pemberton

Elden Pemberton, beloved father to Aviathar, is forever fishing in one of the creeks he loved. In a beautiful ceremony Thanksgiving Day '09, Cynthia, Aviathar, Jane, Paul, Hazel, Irene, Tessa, Marco, DJ, Teresa and many members of Walker Creek came together to send Elden down Walker Creek.

Even in his death Elden continued a lifetime of service by donating his body to the University of Washington for research. It was so like Elden. And now he is feeding the fishes.

We love you Elden. You are forever a sacred part of our creek, our land and our hearts.