Moongazy

Time seems to fly by so fast between posts.  I come up with an idea that I want to explore and there never seems to be enough time to write it all down.  I didn’t realise it was a month ago that I wrote about the ‘Wild Ones’.

I went to an amazing workshop on the Sacred Feminine and was able to explore a lot of the strong female heritage that I come from.  Sometimes I spend so much time looking outside for answers and directions that I ignore what is a part of me and the most important.  My mother was one of 5 sisters, all of whom were women who lived through difficult times and coped well.  Her mother came to England to make a new life after the first world war with an injured husband and unable to speak English.  They all gave me a lot of love when I was growing up.  It wasn’t perfect,  I couldn’t step out of line as there seemed to be a Mafia network all over the city that reported back anything that I got up to and those memories of my life kept the actual strength and resiliance that I inherited from being appreciated.  Now I can look back and be proud of them all.

Life seems to be taken up with family and other committments, as it is for most people.  I have indulged my ‘wild one’ with visits to the beach and long moments in the garden enjoying the bird song and the beautiful sky.  Last night the moon was very clear and magical.  Part of me would like to live in a cabin in the woods and the practical side knows that I probably couldn’t afford it!!  So I try to bring nature closer wherever I am. 

There is a lot of opportunity to enjoy it in the city, from flowers and herbs in a window box to a large park or allotment.  Walking down a suburban street and looking over the walls at the varied gardens can be a pleasure.  This week I am looking forward to visiting the ‘Diggin It’ project, which aims to bring vegetable growing and the delights of gardening to the local community. www.digginit.org.uk  They are having an open day with talks and tours of the area.  I hope to get more ideas from their permaculture information and probably a chance to buy some very nice organic vegetables.  Later in the day our local LETS (Local Exchange Trading System) is having a meeting to discuss joining with a ’swap’ group to exchange unwanted items at our regular markets.  We were beginning to get into a rut of just sitting and drinking tea with no trading going on so this might inject some much needed enthusiasum. 

The ideas of becoming more self sufficient and wasting less are beginning to take hold in our communities.  It is a slow process which may be accelerated by the present economic crisis.  An interesting website to help people with practical ideas has been set up by a family trying to produce less stuff going to landfill - It is worth a look http://myzerowaste.com/2008/09/decluttering-zero-waste-style/ 

Well I must close.  I have some shelves that have been donated to the centre that need cleaning.  More movement of unwanted objects to needy places!