the eye of the storm

....meet me in the garden

where spirit walks softly....
-drew dellinger
from the poem angels and ancestors

we are in crisis
whether the sun is shining or the rain is falling
the planet
is in drought
the oceans are rising
species are going extinct
at a crazy fast rate
people are kept busy and broke
time and money dictate our lives
we are out of touch with our own quiet voice
that's why we meet in the garden
and sit face to face in a circle
and we listen
on July 22 2009 we sat in HOPE garden and listened
we were the quiet in an ocean of noise
people were in motion
in and out of the circle
i call this our haywire circle
a tablesaw to the west
a tablesaw to the east
fire engines and sirens screaming hell fire a block away
helicopters sending in the distractions
i have been warned about you
dogs yelling
the circle was situated too close to the picnic table
mini burgers and carrot sticks were a hot commodity
Brianna told a story about finding the quiet in the midst of chaos
just as she spoke those words
the sirens were screaming
i started to compare this circle to the last
but this circle spoke of miracles
you and me
a grandmother's dreams about fish
that predict the birth of her grandchildren
miracles
this circle was the reminder that we are the anchor
in this time of fracture
in this time of disconnection
we are the quiet
be the quiet
in the storm that is raging around us
be the peace

arm in arm
shoulder to shoulder
knee to knee
in a circle we find peace
in a circle we find relief
join us in august to celebrate this shape
and celebrate art
and celebrate our stories
and celebrate the drum
quiet in numbers

paradigm shift

this was a moment of alignment
shawn setting audio and mics up at 4 pm
kai'enne and I arrived with food at 4:30pm
circle starts at five pm
i have no idea how many people are coming to the first circle in the garden
12, 15, 18, 20
people begin arriving
norman perrin storyteller extraordinaire arrives first
the sketch crowd shows up like a parade
bikes, dogs, pasta salad, voices, and spirit
we mix and mingle
snack on food
sue cohen and the gardeners from the sketch garden project
honour the circle with their first head of broccoli!
we all ate a piece and shared in the bounty of HOPE community garden
people are still arriving
we begin to form our circle at 5:30
there are about 18 of us filling out the circle
just as we begin to introduce the project and structure of the circle
POR AMOR with their youth from East Scarborough
march across the park towards
coming from the south 14 people strong
beautiful faces lit up with expectations, stories, poems, and fun
they traveled a long ways on the TTC to join the circle
a journey from the east and the north to the south and west
feet, bus, train, bus, feet
and back again.
braved it to the city
we make our circle bigger
30 people strong
spider medicine
microphones
new faces
old faces
we pass the spider stone and we introduce ourselves
we then stand up and play a game of passing a stone and clapping our hands
connecting ourselves and creating the circle
norman then graces us with his magical storytelling talents
he takes us around the world and back again
thailand, africa, canada, armenia, spiral garden, africa, thailand, india, canada
norman charmed us and filled us with the power to tell stories of our own
with his flutes and his spiralling way with words
he let stories tap him on the shoulder and demand that they be told
our circle was a feast
rich like dark chocolate and mountains of gold
but better and more life sustaining
like a heaping bowl of brown rice and steamed greens
kai'enne sang us a song of epic proportions
she tamed us and made wild with her harmonies and poetics
stories came to us from somalia through the centuries
stories about feathers and dreams, yellow birds and dancing lions, gurus and wise children
the drum was introduced
ten djembes from the back of tanika's car
women leading the circle and singing about community love
two gentlemen couldn't wrap their minds around this
their egos fighting the female heartbeat
claiming there was a power struggle in the circle
woman can't teach the drum
you need a drum chief one of them claimed....I'm a drum chief...get yourself a drum chief
the shifting paradigm
welcome to the new world order
Community Love
growing gardens, growing community
nourishing and nurturing
don't get me wrong the circle was supported and strong with quiet male energy
but we did witness full on the anger and fear of the male ego
because he wasn't in the driver's seat
both of these people stumbled upon the circle and joined in and tried to control the flow
but we were there to listen and to share
not to be dictated too or preached too
the paradigm shift is happening in your parks and out your front door
we are sitting in circle and we are linking arms and tales and tails
and we are growing strong through spider medicine
through community love
with food
with stories
with song
with drums
with flutes
with you
with me

a walk in the park with Andrew McMartin from the PINE project

on june 29 eight of us walked in high park
spending time with our beloved
the earth
we braved the thunder and the rain
and we found ourselves in a fragrant green alive sanctuary
we thanked ourselves for taking ourselves from the couch to garden
We made music with Japanese knotweed
wind pipes
we stung ourselves with stinging nettle and cured the sting with burdock
they grow side by side
nature is so smart
sting nettle has a bad rap
it is delicious in omelets...be sure to blanch it before eating
drop the leaves in boiling water to take away the stingers
it makes a great tea
it can sooth your aching arthritis
it can do more
i am still learning
we tasted burdock
too bitter for most
but the baby loved it
she hasn't been spoiled by sugar
we counted ten baby wood ducks
so small and light they could sit on lily pads
a swan wanted bread
a swan on her nest
we hope her eggs are still incubating
we were shown a secret redwood tree growing by the pond
brought here from the west
watch out!
loads of poison ivy in the park
but growing right next door is jewel weed
the antidote
nature is so smart
evolved
before eating anything in the park make sure you can identify the plant in three ways
by the leaves
the shape of the stock
the way the leaves grow out of the stock
the veins in the leaves
the flowers! this can be the best way to identify a plant
be aware many plants have a twin that often aren't edible
there are walks like these happening in the park
take advantage of the fun
and take yourself for a walk
spend time with your beloved
fall in love
you are a genius at falling in love
for more nature love check out
http://www.pineproject.org/
http://www.highpark.org/nature.htm