Although I've forgotten many, here are the miracles I remember:
- Finding out, from someone who had lived there for a year, about Our Permaculture Farm (www.growpermaculture.com) on the very evening (June 2nd) after I found out I needed to move to a new place by the end of the month.
- Two classes that were scheduled the next two Saturdays, giving me a good introduction to the farm and its owners and fellow workers. (There were no other available classes until after I left!)
- The fact that they needed my help throughout the summer and let me work from 8:00 to 10:00 every morning, which is exactly what I had wished for because it was cooler in the mornings and then I could work noon to evening at my full-time research/writing job.
-The timing of moving in on Summer Solstice (June 20), and moving out 3 months later just before a full-time permanent worker came to take my place, which was just before the Autumn Equinox.
-Having use of a large yurt tent left with me by a friend, that I slept in every night, allowing me to hear the owls, crickets, frogs, and cicadas all night and the blackbirds and songbirds every morning.
-A comfy classroom with WiFi and air conditioner for other times, and a big kitchen in the big house to cook in.
- Attending the make-up final PDC (Permaculture Design Course) class and having one of the students tell me he was a dermatologist and could he look at the spot on my face? I said sure and he offered to remove a small unhealable wound I'd had on my face for over 11 years and stitch it up for free if I came down to his office in Ft. Myers, which I did, and he did!
(Cuban Green Anole lizard. Not my photo.)
- Having a bright green lizard flag me to a stop on my path and call my attention to a smaller green lizard who had gotten itself trapped inside a clear plastic sheet. When I bent down to unfold the plastic sheet, the larger lizard jumped on the rolled up plastic next to my hand to add its weight to help me unfold it and help its friend escape. Then it ran further down my path to thank me.
-Trying to meditate with a spider I let block one side of the entrance to my tent, and with other spiders around the property, and every time having a grasshopper appear to remind me that I am part of the mantid family of beings, not arachnid!
-Knowing my precious Pee and Poo was not going to waste down a drain but was making plants thrive in sandy soil.
(Row of cranberry hibiscus I transplanted when they were tiny. They really took off!)
(Only ate those pretty coleus leaves a couple times, as I found out they were planted for decoration only and are not considered to be for eating.)
-Going barefoot often and using the semi-outdoor shower and outdoor sink. Finding my way to my tent by moonlight or starlight every night.
-Movies with my fellow farmhands most Saturday nights, or banging on a metal drum with Jen while she played a flute, ukelele or Jews-harp, or having interesting conversations and joking around while we worked.
-Getting hands-on experience at mixing potting soil; planting seeds; propagating stems; installing mushroom plugs into logs; watering plants the right amount; composting with food scraps, chopped up vegetation, manure and wood chips; turning, hydrating, and covering the compost mix to speed up the process; making compost tea; “chop and drop” fertilizing with a machete; using pee and bio-char to fertilize; making compost tea; digging swales along contour lines; caring for hens; and many other useful farming insights I can’t remember at the moment but will when the right time comes!
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