Compost Faeries

This week has been wonderful thus far. Monday was GD and myself, Leaf, Jake and Hannah led the beginning of class including attunement, warm-up, check in and a discussion on our learning goals and how they relate to GD. It went well although I ended up leading a lot more than I had originally hoped I would. I led the warm up(acorn, acorn, TREE!) and then also started us on our discussion. The whole thing went fairly well, and Mary complimented me on how much initiative I took even though I've said in the past that I tend to be more of a listener and a follower in groups. I guess different things often emerge when I'm put into a leadership role. The process was a little frustrating for me as some of the other members of the group just wanted to wing it. But I expressed that and then ended up taking it from there. And the others followed me! I think we worked together well and ended up with a nice, fun discussion with a playful element added to a subject we're all tired of speaking on.

After tea, we discussed the difference between what we notice about people, what we imagine about people and the feelings that brings up. It's really interesting way to look at judgments we make about people and situations. I imagined something about another student that reflected how I would feel if I was sitting the way she was at the time, and it was a completely different experience for her. Try this exercise, I am very aware of my noticings vs my imaginings. We continued to work with this idea of double signals, body language, tone of voice, gestures, etc. as an awareness of what we're trying to say, or avoiding saying. I tend to talk with my hands a lot and sometimes have trouble making eye contact, especially when I don't know what to say.

After lunch was work in Cullerne. I turned compost! So much fun. I got a chance to talk to Emily about spirituality vs. secular thinking and since we come from very different perspectives(although we both grew up in UU churches...she's a Ferry Beach kid, while I went to Rowe), it was really informative and has helped me think about how I can explain the spiritual leanings I've been having, more strongly especially since I got to Findhorn.


Monday night we had off, but it was Jonathan's birthday and there was a bbq in the field outside our bungalow. Lots of people and some men playing penny whistles....I miss John Kirk's classes and want a penny whistle to play with here...and my music. There was food and cake and a fire and it was wonderful.

This morning we had WorldCon with David. We talked about consciousness and worldviews...what are they, how they're created. We talked about spirituality vs. consciousness, and spirituality vs. religion. This is all helpful for this conversation about spirituality I'm finding myself in. We did an exercise where we looked through our lives to find where our worldviews were born, how they came into being and what has contributed thus far. While taking notes at the end of the exercise(it was a meditation more or less), I found myself writing down the names of people who have had a huge influence on my life. There is a large number of you and I think about your guys in how my worldviews has been shaped more than the events of my life, although those have definitely contributed as well.

Lunch was a very fun part of my day. Each FCS student has a community mentor, or faerie as some of us have been calling them. I finally sat down with mine today! Her name is Lucy and she works with the youth at the Foundation. She is trained as a state school teacher(public school for those of you in America...), and is currently teaching at the playhouse(in the park--afterschool sort of program I guess), and is trying to start a program for 16-24 year olds outside of the community to learn about Findhorn and themselves as well. She and I are very well matched. We both love to dance, and I felt immediately as ease with her. She mirrors me well and I think I can gain a lot of insight from her. It's her first time being a FCS faerie. We went for a walk after lunch and talked some more before I had to get ready to go up to Cullerne for LES. Today I planted out seedlings into one of the tunnels..the one called Finclair, I believe. We planted lettuce, spinach and chinese cabbage I think. Delicious.

Tonight has been planning for tomorrow's Faerie bbq--teachers will be there as well, and writing a paper for my creativity class. Tomorrow we're dancing the Five Rhythms in the morning and then doing theory in the afternoon.

Until then....