http://www.plantsandhealers.com/ en Copyright 2008 Tue, 22 Jul 2008 20:00:17 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss July 24th -25th Wild Foods and Fermentation with Sandor Katz at the Ashevillage Institute, NCDetails at www.kleiwerks.org July 25th-27th Plants and Mushrooms with Ken Crouse Hot Springs, NCSome day spaces still available. Contact Elmer for details: 828-622-7206. July 28th Transition Culture Discussion circle in Hot Springs, NC 8:00 pm.Contact Elmer for details: 828-622-7206. If you would like to join us for dinner at 7:00 please let Elmer know. He has copies of the "Transition Handbook" by Rob Hopkins available. Come share and listen to views on local resilience and re-skilling ourselves. Now is the time to build community. August 1st-3rd 15th Summer Permaculture Gathering at Celo, NChttp://www.se-permaculture.tripod.com August 8th Embracing Your Plant Allies with Mary 10-3 outside AshevilleExact Location TBA. email marymorgaine@yahoo.com for details. August 8th Getting to know the Conifers 6:00-8:00 at the ASHH West Asheville. 2 Westwood Place; tel: 828-350-1221 www.HerbsHeal.com Bring a snack to share. Also, any cones, needles or branches of conifers around you. They are called the plants of a thousand uses. Conifers have many stories to tell. Come Listen and Share. Donations are always appreciated. Many Thanks for those who support me on the Green Path...]]> http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/07/schedule_for_summer_2008.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/07/schedule_for_summer_2008.html Journal Tue, 22 Jul 2008 20:00:17 +0000 The Dilemma of Global Starvation As Intellectual Abstraction The title of this essay may lead you to believe that I am discounting the knowledge of how many people starve to death each year. (nearly 3 million this year and counting. Check into some of our collective human vital statistics: www.lovearth.net/worldcounters.htm). I have been aware of this atrocity for many years. Stop for a moment and feel this. Someone starves to death every three seconds. There are so many paradoxes we live in this modern world including more than a quarter of the food reproduced in the US is wasted (96 billion pounds land-filled of the 356 billion pounds reproduced). Over a third of the UK’s food is thrown out! It is realizations like these that gradually shifted me from being the star of my own movie to “tuning in, turning on, and dropping out” as Timothy Leary advised. This I did fully in 1992 and for the next eight years searched to understand the appropriate path through life to walk. The feelings of human suffering still guide me as I live this life in service to Gaia. This essay is about the failings of trying to approach this condition of suffering through institutions and experts along with suggestions of other ways we might live more in harmony in the planet. http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/the_dilemma_of_global_starvati.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/the_dilemma_of_global_starvati.html Journal Sun, 20 Apr 2008 21:53:55 +0000 Sustainable Design Short Course Essay for MSc March 5, 2008 Permaculture as Sustainable Design Language plays many roles in this walk through life. You are now here in it, in this sentence, as you read through these symbols lifting meaning from the presence of the whole. (Bortoft) For language to flow we need to be at some level of agreement as to the meanings of the words. In the six months since beginning this MSc the call for a lexicon has been raised a number of times as we try to bring words into realms not often articulated in modern times. As humanity enters the post-modern era, we are working hard to test out new meanings to old words and occasionally whole new words. What resonates will last and change and grow along with the budding culture of Gaian awareness. “We can choose whether to remain in the narrow, objectivist mode of consciousness that has contributed to the crisis, or to act from a deeper, wider mode of consciousness in which we experience our unity with the whole of Gaia…” (Harding, pg 225) Let us simply look at the language for the title of this essay. During the three weeks of the Sustainable Design course these words have certainly been batted around, both propped up and taken down. Though our course was largely devoid of permaculture(PC) teachings (with the exception of Ana Cardona and my presentation on the topic one afternoon), a review of design literature does indicate that its philosophy is becoming known. In The Sustainable Revolution and Design for Sustainability time is taken to describe it history and some of its major tenants. Edwards further describes permaculture as an example of a “…biocentric approach to sustainability. Nature is at the center and humans depend on it…” (pg 122) In the three weeks we had seven teachers each giving their views on sustainable design as well as the 25 of us, students, putting forth thoughts and experiences around this topic. I grew a lot in my understanding of the culture of designers and the complexities of changing how we go about creating… http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/sustainable_design_short_cours.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/sustainable_design_short_cours.html Tue, 08 Apr 2008 16:07:20 +0000 I am really lucky to have Jessika Towle (jessikaht@msn.com) assisting this spring teaching time. If you have questions about the schedule below please don’t hesitate to contact her or me. New opportunities and changes will be posted on my website—check in occasionally: www.plantsandhealers.com. Generally speaking, I seek right-livelihood through donation so please give what you can and receive what you need. Hope to see you helping make one or more of these circles meaningful. Look forward to reconnecting with family and friends this spring! Frank http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/schedule_for_gatherings_april.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/schedule_for_gatherings_april.html Mon, 07 Apr 2008 03:12:06 +0000 Frank Cook Chrysalis 2 Essay December 20, 2007 This paper is in two sections linked by my love for Gaia. I hope you enjoy it. As Brian, voice of the ferns, often reminds us, “We are here to serve each other and to serve Gaia.” “If you are a poet, you will see clearly that there is a cloud floating in this sheet of paper. Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow; and without trees we cannot make paper. The cloud is essential for the paper to exist. If the cloud is not here, the sheet of paper cannot be here either.” -Thich Nhat Hanh in Satish Kumar’s You Are Therefore I Am Section 1 - A Phenomenological Inquiry into Ferns and Seaweeds In the first module Henri Bortoft and Craig Holdrege established the efficacy of using Goethe’s approach of phenomenological study. But it was in the second module that Brian Goodwin and Stephan Harding placed it in context for us. Brian describes phenomenology as a form of “exploratory orientation in which we are fully embedded in the experience”. Stephan took us on several phenomenological explorations, two of which were in the redwood forest. He described the Goethean approach as “seeing the whole in the parts.” We brushed aside the detritus and looked at life on the forest floor. Stephan referred to the other creatures we saw as our “brothers and sisters” as we kneeled there amazed at the abundance of life forms beneath our feet... http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/frank_cook_chrysalis_2_essay.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/04/frank_cook_chrysalis_2_essay.html Mon, 07 Apr 2008 03:06:15 +0000 Emerging Trends in Holistic Herbalism toward Integration of Traditional Medicines Human cultures are melding worldwide. This dissertation will explore the potential for integrated health systems to thrive within the rising world culture. The foundation of this work will be based on previous field research of traditional healing systems and a literature review. Conditions seem favorable for the emergence of systems of integrated medicine despite the potential ideological clashes between different healing philosophies. This growth is evidenced in the alternative healing and health food movements, the budding of modern herbalism and the creation of integrated health clinics in the western world. This work will point to some of the possibilities ahead as the cultures of the world continue to interact more deeply via the media, the internet, travel and consumerism. This project will start with a number of pilot interviews with eminent herbalist and plant researchers to identify the herbs most suitable for international recognition and the methods used to transform those herbs into medicine. From these interviews a questionnaire will be generated and this will form the basis of a survey of herbalists in Great Britain and the United States to gauge their awareness of these international herbs and the prevalence of them in their healing practices. Through previous and current research, phenomenological studies, interviews with herbal healers and a study of herbal medicine efficacy, it will be possible to better understand the direction of holistic herbalism in the post-modern age. Resources needed for this study include expenses for travel to different healers to conduct interviews as well as access to computer facilities and library materials. http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/03/dissertation_proposal.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/03/dissertation_proposal.html Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:32:04 +0000 January 2008 Hola Mi Familia y Amigos! I began this new year during my third visit to the tropics of Costa Rica. I taught at an herbal symposium attended by 30 people from all over the world. (See the www.artofunion.com for pictures and stories) During the four days of the symposium we went on daily plant walks learning the foods and medicines from forest and garden. One morning I awoke to find a freshly fallen giant sweet sop (Annonaceae) near the trail. It had broken open like humpty dumpty and we all enjoyed its custardy flavor. We ate salads full of wild greens including lots of hibiscus leaves. This is a land were dandelions are cultivated; where plantain is honored. We met a large number of Euphorbs eaten as food including: katuk, chaya, vining nut, yucca as well as medicines like sangre de drago. We ate lots of little cucumbers growing wild all over from the Sechium genus. Check the website in the near future for a complete plant listing. We welcomed the new year in a morning sweatlodge and spent the day in reflective silence. It was wonderful to have Mary joining me on this journey as well as a core group from previous years. After the symposium a group of us went to the Seelye’s Retreat Center up to 9,000 feet on Cerrro del Muerte (Mountain of Death) for 4 days in this special ecosystem. We walked among Podocarpuses thousands of years old with the jungle floor littered with fallen orchids. I had my mind blown open again by the wonders of this mountain land and this kind family. The last 10 days have included time at the beach and facilitating plant walks on permaculture lands in the region. We took a short trip to the Osa Pennisula to be with Toucans and Macaws in pristine forests. Talk has already begun of doing it again next year. Perhaps you will join us. When I look back into 2007 I feel a full sense of wonder at this unfolding life. I was blessed to have spent time with many of you dancing with the green beings. I was forever changed from my two months downunder in NZ and Australia last winter. Then I enjoyed a incredible spring in the East with one of the highlights being an earth day plant walk with my mentor James Duke in my parent’s neighborhood. Preliminary plans are coming together for another trip through the northeast in May. Any suggestions? Each year I am feed deeply by my summer gatherings with our tribes. Thank you for showing up in CA, Arkansas, NC and the other dozen states I was able to get to this year. I was honored to continue teaching at two stellar Herbal Schools—Appalachia School of Holistic Herbalism (www.herbsheal.com) and The Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine (www. chestnutherbs.com). If you feel ready to walk more deeply along the greenpath consider these schools as well as my alma mater in NY: The Northeast School of Herbal Medicine (www.7Song.com). Each has its unique offerings. In August I went through severe tests of fire as I prepared for returning to school for the first time in a dozen years. I passed the early tests (thanks to the help of many of you!) and spent the last four months of 2007 in Devonshire, England pursuing a Masters in Holistic Science at Schumacher College. That was the longest I stayed in one place in at least a dozen years! School met all my hopes and expectations with great teachers, a vibrant community, and adventure on many levels. As I prepare to leave the land of tropical fruit and pura vida, I look ahead to two weeks in California (We will be having plant circles on the 18th, 19th, and 25th—contact me if you want to know more) for time with my west coast family then back to school in England. My second tuition payment is due very soon. Many have come forward to help so far but I am still not there yet. I reach out to this magical circle and ask you to help me over this hurdle. I feel surrounded by allies and know that faith will pull me through. Read below for details of how you can help. Also I would love pictures and cards from you to enliven my simple room at school. I was so fed by those I received last semester! For 2008 I am excited to bring to you my new stories of Gaia, Holistic Science and Goethe’s ways of seeing. I very much look forward to our time of sharing. I will be hard at work on my MSc dissertation due at the end of August and also am steadily getting my revised editions of the plants and healers books ready for sharing. Well, that seems like enough for now. Please check out my new, improved book list on my website where you can order books you like. www.plantsandhealers.com. Thank you, Barry! My wish for you in this balancing year of 2008 is that the old ways not serving us continue to fall away so that we can embrace a new world rising. Goodbye Piscean Age. Hello Aquarian Age. Feel it! Don’t get stuck in the last era. Adapt and Evolve! See you along the path! Love and Light, Frank Address at School: Frank Cook c/o Schumacher College The Old Postern Dartington, Devonshire TQ9 6EA United Kingdom Tuition Assistance Appreciated Please help as best you can. If you have thought about helping out, now is the time. If money is something you feel is a scarcity for you, than offer what you feel abundant in. Offer prayers for this to come about. I need your help in whatever way you can give it. I am open to one person coming forward with the full amount needed and I am open to 1000 people giving $15 each. However it can come about. Please look inside and see what you can share. There are several ways this energy can get to me: 1) You can send it directly to the school—ask me how. 2) You can pay it to my paypal account: green@plantsandhealers.com or 3) You can send it to my parents who will deposit it in my account. Their address is: Kaye and Frank Cook 6108 Welborn Drive Bethesda MD 20816 Thank you for taking the time to read this. Please share so that I can continue to do my work for Gaia. Love to you, Frank http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/02/winter_2008_mailing.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2008/02/winter_2008_mailing.html Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:54:08 +0000 Meeting Thomas Berry Though I have heard of Thomas Berry over the years, I realized some time back that I had often confused Thomas Berry and Wendell Berry when seeing quotes along the way. My good friend Jeanie Martin helped clarify their uniqueness when I asked her how she thought each author would summarize in one sentence his central purpose. She felt Wendell Berry would say “Stay at home, live a sustainable life and get out of the death culture.” Thomas Berry would say, “Discover your dream and life purpose and live fully into it.” In the last few years I have had the privilege of getting to know a number of people who are close to Thomas Berry and more and more it seemed important that I have some time with him as I feel I am embodying many of his messages in my life walk and teachings. Fortunately the opportunity came for me to spend an evening with him this last summer. Here is what I can recall from our time… Tim and I arrived at the Green Tavern and were escorted through the busy restaurant to a booth in which sat Thomas Berry back in a corner in a suit that had grown a bit too big. I could see the dustbowl, fields of corn and his many decades of living woven into his presence. Across from him sat the dynamic Carolyn filling him with all sorts of loving energy. While Tim showed Thomas family pictures, Carolyn and I caught up, excited to be sharing this experience together. Thomas held the elder spot at 92 and that brought out the youth in all of us. I noticed immediately how his eyes sparkle when you catch them. His southern drawl warmed me but I had to tune into it, finding it soft and distant at first like a breeze stirring up leaves. But once my ear found his tune I heard his song loud and clear. Carolyn set the vibe nicely sharing an account by the author of “Last Child in the Woods” on meeting with Thomas. Then Thomas asked me what I spend my time doing. As I began to answer the waitress made her presence known and took our orders. Tim shared with Thomas his perspective of who I am and my work. We talked of plants some and the theme of showing people how to truly “see” came up the first of several times that evening. I spoke of my time with the San (bushmen) in Namibia and Botswana and their being our oldest human relatives (They could be legally hunted until the late 1950’s!!). As I shared my stories Thomas asked repeatedly if I had written down my experiences. I let him know this is an important part of my work (as hard as it is to do!) Tim and Carolyn expressed how I needed to have someone with me recording my experiences for the world. (Any volunteers?) One of Thomas’ main points was that we had to stop living in the 20th century and open up to the 21st century. This involves fundamental shifts in all aspects of our human culture. We need to consider the Gaia macrocosm not just the human microcosm. This has been spurred on by the astronomical growth in human population and economics. He commented that there were 1 billion people in 1540, 2 Billion in 1920, 3 Billion in 1960 and now (2005) over 6.5 Billion. He said the economic system has grown at six times that rate! These huge pressures on the environment are bringing an end to the Cenozoic era. We pondered whether we would perish or awaken to a new Ecozoic era by reconnecting with nature? He seemed hopeful. This is all explained in his cornerstone book of the Ecozoic era, “The Great Work.” Thomas mentioned how important it is to give names to things. He recalled how hard it was to remember his nature experiences as a young child when he did not know the names of the plants. He shared how, when he had become a boy scout and learned the name “oak” for the tree he had known his whole life, the world of the oaks in all their diversity and detail opened up so much more. He could then remember the details of the forest through their names and share his experiences with others. He recounted an article he had written long ago called “Goldenrod”. He seemed to have a great love for nature! He asked me where I was going next and I shared with him that I would soon be returning to Africa to go deeper with the plants and peoples there. Our conversations were broken by the frequent appearance of waiters, but we held the focus well knowing the sacredness of our time together. We had a number of rounds of good, heartfelt laughter. And though the restaurant got louder as the dinnertime peaked, Thomas too seemed to become louder and more animated. He spoke of how thousands of years ago China was divided by fifteen warring factions. One soldier from one of the factions was late for his duty as a sentry. The consequence of this was to be put to death. Rather than meet that fate, he led a rebellion that ignited the support of the common people. He was so successful that all of China was united and has stayed so to this day. Unfortunately this man was not a good leader in times of peace and was soon overthrown. Thomas indicated that a good revolutionary does not necessarily make a good leader. Somehow the hours flew by. Our meal disappeared and became dessert and then this too was finished and it was time for us to go our own ways. We all rose together from the booth and Thomas gave me a hug and placed his hand on my head in a sort of a blessing (after all he is a priest) and let me know beyond words that I was on the right path. I will always carry that time with me. And as much as I enjoy his writing and the enthusiasm people have for the torch he has lit, I will most remember the gleam in his eyes and the assuring smile on his face as a man who has seen into the future and knows everything is going to be alright. FCC Postscript: Where to go from here? I read through “The Great Work” carefully while traveling through Africa recently and feel it does a wonderful job giving an overview of our current condition. So what to do with it? I think it is important to not abstract on it too much but to get the opportunity it presents out to as many people as possible and apply it to our lives. I propose that we inspire a group of people to read through the “The Great Work” together and every couple of weeks on the computer share our impressions of each chapter. I propose the focus be how we are bringing Thomas’s words into our lives and into the community around us. How many of you are willing to help focalize this with me and bring other people into the discussion over the year? Please let me know your thoughts on this. Love and Light, Frank http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/11/an_evening_with_thomas_berry.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/11/an_evening_with_thomas_berry.html Journal Mon, 12 Nov 2007 22:42:55 +0000 Blessing to you this Autumn my Family and Friends, My last letter to this circle was in late June and so much has happened since then—oh my! I am now in England and well into my pursuit of a Masters in Holistic Science. For those of you interested in knowing more about Schumacher College check out (www.schumachercollege.org). There are a number of amazing classes planned for 2008 so far including one called “The Soul of Science” in June with an inspiring teacher, Rupert Sheldrake. On my website I have listed the reasons I came to Schumacher and soon I will list my first essay (www.plantsandhealers.com). Wow, that was quite a full summer! I saw many of you along the way and it already seems a while back. The flow of life these days is swift and a lot is being asked of us. It is good to reflect but not dwell on our memories. Looking back I enjoyed my return to NM to intersect with Joseph and go on a plant walk with his fellow ayurvedic students. Then on to a wonderful rainbow gathering in the Ozarks where I was able to connect with some old family and feel a real sense of evolution happening. We had a Greenpath camp teaching all sorts of thrival skills. Amazing! From there I zoomed back to the west and teamed up with Sandor and Orchid and taught in some wonderful places around Oregon. Then back to sacred Appalachia for some memorable workshops including teaching with Ken Crouse in Hot Springs, with Mary Morgaine in the forest, and attending the Permaculture Gathering. I am missing that family connection but have faith we will have opportunities to lift the energy together in 2008. From mid-August on I was focused on the manifestation of this educational experience I am now engaged in. Through lots of councils, prayers and patience the doors opened and I was able to live into my visions of being here. I am feeling a lot of bliss. Recently I finished my seventh year of facilitating a journey through “Botany in a Day.” If you or some one you knows wants to join in for the eighth year starting in May, 2008, just send an email to planttalk2008@yahoo.com. At the core of our Holistic Science program is the premise that Western Science is not wrong but limited and needs to re-embrace the wide variety of stories of Nature. We have spent time reviewing some of the theories central to Holistic Science—Chaos Theory, Gaia Theory, Quantum Theory, and the various Complexity Theories. These concepts are balanced by the practical application of participating within Nature through Goethean Science. You can perhaps get a better perspective of this by reading my paper or visiting the school website. One of the revelations that stays with me which I would like to share with you is the illusion that we are somehow not a part of Nature. As the caretaker of the gardens here, Justin, so succinctly points out with the analogy of a person sitting in his/her home drinking. Once inebriated, rising from the table declaring it was time to go home. We are HOME! Now is the time for being responsible. Though studies are an important part of why I am here, they are only a part of it. I have engaged the transformation of this community into a sustainable experience through various plant projects such as a plant inventory, harvesting and teaching about fermentation and plant allies. I am also working daily on editing my previous Plants and Healing Systems books to bring them into the present. The number of amazing people and opportunities around here can be overwhelming. I check in with myself daily to stay centered and focused. I would love to receive letters and cards from you to decorate my room walls and to be reminded of my greater work. My address is below. Thank you for reading this. I leave here in December and after a visit with my blood family I head off to my third trip to Costa Rica Dec 28-Jan 12. I would be delighted to share this experience with you. If you are interested in knowing more please visit the website of the organizers at www.artofunion.com. I cannot think of a better way to bring in the new year! I am so thankful to all of you who sent energy my way these past few months. I was able to make the first payment to the school. The course I am teaching here will help some to pay the final payment due in January and accompanying expenses. This amount is around $14,000. Please share as you are able. Contributions can be sent to my parents (Frank Cook c/o Kaye and Frank Cook 6108 Welborn Drive Bethesda MD 20816) who will deposit it in my account or through paypal (my account is green@plantsandhealers.com). Every little bit helps. I appreciate your prayers in helping me to manifest this vision. Many Blessing to you! I will write again before winter comes. What new plants have you met? How much wild food are you eating? Tonight we ate pizza of nettle-acorn pesto topped with honey mushrooms, et al. A salad with many garden friends. Wonderful to feel their energy becoming my energy. Praise to them and to you. Love and Light, Frank Mailing Address: Frank Cook c/o Schumacher College The Old Postern Dartington, Devonshire TQ9 6EA United Kingdom http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/10/autumn_2007_letter_from_englan.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/10/autumn_2007_letter_from_englan.html Journal Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:05:45 +0000 Frank Cook Holistic Science Chrysalis One Essay October 9, 2007 Intuitive Building inner images to the point they come alive in my imagination is essential to my work and links me to the unfolding Collective (un)Conscious (Akashic Records). Within me mysteries and realizations dance about that have not been received through the tangible senses. Through practicing Goethean Techniques I am opening to the living expressions of a Leaf At one level it is wholeness unto itself, at another it is part of a greater whole There are the crude (and at the same moment wonder-filled) aspects of the leaf blowing in the breeze, each unique, yet, staying within the parameters of all the leaves that make up the character of the plant. Leaves are Transformers of light into sugars. Before me I T S C O M P O U N D L E A F …is made up of leaflets, each coming off a central stem Ladder a climbing Botanists have made a whole new language to describe the leaf—its shape its texture its means of attachment. These terms are the bane of most students having to memorize them. They are also beautiful eulogies, poetic attempts to tell us who we are meeting. My leaf is Pinnately compound w/ eleven glabrous, lanceolate, serrated leaf- let s. Organ-izing seems a lot like Goethe’s view that we need to build an organ of perception. A leaf is a finger. We are young trees. Anthropomorphism or Anthropodenial? They (we) are intimately connected through a fat, bud-studded Stem to the whole plant. Leaves grew from the stems. There is a bone-like quality to this branch I have found on the ground. I thought I would need to look up to see a branch and now I see I only need to look down. That seems to be at the core of what I am being taught here. We can make plans but they must be adaptable to the process that unfolds as the journey is undertaken. I am being taught the dance of thinking/experiencing. Thinking is balanced by other modes of perception. For instance, acknowledging the scientific validity of feeling the bone-like qualities of this branch. I take time to observe (simply that). I see knobby leaf scars opposite each other at the leaf node. The branch terminates with a meristematic bud filled with potential to express itself as petiole, leaflet, branch, pedicel, or flower depending on the needs of the moment. I notice there are different lengths of stem between nodes. “Why?” I wonder. Each length tells a story about the year it lived. I know the age of this fallen branch if I know it only puts out one set of leaves a year. Does it? I leave the answer to another day. Perhaps this, too, will be revealed to me with enough reflection. The stems channel together into bigger branched energetic streams to be Tree The first plants of my inner garden were trees. They are so clearly our elders. With this tree I sit in a good spot for observation and reflection. My brain downloads what it knows about this genus from previous experiences, stories and book knowledge. The knowledge that was so intensely pursued categorizing the world is now available almost instantaneously via computer. Now what? What does that accumulation of observation and categorization mean to us? What were the visions of those who came before us? Perhaps the tree can tell me if I slowdown enough to listen. And along with these thoughts I notice beautiful reflections of the late day sunlight filtering through. These words, formed with care and love for the tree being, do not fully capture its wholeness, nor its place in the larger whole of Gaia. For this we need symbol and allusion, prompting the mind to release its grip on stable thought and to jump off the cliff into Poetry… Ode to Ode to Ash Trees Ode to Waving in wind or still beneath sky Firmly rooted in myco-earth Yes, firm yet, feminine Keeping my faith in dappled lichen dress, sensuous reaching limbs The forest loves you so much Animals come and play with you. Matronly pigeon landing, not gracefully, on you. Fly boldly through your outer compounds. Scurrying squirrels Running between you and masculine oak neighbors Who are you, Fraxinus, cousin to the olive tree? Who are you through/to us? Your oneness clearly unfolding We come for insights sitting below Wondering/Knowing Content with these words. Above all, feeling Awe AHMEN Reflective Stephan Harding formed our chrysalis by defining holistic science with Jung’s four ways humans relate to the world: Thinking/Feeling and Sensing/Intuiting. He defined these and compared practitioners of western science with those of holistic science in terms of those four ways. He encouraged us to pursue a balance to these areas and that the zone within the whole of them was “real grace” and a “revelation”. Brian Goodwin introduced a number of concepts to us. He described Chaos Theory as a form of magic, wonderfully illustrated in the example of weather patterns. He encouraged us to maintain a respect for western science and to learn its lexicon. Their tools give us a limited meaning and are part of a greater whole. There is a dance of the ethos and logos going on best represented in storytelling. We reviewed the hermeneutic approach to understanding. Brian shared how Hermes is the god of interpretation. Through hermeneutics we can learn the languages of Nature. Our second chrysalis will focus on the wisdom and knowledge of the Living Earth thr0ugh the stories of Brian and Stephan. Henri Bortoft, historian, physicist and philosopher was our teacher the rest of the week. His main focus was to massage our brains and present another perspective on some of the foundation figures in western science. The first area of focus was on part/whole relations. We have been lulled into relying on our physical senses to identify “reality” for us. This form of habitual thinking is actually downstream of the dynamic living beingness of life. He illustrated this well with a story of sitting along a river and seeing the water flow by. With his inner eye he could imagine the source of the river flowing out and along its course eventually getting to him and then flowing on. Applying this to living organisms we see there is a dynamic state of unfolding that precedes our awareness of it. People have been taught to believe that the whole comes from assembling the parts. This normal way (the counterfeit whole) of thinking cheats us from truly feeling the presence of an authentic whole. The authentic whole has a presence. I am reminded of a passage out of Robert Pirsig’s classic “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” in which he describes the dismantling of a motorcycle into its separate parts and then reassembling it again. He explores how a running motorcycle is more than the sum of its parts; there is a synergy from these combined parts that allows the motorcycle to run and maneuver about. This is even more apparent in living beings. Henri described how Goethe provided a way through gentle empiricism to participate in the wisdom of Nature. This is achieved by developing a receptive mode of observation that is “non-verbal, holistic, non-linear, and intuitive.” (pg 291) Henri writes that this approach “emphasizes the sensory and perceptual instead of the rational…it is based on taking in rather than manipulating, the environment.” (pg 291) Within life the part carries with it the whole. The more parts present, the more the presence of the whole can be felt Through Henri’s telling of history, I developed a deeper understanding as to why Goethe was so discouraged to read Newton’s description of color. Newton’s approach was to convert the unique qualities of each color into uniform mathematical “equivalents” and then to leave color behind and go on to manipulate these quantities into his theory. As Henri writes, “something that can be measured replaced the phenomenon of color, and in this way color as color was eliminated from the scientific account of the world.” (pg 293 ) The introduction of logic to scientific inquiry in the 1700’s created a distinction between qualities that can be quantified and those that cannot. This led to the exclusion of these latter qualities and a deadening of dynamic being into lifeless objects described by abstract concepts. Henri helped us to see that the scientific history we have been told is very skewed and limited. He recommended whenever possible returning to the primary texts of the scientists and trying to get a sense of the work in its historical context. He credited Goethe as being the first historian of western science. Henri noted that understanding cannot be reduced to logic. Meaning cannot be grasped like an object. Marshall McLuhan also came to these realizations in his studies of communication introducing phrases such as “I seem to be a Verb” and “The meaning is the message.” After further inquiry, he came to see “The meaning is the massage.” When something comes into manifestation its form is just one out of many possibilities. If we can train ourselves to look into that realm of potentiality, we can gain insights beyond what can be ascertained from only considering the manifested aspects. Goethe encourages us to dwell in the phenomenon. The distinctions between the different forms manifested point back to the unity from which they came. When Henri spoke of shifting our focus from outcomes to the act of distinguishing I felt a volcano erupting in my psyche! It seems to me that one of the big stumbling blocks to embracing this way of being is our attempts to live in the construct of linear time which creates a past and future as distinct from the now. This is an illusion through limited perception and though useful can be unhealthy if taken as absolute. An example came to me in a lecture by Jon Rae the other evening where he spoke about greenhouse gases (a complex array of different kinds of gases that come from many natural processes in Gaia and trap heat from the sun inside her body, giving her a fever). The percentages of these gases are reduced to a common denominator of CO2 which is then calculated and used as a measuring stick over time. By doing this we have been cut off from the unique qualities of these gases and there is a narrowing of focus as to how to reduce CO2 emissions. This creates a tendency to try and solve the “problem” by looking at sources of CO2 emissions rather than a deeper approach of seeing the many facets of the atmosphere and our connection to it. Thus we see people embracing carbon neutrality as a way to solve our environmental problems. Satish Kumar wrote recently, “Focusing only on carbon emissions without protecting ecosystems is simply treating the symptoms rather than the causes of global warming.” We were encouraged to think how a plant lives. Goethe’s approach was to observe the subtle details of a plant (the organizing ideas), then to go upstream from those physical senses into the imagination and meld with the plant. By repeating this over and over he was able to gain insights not immediately apparent. My work with this has me confronting the laziness of my brain/mind in noting detail. Henri encouraged us to not be onlookers but to place ourselves into the distinguishing mode of the plant. He worded beautifully the sense of wholeness at the family level of plants by imploring us to note the family resemblance of plants that permeates through the distinctions. Our language needs a re-awakened lexicon from both the past (such as: ether, aura, empathy, dis-ease, and co-incidence) as well as emerging terms from our unique era (such as grok, vibe, I and I and google). When we first delve into the phenomenon we bring with us prejudices and limited observation. Henri implored us to not be discouraged by this. It is expected and not a problem. It is a beginning, but we should not stop there. With each round of observation we are able to dispel or at least suspend more of our biases and limited habitual thinking. Eventually we step through our limitations into holism, into the dynamic-ness of the being presencing itself. In our last couple of days Henri introduced Hermeneutics explaining that this came out of the monks’ reflections on the meanings of the bible as words from God. Henri encouraged us to “let the book you are reading teach you how to read it.” We could see how reading is a dynamic unfolding of meaning/understanding like a plant growing in its environment. As in a paragraph, the more sentences one reads the more the presence of the paragraph can be felt. When something you read affects you that is writing living through you. The author writing the work creates the urtext which expresses the multiplicities out of its unity each time it is read. This is not something one needs to rush through or become quick to label or understand. A book expresses itself from the text as it is read; hence, the con-text. How do you feel when something is expressed out of context? Henri implored us to “read between the lines” for full understanding. I was reminded of a good lesson I learned at a conference many years ago. Our teacher asked us to look at the intention behind the words and tone when a person speaks to us, to go upstream and understand from where a person was speaking. A warning from Henri stays with me in which he spoke about how scientists have intuitive flashes (epiphanies) that spark them towards great contributions to science. But after these great insights the attempts to convey them to others make them vulnerable to co-optation and in some cases flip them to their opposite meaning. This is memorably expressed in Orwell’s “1984”. In this way I am confronted with the fading memories of Henri’s inspired lectures and have only my notes to recount the aha’s of our time together. From that week with Henri most of us were quite shifted, it seemed, in the world we were viewing. Thus it was perfect for Craig Holdrege to appear with his bag of exercises and deepen our awareness of Nature. He grounded our shifted awareness in practical experience as we learned the techniques of Goethean Science. We were asked to think like a plant grows. Though seemingly straightforward I found the experiences of visualizing a leaf, then a branch to be very helpful in understanding Goethe’s delicate empiricism. In the afternoon exercises, I felt myself actually able to swim upstream some, letting the images in my mind come alive. Further, Craig’s writings have proven to be very accessible and revealing. His description of encountering skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus) was helpful for me to see how he went about going deeper. In the commentary that followed his narrative I gained another important understanding of why Goethe encourages us to go back and forth between encounter with the plant and then integration time. Stephen Buhner also shares this view, “Your relationship with plants deepens through the years… taking a walk, as you pass the plant in a field, a deeper knowledge of the plant and its purposes, its uses in medicine, will flash into your mind.” (pg 166) Craig puts it well, “When you go back to characteristics you have studied before, they may suddenly express the unity you have discovered through another part. You have an ‘aha’ experience in which you recognize connections between what previously appeared to be separate facts.” (pg 45) From Craig I relearned a lesson I know from cooking and medicine making that simple is not easy. He recounted the lessons from his teacher, Jochen Bockemehl’s, after their long walks together in which Bockemehl would spend hours drawing out the details from his memory. I found this humbling for it showed the importance of showing up to do the work of, as Goethe says, building the organ of perception. I am grateful for Craig taking the time to cross the ocean and coming to share these approaches of melding with the wisdom of Nature. After these two very focused weeks with individual teachers, our third week represented a big change in that we had three different teachers during the week. We also flipped from all male teachers to all female teachers. Francoise Wemelsfelder, animal behaviorist, came to teach for two days. I was impressed with her as a human being but felt concerned about the sacrifices she’s made to make changes within the system. Her focus as a scientist is on animal welfare taking a unique approach of trying to understand the animal’s point of view. Current animal behavior research is dominated by the systems approach reducing animals to biochemical reactions firing off synapses. She has done a wonderful job shifting consciousness from animals viewed as objects to the more compassionate level of acknowledging their being-ness. Her emphasis on not “fragmenting animals” allows us to engage them and accept the mystery. She quoted the philosopher Martin Buber about the importance of seeing beings in a subjective “I and thou” approach rather than “I and it”. As a scientist within the dominant paradigm, Francoise has to be very careful with her use of words. I had a discussion with her about this and cautioned about allowing powerful terms that describe the reality to be co-opted or made extinct, terms that western science has discredited such as: ether, spirit, astrology, feelings, placebo, anecdotal evidence, intuition, doctrine of signatures and subjectivity among many others. She spoke of how she redirected critiques that her form of science is wrought with anthropomorphism. Her answers have been that what has been called anthropomorphism are just mistakes in recognition due to a lack of skill in communicating with animals. She felt this can be overcome by better training. She emphasized that “fallibility in the skills doesn’t justify the status quo of invisibility” around the issue of animals having feelings. I pointed out that my research had turned up the term anthropodenial: the tendency of humans to deny common traits with other species. Another point she made is that if all that was going on in observing animals was anthropomorphism then the studies would turn up with random results, which they do not. Francoise has modified a statistical package called Free Choice Profiling, a scientifically validated approach, in which groups of observers can watch the body language of animals and write their reactions to them. Through extensive studies she has shown high statistical correlation around the reactions to the animals observed. We spent time practicing this method by observing animals she has filmed. We discussed research she is doing in collaboration with Stephan about the quality of landscapes. I mentioned that this may be a good approach to finally having scientific support for the efficacies of organic food and herbal medicine. In the middle of the week we had the day with astrologer Carmen Maraschin. She calculated each of our birth charts and took us through an informative slide show relating astrology to post-Newtonian physics and opened us up its symbolism and archetypes. Prior to 1700, astrology was valued along side astronomy. On a recent trip to Chelsea Physic Gardens in London one sign noted that the “fanciful theory” the Doctrine of Signatures had been “denounced in 1650”. This view that the form of plants can indicate it influences in the human body aligns well with Goethe’s views. Efforts need to be made to reinstate the Doctrine of Signatures as a valid means of assessing potential food and medicine. Carmen described the basics of how the charts work and set up times with each of us to discuss our personal charts. My current impression of astrology is that I feel a lot of mystery and questions around it. I look forward to exploring this path more deeply. In the last part of the week, mythologist Jules Cashford came to share images and interpretations of ancient artifacts. Her presence was magical and her teachings came from a place of deep knowing. She shared with us stories of Gaia, “the last goddess of the west.” We learned that we are collectively between myths and Jules posed the question, “The old gods are dead or dying, who will be the new?” She encouraged us to “make room for imagination to grow within us.” She warned us not to “take myth only literally, for then we lose its symbol and it can become dangerous.” Through her eloquent speaking I could see that dualism is life in time. I felt more courage to develop my imagination and open to Goethe’s delicate empiricism to where “empirical observation finally ceases, inner beholdings of what develops begins” (Craig pg 50). Jules extolled that “imagination will bring us back into life.” Her teachings were transmitted to us at many levels and I am thankful for the work she does. Integrative All these teachers shared alternative ways of looking at the world that reach beyond the limitations of western science. This holistic science of qualities rests on the many facets of Goethe’s delicate empiricism. Learning to recognize Henri’s authentic wholes within living processes, we can avoid the pitfalls of objectifying the world. Craig gave us tools and practice in immersing ourselves in Nature. Francoise showed us ways to make bridges with western science. Jules and Carmen encouraged us to embrace archetypal symbols and open up to the intuitive and imaginative aspects of ourselves. A general theme I am beginning to understand is the tension that comes from trying to prove to be right. We can open to a more holistic vision by lifting from a linear spectrum to a 3-dimensional space where there is room to explore everyone’s stories and perspectives. In this way we can encounter mystery with wonder and awe, and avoid the clashing of ideologies and political agendas. Upon reflection of the holistic methodology I have learned so far, I realize in one of those aha’s that this approach has been hinted to me all along. I recall in the stories of some of the great western scientists such as Albert Einstein’s and Linus Pauling’s inner experiments; Washington Carver’s listening to Nature; Luther Burbank’s talking with plants…and more. May the rebirthing of holistic science into human culture flow well. References Articles Bortoft, Henri “Counterfeit and Authentic Wholes: Finding a means for dwelling in Nature.” Marinus Nighoff Publishers 1985 Holdrege, Craig “Doing Goethean Science” Janus Head 8(1) 2005 Kumar, Satish “Cutting Carbon is a rich fool’s Errand” The Guardian August 29, 2007 Books These are the authors mentioned in the text with their primary work noted. Bortoft, Henri The Wholeness of Nature D. Reidal Publishing,1996 Buber, Martin I and Thou Wiley Publishing, 1971 Buhner, Stephen The Secret Teachings of Plants: The intelligence of the heart in the direct perception of Nature Bear and Company, 2004 Cashford, Jules The Homeric Hymns Penguin Books, 1992 Goethe, Wolfgang von “Goethe’s Botanical Writings” edited by Bertha Muellar Ox Bow Press, 1989 Goodwin, Brian “Nature’s Due” Floris Books, 2007 Harding, Stephan Animate Earth Chelsea Green, 2006 Heinlein, Robert Stranger in a Strange Land Avon, 1961 Jung, Carl The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious Pantheon Books, 1959 McLuhan, Marshall The Medium is the Massage Bantam 1967 Pirsig, Robert Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: an inquiry into values William Morrow and Company, 1974 http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/10/holistic_science_of_qualities.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/10/holistic_science_of_qualities.html Journal Wed, 24 Oct 2007 19:56:15 +0000 Why go to Schumacher College? I have been exploring for years alternative places of higher learning in consideration of furthering my formal knowledge. In the 90’s I looked at various naturopathic colleges, in 2000 I checked out the California Institute of Integral Studies. For various reasons these never came to fruition. In the nineties, a good friend David Minkow lent me a book by Satish Kumar called “Path Without Destination.” In that book Satish described an alternative college in England called Schumacher College started by the famous economist E.F. Schumacher (“Small is Beautiful”) where Satish is the Program Director. http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/09/why_go_to_schumacher_college_s.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/09/why_go_to_schumacher_college_s.html Journal Sat, 01 Sep 2007 21:22:05 +0000 Download file ]]> http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/08/download_file.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/08/download_file.html Journal Sat, 18 Aug 2007 19:34:00 +0000 Site Evaluation of a piece of land in Asheville, NC for the practicum of the Permaculture Designer’s Certification with Chuck Marsh. August, 2007 Introduction I began this project just over a year ago and have spent two months of that time living on the site and observing the seasons and the life unfolding between the humans and the rest of nature. These two months were spread over the year so I was able to gain some larger perspectives by observing the change of seasons. http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/08/site_evaluation_for_permacultu.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/08/site_evaluation_for_permacultu.html Journal Sat, 18 Aug 2007 19:28:10 +0000 [The following article appeared July, 2007 in the Illinois Valley News] “They aren’t quite ripe,” Frank Cook noted of the yellow plums filling a tree off the deck of the Siskiyou Project office in Takilma on Friday, July 20. As a self-styled “thrivalist,” Cook pays particular attention to the plants and trees around him. http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/07/thrivalist_frank_cook_advocate.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/07/thrivalist_frank_cook_advocate.html Journal Tue, 31 Jul 2007 15:52:23 +0000 Report From Downunder Journey Downunder Part II March 2007 Leaving New Zealand was hard for me as I found many interesting appealing aspects of life there. In spite of the clear presence of the new world order, magic and wonder still ruled the land. I found the people from many walks of life engaging and kind. But I also felt the islandness of the place and I knew once I left that it would seem to me a small wonder on the planet. There are some huge challenges to overcome there (which I will elaborate on when I write out a full report) though I am hopeful when I think of that land. Off to Brisbane Returning to Australia was challenging for me but I knew it was such a big place that I needed to go deeper to better understand it. These were my feelings as I flew from Auckland the thousand miles to Brisbane. There I was hosted by a wonderful couple, Dawn and Peter, who have found a wonderful groove for themselves. They have a house full of books and worldly artifacts. Brisbane is in southern Queensland and is subtropical. Despite being in a drought it is still relatively green. Their backyard is a little jungle full of palms, flowers and birds. I was delighted to be there and had wonderful times getting to know these well-developed human beings. On my first day there Dawn took me to the Botanical Gardens laid out with creative architecture and tropical plants of the world. When I got to the Australian Section I slowed down to try to take in its diversity (70% of AU’s 22,000 plants live in northeast AU). There was so much there I came back a couple of days later for another go and knew then I would need to come back to AU if for nothing more than to try and get to know better these oldest tropical beings on the earth. The next day Peter took me on a memorable journey to a rainforest in the hills outside Brisbane. Nothing feeds my soul like time in old growth woods. Huge strangler figs dominated and many fungal friends appeared to delight us including beartooth, honeys, chanterelles and Amanitas. We saw a wallaby scurry by and I got to see my first kookaburra chilled out on a limb waiting for handouts. The birds and reptiles downunder really trip me out! During my time in Brisbane Peter feed us good homemade food and played some wonderful folk and classic guitar. On my last day Dawn and I walked through her garden. She has even made a plant list much to my heart’s content. Rainbow Country From Brisbane I hitched a couple memorable rides down to Byron Bay to intersect with a rainbow brother, Marcus, author of the travelers’ companion, "Vagabond Globetrotting". He really made me feel welcome and made great efforts to look after me and hook me up. We shared stories and went swimming in Byron Bay with some of the most beautiful ocean water I have ever swam in. Then we went to Mulimbimbi Saturday Market full of Brothers and Sisters selling their wares and a soulful drum circle. Then we headed inland to the rainbow temple. We were given a tour by an elder named Guy who has been there nearly thirty years building this hip retreat space. One of the highlights is a several story tall chakra temple. Another is a tunnel he is building under the center. It was so meditative to be under ground in this sound chamber listening to his vision of future labyrinths. Guy and I settled down to some wonderful irie sharing about how he had traveled the world eventually coming to there to settle and create this haven for travelers. From there we journeyed to the famous center of hippydom, Nimbin. On the way we passed by majestic Mt. Warning, the enduring lava tube of an ancient volcano. I was complaining to Marcus that even in the homelands of Macadamia nuts (though 90% of them are grown in Hawaii) they sell for the same price as the US. Around us were plantations of macadamias. And as soon as I uttered the words, "Why aren’t there little stands from farmers selling them?" there appeared to our right one of those farmer’s stands. So we stopped and got both shelled and unshelled wonderful local nuts. Evening was coming so we just drove through Nimbin. Just in that passing through I could feel the unique vibe of the place and that the rainbow caravan had touched down here. I looked forward to going deeper the next day. We stayed the night at a near by permaculture settlement caretaken by a man named Wolfgang. I spent the night in a refurbished train car. The next morning Wolfgang gave me a ride to Nimbin for the Sunday market. In addition to checking out the town, I hoped to have some time with a well-known bush tucker (wild food) expert named Koa. On the way into town I heard a rich account from Wolfgang of his philosophies towards permaculture as they compared to Mollison’s, In Nimbin I truly felt I had come home—like a large established welcome home camp. Rusty at the Nimbin Environmental Center showered me with kindness and help. I toured the Cannabis Museum and walked about town feeling the vibes. I was so lucky to catch the once a month market which was sheer delight. In many ways it was a dreamlike scene. It takes place next to the rainbow community center near the center of town. Talented family took to the open mike to share songs with us. One person sold a wonderful array of horticultural plants from Hawaiian woodrose to yage to Psychotria. There were flower essence vendors, crafts of all kinds and many food stalls. I could not believe my eyes when I saw a man selling south Indian food. He called himself a Dosa Walla. He made organic Dosai with tasty fillings served on banana leaves. We talked a while sharing stories. I was in awe of his dedication. The only missing piece was Koa. He did not appear but I was led to his landmate, Bodhi, who invited me to the land and said I would find Koa there. In the afternoon I hitched back to Wolfgang’s and Marcus took me out to where Koa lives. As evening came I approached his lean-to and there he was. He had a minor eye injury so had decided not to go to town that day. We sat in the dusk and got acquainted. Koa has a soft-spoken demeanor and deep convictions towards getting our family ready for the coming changes. He has made several DVD’s to give people confidence about the abundance in the bush. His website is: www.bushtucker.ws/ For the night I went back to the community house and set up a camp spot. This land is owned by the world-renowned John Seed. He and the half a dozen people I got to know over the next several days amazed me. The next morning Bodhi took me on a walk through the permaculture gardens. I was very impressed with the level to which they had developed plant guilds (communities). They had also made some beautiful cactus gardens. Much to our delight we discovered that we had mutual friends at Moonshadow, TN. One brother I particularly bonded with is the local plant knowledge keeper there, Gareth. He has amassed a impressive library on plants, healing ways, and indigenous cultures. In addition, he has compiled many subject binders of articles along the same lines. He is of the same mold as a couple of contemporary plant heroes Dale Millard and Dan Madrone Nicholson. Gareth took me on a plant walk around this beautiful land surrounded by national park. In addition he arranged for another well-known bushtucker master, Peter Hardwick, to come for a visit. On that day a small intimate circle of Koa, Peter, Gareth and myself played off each other for hours sharing stories on all sorts of topics from B12 to acorns to DMT in Acacias to the fallacies of reductionism. We talked about lots of plants and sampled different bush tucker including large steamed Banya Pine nuts (an Araucaria), Suillus mushrooms, and a Davidson plum cordial. We even eventually got out for a walk about the land. With these formidable people one can really feel the abundance of nature. I was touched beyond what words can tell. Off to the Top End-Darwin You can imagine how hard it was for me to leave the Nimbin region but I had been empowered by the prayers and donations of the circle to fly off to Darwin. As the saying goes, "Parting is such sweet sorrow". I felt I would come back in a few years to see how this back to the land movement was maturing. In the morning I was kindly given a lift by John to the main road and four rides later I was in Brisbane. I caught a late night flight to Darwin arriving at 1:30 am, catching a shuttle to a hostel, and waking the next morning in a tropical zone about 12 degrees from the equator. I arrived at the end of the rainy monsoon season with it humid and full green. I could not imagine what this land was like after the coming 5 months of no rain. It was just before the tourist season but tourism was already gearing up in its ugly manifestations. I befriended several people at the hostel and heard their stories. Each day I followed leads to get the most from my time there. Darwin has a colorful history which involves it being blasted to smithereens twice: First by the Japanese bombers during WW II for being a haven for US warships. Secondly, in 1974, from the power of Cyclone Tracy’s 200+ mph winds. I visited the museum and one of its highlights was a sound chamber which blasted a recording made during the cyclone—the sounds of a train from hell! Many died each time and the cyclone leveled most houses. I visited the old botanical gardens taking in its lush tropical vibe. The whole area was a wonder to walk through with it coconut palms, so many kinds of palms and native Baob (Adansonia) and fruiting Noni trees. Rainbow colored parrots flew all about. I walked a neglected aboriginal plant walk but still gained some good knowledge nuggets. I also read a big sign of a man named Ian Fairweather. What a story! He headed out in 1952 from Darwin in a scrapyard made boat and somehow made it 400 miles to Timor. Famous as artist and adventurer, he seemed to walk that line of master and crazy man, I read with interest some of his translation of "The Drunken Buddha". Darwin is right on the coast and I enjoyed collecting shells (those not occupied by hermit crabs) . Swimming was discouraged due to the abundance of jellyfish. I visited three markets in the area each with their own charm full of Indonesian-Asian cuisine and local contemporary crafts. Darwin has a beautiful bay front and in the evenings I would watch huge fruit bats fly about. Australia also has an amazing diversity of different reptiles. I often say to people that if you can only visit somewhere for a day it is still worth it. There are so many millions of impressions that come through experience that no story or picture can convey. One of the realizations I had was that Aborigines do not represent one culture. Prior to European colonization there were over 200 different languages spoken—now only 50 survive. There were groups of aboriginal people around the town. I would sit by them sometimes trying to feel their vibe. Though we were physically near we were worlds apart. These were the city dwellers often with plastic bottles of some sort of spirits in them. Try as I could, I was not able to connect. This brought up a lot of frustration for me and each of the leads to finding some sort of intermediary or other way to connect ended fruitless. It was as though there were three societies there—tourist, locals, and aborigines and their mixing was minimal. For example, I found one tourist group that offered a half day walk with native people. They wanted $88 per person and a minimum of three people. I was willing to do this. I put up signs around town to get two other people but nothing came from it and the company was not willing to budge any. There was a frustration in all that within myself and the situation. Kakadu World Heritage Site Eventually I decided to rent a car and headed several hours south to feel the land and to check out the famous Kakadu cave drawings. I am so glad I did though the journey took me beyond my edges. My first stop was this little known hot spring a couple of hours south. I cruised into the outback in my little Hyundai. Flooding was present all around. Where I went and what I did was largely dictated by these annual floods. Few people knew much about these springs and as I headed towards them I crossed several precarious spots , but on I went eventually coming to a gate with a sign that said, "Spring closed due to flooding". Undeterred I packed a small bag, left a note on the car and hiked the remaining kilometers to the springs. The sun there is particularly penetrating so I used my yoga mat as a sunshield. I saw a number of kangaroos and a small herd of water buffaloes thundering off left me saying, "holy shit, holy shit". I later found out that water buffalo were introduced from Timor in the 1820’s and propagated to become among the largest wild herds in the world. I forded one thigh high deep stream with thoughts of crocodiles, water snakes and leeches. But decided to drop my stuff and go back for a plunge anyway. Once at the campground I was so excited to have the place to myself. Each campsite had a raised platform and I picked one near the river. I ate some lunch and then heard a sound in the distance like a strong wind but it persisted. I realized a downpour was coming and so I grabbed my handydandy tarp and took shelter with my stuff. It rained steadily for over an hour and pools of water formed all around the platform. But I and my stuff were still quite dry in my little cave. I curled up and daydreamed drifting back to childhood memories of sitting under blankets and in tents during rainstorms. Eventually it passed and I came out into a beautiful evening. I was taken in by the beauty of the forest and big white parrots with lime green flushes saying, "Uh-oh, Uh-oh." I tried to ignore their ominous calls. I was aware that it was likely the hot spring was submerged in the swollen Douglas River, but I wandered around hoping for the best. I took pictures of lots of amazing plants: Zamias, paperbarks, Acacias and many familiar weeds. There was a wonderful sign welcoming us balanda (non-aboriginal people) to this sacred spring which Aborigines bring their daughters for puberty ceremonies. There were several areas off limits to outsiders. I followed the river a little ways and saw a small tributary coming in. I put my foot into it and glory be is was nice and hot. With nightfall I realized I had forgotten my flashlight but luckily the moon was gibbous. I followed the stream a little bit and it flowed from a big hot bilabong (a pool that endures through the dry season). By moonlight I immersed myself in the hot water so vibrant and clean, My body tingled and I heard all sorts of sounds and thought I could see some images in the distance. I sang loudly to keep my courage and to let my presence be known. After I had had enough I left, promising to return in the morning. As I made my way back to the platform I heard familiar sounds that unnerved me slightly—the buzzing of mossies. I soon realized I was caught in a catch-22. To keep away the mosquitoes I needed to burrito up in my tarp. But when I did, I felt like I was in a sauna. The nights there do not cool off and the mosquitoes do not stop coming. So I compromised with the lower half of my body wrapped in the tarp and the top half covered in a sarong. The mosquitoes were not particularly fast or clever but their sheer numbers were daunting. I am sure I killed hundreds of them but they sucked right through my sarong. By first light I had been bit a couple hundred times. I tried to visualize them as reincarnated acupuncturists taking out my bad blood. I reflected on Doug Elliott’s telling of a Cherokee story of how the mosquito needed to suck blood after saving humanity. But honestly that morning I felt I had been molested. Despite that it was a beautiful morning. I did some yoga and took some more pictures then got into the sacred waters. I could have been there all day for they largely restored me. But my time was short so I packed up, thanked the land, and headed off to the Kakadu National Park. A couple of hours later my first stop in the park was the cultural center designed by the local people. I learned some history about the cultures here. On the entrance they wrote: "We tell you stories that have been told to us by our old people. They go on and on. The passing down of stories is our Bininj [local people] book. People from different clans have got different stories of their country. You can learn some of our stories as you walk through this display." Then I drove on to the ranger information center. They had a good little library which I did some research in and the ranger there kindly supplied me with a plant list of over 1500 species in the park. I have looked over it with delight several times now. She also told me that all the campgrounds in the area were closed due to flooding and that my best bet was to look for lodging in the outpost of Jabiru. There was still some daylight left so I ventured into the amazing petroglyphs at the world heritage site. These drawings were on the walls of a majestic rock outcropping. I wandered among them until darkness came taking in their messages and meanings for us modern peoples. This was an area the aborigines came during the wet season for shelter and because of the abundance of food. I nibbled on a native turmeric relative there and was moved by the vibes of the place. The oldest remains there dated back 20,000 years, but amongst the 5000 sites in the park there is evidence of human presence for 50,000 years. Current thinking suggests that aboriginal people island-hopped to Australia 60,000 years ago when the ocean level was hundreds of feet lower. I was very impressed with the place. With the dark I drove to the outpost town. I was not excited about the prospects of this place, knowing what I did. Namely, that as a great illustration of our modern dilemma—here in the middle of the world heritage site is a Uranium mine. This outpost was built to supply the workers. I arrived about 8:00 and went to the two lodging options. Both were unacceptable to me culturally and economically. The cheapest options were campsites for over 25 dollars and anything else was over a hundred dollars. So I filled the car up with petrol and headed back out into the bush to see what nature was going to teach me that night. The moon glowed overhead and after a couple of deadends I decided to venture into one of the closed campgrounds. Two owls appeared before me on the road in and then a big gray snake slithered off to the left. Several signs warned about crocodiles. With those foreboding omens I knew I was in for a night. I parked the car in the deserted campground and looked around with my flashlight. Just ahead I heard a loud reptilian splash in a flooded area. "Whoa!" I said outloud. Throughout the night I could hear the croaking of the croc tribe not far off. "Hmm," I thought, "What to do about all this?" I decided to sleep in the car. Some mosquitoes made their way in also. Being in the car was not only hot but also stuffy. I tried to open a window and rig a tarp so it would let in fresh air and not mossies. This did not work and after an hour I decided to risk crocodiles and try sleeping wrapped in a tarp on a concrete picnic table. At least I could make a breathing hole and get fresh air. This also failed with my being drenched in sweat. Eventually I was broken down and humbled. I made my way back to the car and turned on the air conditioner for 10 minutes dehumidifying and cooling the car. Then I went off to sleep like a baby until three in the morning when I needed to do it again. That got me through the night. Ah, those humble lessons of being ill-prepared! I was up again at first light, did some yoga up on the picnic table, then spent the next several hours on a couple of walks up to overlooks. (All the lower walks were flooded.) The first walk was spectacular with a nice view of the hill of cave drawings. There were so many amazing plants there—deep red flowering Grewellias, tasty fruiting passion vines, Eucalyptus growing our of cracks in the rock, I heard a little waterfall call to me. When I found it, there was this little dipping pool built for one. The second walk took me high up onto this platform where I gained a wider perspective. To the east the Arnhem escarpment; south was the headwaters of the Alligator River, one of the biggest rivers in Au; to the west were the bushlands; and to the north were the floodplains leading to the coast. All around me was wooded, a diverse wonderland. I started making my way back towards Darwin. On the way I visited the Litchfield National Park. I saw an amazing waterfall roaring down over a cave full of rare bats. I swam in an energized spring bursting forth and I stood in wonder before twenty foot termite mounds at sunset. I was not up for another night out in the wild, so I drove back to the hostel and slept very well that night. The next day was my last in Darwin so I walked about the town taking it in, doing errands, and saying goodbye to the friends I had made. Late that night I caught a redeye to Sydney. In Sydney I had a couple of relaxing days with friends and visited the Botanical Gardens. In the gardens I was blown out by the energy of a glass pyramid there. I learned the sordid history of European arrival as their first settlement occurred there in the gardens with seven ships of over 1000 people—700 of them convicts from twelve countries. Two-thirds of the local native people were dead within a year. It is a sad story not unlike the US history occurring around the same time. Then I took an epic twenty-one hour flight to London (with a one hour refueling in Singapore) and had a couple of sunny, warm days there visiting friends and a spectacular day at Kew Gardens exploring some of the 300 acres I have not been to, as well as, time in my favorite haunts there. And now I write this to you on a ten hour flight back to Turtle Island. This journey downunder provided lots of lessons learned, plant knowledge gained and an initial sense of the lands and cultures. I feel I will go back in about three years if the planes are still flying. Care to join me? http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/07/report_from_australia_part_2.html http://www.plantsandhealers.com/2007/07/report_from_australia_part_2.html Journal Mon, 23 Jul 2007 09:20:55 +0000