continued schooling in argentina, life is a lesson

i miss the dacres farm and the people, it has been a lot of learning here, i hope that i return more compassionate for the people who are pledging and actualizing their lives to this cause, for me such a difficult balance to be assertive and proactive yet understanding of the many stages we are all at...i am looking forward to getting back to the farm and putting my back to it, i know we got a great thing going, the challenging part seems to be our combined passions and energies can conflict at times, we just hafta take the time to be aware that we all want similar goals and we can share time and space together despite our idiosyncracies etc...
vida told me the other day that she was unsure how long she was gonna stay on this property in Argentina, this is after i have been putting in 12+ hour days sweating my arse off often alone in a field pulling quack grass and making raised beds, it sorta threw me for a loop, then i remembered saying much the same thing during the first couple years at dacres, and shit even now who is to say how long it can go along without a dedicated crew...eventually i hope to come to internalize that uncertainty continues to be part of life and we must continue despite, in fact we must be strong enough to fight this uncertainty off and be more resolved to see it through, it really is an internal struggle that we all must face in order to bring our best forward..

today we poured a shit load of concrete, the guy who has been the boss had to take off to another meeting and i was sorta letting the paid help handle the pour, i was more interested in finishing the field work and i hate concrete...as things manifested i was called upon to be a part of the pour and the first half was a messy bit of chaos with the architect holding the chute, concrete was flying everywhere it was not supposed to be and there was curses in several languages, then adriana the architect was injured with some cement to the eye and i was ready to throw in the towel after the first truck...it was disheartening, i am uncertain of my role here on this job site, i am not the one who will see this house completed, nor am i the best communicator in spanish especially during a critical juncture like a concrete pour, also there are other egos involved and well we are humans here...during break between trucks, vida and i had a heart to heart in which she excels at being there for others, truly a spirit that i aspire to be....
when the truck came back i sorta took over and things worked much better, smooth and quick, assertion through hand signals and physical actualizing, doing things i have experince and can manifest, the truck driver gave me the thumbs up and a slap on the back and in this business that is the sign of success...not sure what that means other than we just gotta search for the role in which we can be most helpful in the nicest way possible, sounds easy but gosh at times it can be challenging for me
rite now i am in an internet cafe with a bunch of kids who just got out of school, they are shooting each other on the computer and i am about to put a dacres sticker in the bathroom and get a forty for the bike ride home
hope to see everyone in april, D Acres 2008 is gonna be a blast

we will have some pics online shortly, you gotta see the house and the field to believe.....
ciao for now
josh t

Peace in NH, Iraq, and Tibet

Demonstrators of all ages at the state capital.

"What do we want? PEACE! When do we want it? NOW!"

Nice Block Prints!

Last Saturday a group of us ventured out from the farm to attend a demonstration for peace in Concord and a teach-in featuring Will the Plymouth area Iraq war veteran. After a small discussion group with Will about his experiences, we all took part in some exercises to help develop our non-violent conflict resolution skills. Then we marched together to the capitol building with the golden roof. It was empowering to be in the presence of fellow New Hampshire folk who are committed to finding better ways to resolve our conflicts than blowing people up. The leftist marching band was in attendance, as was my good friend, Larry Brickner Wood, director of UNH's Waysmeet Center. Also wanted to thank Rick Churchill of People, Places, and Plants magazine for visiting us from Maine. Hope to see you back when the snow melts, Rick!

These shoes were tagged with the names of soldiers killed
in the Iraq conflict. 4,000 US soldiers have already been killed,
along with over 1 million Iraqi civilians. May the rest come home safely.

Buddhist monestary just outside of Tibet

That evening we hosted our first D Acres Saturday Seasonal Soup Night, which featured squash soup, chicken soup, and flat bread, mmm mmm can't get enough of Louie's cooking. Everyone who came out enjoyed a bottomless bowl and we were all treated to Tyler Durham's presentation on his trip to China.

I later found out that while we were demonstrating in Concord, there were simultaneous protests in Tibet. After almost 60 years of oppression and cultural deconstruction by the Chinese government, Tibetan monks and lay people have taken to the streets to bring worldwide attention to the human rights violations occuring in their homeland. China is trying to put its best foot forward with the Olympics coming up this year, and Tibetans have recognized this as an opportunity to request help from the rest of the world. Please think twice before purchasing anymore plastic from China, as there is much suffering contained in these products. More info on this situation can be found at http://www.tibet.ca/

May peace be with the Tibetan people.

-be

lessons from Argentina

Amazing technology that we have these days...i can submit a post from Tunuyan Argentina. I am sitting in the at&t of argentina store where they have phone and internet access

Tunuyan is in the province of Mendoza along the eastern slopes of the Andes. The region is very dry and known for its wine, especially a distinct flavor called Malbec. In general Argentina is an incredible place to be, full of south american energies and inconsistencies. One of the things is that the people are very concerned with their appearance and being in fashion..so people that we would consider poor ( dirt floors, malnourished) are very concerned with how they dress and appear in public, also the amount of grapes they are growing while people are stuggling to feed themselves is also a little disturbing. The people are for the most part super friendly although there is definetly resentment towards United States imperialism and our war mongering ways.

I am staying with a friend from the Boston area by the name of Vida Chavez Garcia, she has some photos of the farm and building project we are working on her facebook page...we have been working on putting about 40 posts up so that then the foundation can be poured for a spiral shaped house that her mother will reside in eventually, the house is really a neat architectural design and will incorporate lots of sustainable tech such as straw bale, adobe, cob, dry toilets and photovoltaics...our field work has consisted of attempting to clear about one acre of crab grass while shaping some permanent beds..in general the work is low tech with a lot of human power and ingenuity..it has been great to get into the dirt and do some hardcore hands on construction..it is alot like what we do at Dacres and it has been a great experience to once again volunteer on "someone elses" project..i guess in general it has re-enforced for me the notion that this planet is ours to share and you must give effort everyday even if you dont "own" on paper what you are working on...we must learn to share and respect the air, water, soil, animals and each other because that is what we have to share on this planet...if we only do for ourselves we are alone and humanity will fail....

i truly believe that we as a species must realize this lesson and act accordingly because time is running out and we as a species are currently acting selfish and without regard for each other and the future of this planet...

geez i hope thats not too deep, i have been getting a full dose of south american sun every day..quite a bit of vitamin D that i wish i could share with the folks at D Acres and in the region..spring is coming and i will return soon and look forward to seeing all the smiling faces and working together towards a positive future

until then

yours,

in evolution

josh t

Now it's March...

and yes, it's still snowing. Or at least is was on Saturday, when I work up before the sun to drive to the NOFA-NH (Northeast Organic Farming Association, New Hampshire chapter) Winter Conference. Now, don't get me wrong, the New England snowy winter is a wonderful thing...but I miss the plants! The medicinal plants of our gardens and forest, to be specific...I've included some pics above. But, I am looking forward to so many aspects of spring...the warming air, the rebirth of the soil as the snow melts...

But for now, the NOFA conference provided a fantastic opportunity for knowledge and inspiration until we can actually get back out in the gardens. Both Bill and I presented at the conference this year- Bill taught a Season Extension/4 Season Gardening workshop, and I did a "Gardening for Health" lecture, presenting the physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and emotional benefits of gardening. Good times.

Ross Conrad, of Natural Beekeeping fame, travelled from VT to present a fantastic beginner beekeeping workshop. I also gained some "herbal kitchen" inspiration from Maria Noel Groves of Wintergreen Botanicals (made my own Ginger Honey already!) and some sweet-potato know-how from Becky Grube of UNH's sustainable horticulture program. Friend-of-the-farm Mark Fulford was there as well- we are greatly looking forward to Mark joining us in May for a two-day workshop at D Acres.

We had a lovely Farm Feast Breakfast and Reiki Share yesterday...Coming up on March 29th, I have the first of a three-part herbal medicine series to teach...Herbs for Wellness, which will focus on tonic herbs that are wonderful for everyday/long term use.

Guess that's it for now...see you at the farm!

Lauren