Primitive / Colonial Skills Class - Week 4

I am always surprised by the little synchronicities that arise on this MooseBoots journey.  The moments happen far too often to be anything but the law of attraction - the drawing together of like-minded people, kindred spirits perhaps.  And, when they occur, I am surprised by the depth of commonality.  The world is changing more than can be attributed to the changes occurring withing me.  A shift is occuring ... perhaps we are all feeling it in our own ways.  There seems to be some kind of awakening happening.  At least, I recognize it when I see it, perhaps it is that I am just more aware of it on the same level it has always had.

We met again for our bi-weekly class.  This week's plan was simply to start working on spoons.  Because the weather was particularly wet, we held class inside.  One of the parents brought some dried beans and a screen.  We spent a bit of time winnowing the beans.  It held the kids attention for a bit - crush, pour through the screen, and bounce them around until the small bits of shell fall through the mesh leaving ... beans just like you would get in the store.

Afterwards, we spent a few minutes talking about knife safety.  You can image the scene ... 9 kids, ranging in age from 5 to 13, 2 dogs, and 5 parents carving away in a small 9 x 12 foot space.  Then, it was off to the races.  The kids don't really work on any project for the whole time and this class was no exception.  The kids wander off from time to time, but they always seem to come back periodically.  Amazingly, there was only one cut ... parent really should try to set a good example (just teasing).  The dogs were very well behaved, but they got tired of carving after a while, too.

While we were carving, Wendy was making an amazing stew with beef freshly butchered and delivered during the wood flying frenzy.  All of the ingredients were local, which is one of the synchronicities.  Most of the people who attend are very careful about their diets and where their food comes from (which is also why we were winnowing beans).  Another parent had brought a cauliflower/corn chowder.  The food heated nicely on the wood stove.  When there was a particular lull in the action, we stopped and ate, which brought the whole group back together.

After a snack, we gathered again for a guided meditation.  During the carving, we parents discussed many things, including Tom Brown, his books, The Vision and The Tracker, and his focus of spirituality and its connection to Nature.  One of the parents has trained with Tom Brown (author of one of my favorite books, Field Guide To Living With The Earth).  He teaches his students a guided meditation he calls "Meditation 101".  As she was describing it to the group, my mind was screaming "that's a shamanic journey".  A few months ago, Wendy, Big Little Sister, Little Fire Faery, and I went to a shamanic journeying workshop so that my family could be more involved with the other part of my education.  At the time, we felt Precious was too young.  Since then, she has been asking for me to teach her.  Synchronicity number 2.  So, as part of this group, the kids were taught the beginnings of shamanic journeying.  Too cool!  Precious was elated after the very short meditation - she is anxious to learn.

The most amazing thing to me is that I have wanted to learn all of these things for most of my life.  It is now happening and moreover, I am getting to share it with my family and a growing community of friends.  The Universe continues to provide exactly what I need when it is appropriate.  What more can be asked?  I will continue my work on this MooseBoots path - spiritual growth, appreciation of nature, practice of native skills, and awareness building.  And, I will continue to trust in the Universe's wisdom, guidance, and abundance.