January 8, 2009 - Home: An Attempt to Summarize

I’ve been asked several times since coming home “what do you think was the most important part of the trip?” My immediate answer is the passion I discovered for working in communities to create or discover systems that are potentially self-sustaining for generations and that bring out the best in people through relationship to each other and to the land.
I hold fast to that answer with all my heart, but there were less vocalized and equally important discoveries made in my time overseas, not the least significant of which was the realization that travel may not be as much of a necessity for my own happiness as I had suspected. I had a marvelous time, but now I am even more convinced that people will be people, no matter where they make a home. As much as I enjoy traveling, I’m sure I won’t find any more interesting people “out there” than I would in my own figurative back yard. I did encounter some people with fascinating stories, especially in my last month mucking about on my own (mutual vagrancy seems to create an almost tangible geniality between wanderers), but in all honesty I’ve known some people since elementary school (and some for less than a week) with stories and philosophies at least as interesting. Often, all it takes is a little curiosity to begin to discover the uncharted territory behind the faces in front of my own. And what is traveling about if not exploring heretofore unknown aspects of life? This is not to say that I wish I hadn’t traveled. I wouldn’t have known the value of the treasure I hold in my very hands if I hadn’t gone thousands of miles away to see if anyone else’s treasure was any better.
Of course, the land was breathtaking, and living five minutes from the ocean, a bay and mossy old woods certainly didn‘t do me any harm… but not once did I think with apprehension about returning home. Oregon’s mountains, beaches and forests remain the apple of my eye, even after taking the consistently gray skies into consideration. Just about the only thing I couldn’t find a parallel for was the deep history worn into the walls of churches and cobblestone streets. That was something I had to feel to understand. And of course, every city had its own flavor, whether subtle or all too obvious, and every person told their story through a cultural filter unlike any I’ve encountered in the States. But the fact remains that what sustains my heart and soul, adventure included, can be found (with intention) here in the place I’ve chosen to call home as easily as anywhere else.
In answer to the inevitable following question (“what’s next?”), I hope to pursue my aforementioned passion with a degree in Environmental Science, so I’ll be re-tackling the undergraduate scene sometime in the next couple of years if all goes even slightly according to plan. I might look at minoring in Theatre Arts as well, just to keep that torch I carry for the stage burning bright. Meanwhile, I’ll be taking advantage of my dear parents’ offer to feed and shelter me for a few months while I get back on my feet financially and begin to pay off those pesky loans, before incurring more of this ever-present test of responsibility called debt. I remind myself often to be grateful - what did Dad tell me about this sort of thing? Builds character? That must be it. While steadily building character, I will explore moving to an environmentally-conscious community of ‘homeless’ people in NE Portland - although they’ve done pretty well for themselves considering their apparent lack of resume-worthy credentials. They’ve graduated from tents to simple raised wooden dwellings, a community garden and wood shed, showers and a ‘main office’ of sorts. My reasons for attempting this move include a desire to live as simply as possible for the sake of my social and environmental conscience as well as my wallet, to be within reasonable bus-ride distance of Portland State University, and to attempt to understand the kind of struggles I hope to help alleviate in the future.
Thank you for following all or part of my journey online, and for all the support I received while overseas in emails, comments, even phone calls (don‘t hesitate to stay in touch!) The trip was more than worthwhile, and I can’t help but feel that it has only kicked off a whole new adventure. I’m holding my breath for the next big wave…

20 dicembre - buon natale da Torri Superiore!

Just a quick note to say I'm safe and thriving in Southern Italy, where the sun shines, wine flows and olives grow... all my best for the holidays - it's Christmas in London this year, and maybe an update or two before I get home on the 2nd...
All my love and warmth,
Elizabeth

December 7 - Feels like a week's gone by...

Dear friends and family,
I arrived safely in Cambridge last night, only to dash off again tomorrow to Heathrow to meet one of my best new friends and fly to Rome.
I’ve just spent the most lovely and difficult 24 hours with this family – only difficult because they are so loving, genuine, hospitable, and British I almost don’t know what to do with myself. At half past 9 last night after meeting Dana at the train station (my second cousin once removed - or whatever the relation is) I stepped into her and her husband’s flat to find myself faced with four church leaders (including Dana’s husband, Mark) discussing the heres and theres of deaths, marriages, and denominations over tea, all very distinct and agreeable personalities, all very British. From my small exposure at Findhorn and my huge dose in the last day or so, I’ve found British humor extremely enjoyable, and I have often just sat back and relished it rather than bursting out laughing (the former goes over much better in respectable company). I had the pleasure of having afternoon roast with Mark, Dana, and a friend of the family named Betty (formally Elizabeth) whom Mark described as “refreshing” and “outside of the box” – and she was indeed, quite charmingly chatty and rather opinionated about the way things should be done and especially how they should be written and spoken. I truly enjoyed her company, especially because (in spite of her firm beliefs about the English language) she regularly stepped back and got a good chuckle out of her own personality.
After Sunday roast Dana and I wandered the streets of Cambridge, admiring the stately, imposing colleges and cobblestone streets while listening to the jingle of sleigh bells in the newly constructed behemoth of a shopping mall just one street over. I met one of their three daughters, Rachel, who seemed incredibly mature for her age, but had a gaiety about her which - whether it’s conscious or not - must have something to do with how wonderful her parents are. After tea with Dana and a wonderful conversation about her work in family therapy, it was back to the flat to sit on couches, talk, drink more tea, and watch the end of Miracle on 34th Street (which I was actually a bit disturbed by this time around. I can’t imagine showing this to my children in good conscience. Am I becoming a Values Snob?). Tears welled up in my eyes after we all said goodnight. I can hardly believe this is real… it’s not as if I haven’t experienced great generosity before, but something about the mercy of stepping out of such an intense and life-changing experience as Findhorn into such a solid, warm & homey atmosphere just chokes me up.
Let’s hope the rest of my trip goes this well, or that I can bring some of this safety and warmth to wherever I end up; there’s plenty to go around.

December 6 - Last day at Findhorn

Tomorrow morning I head off to Cambridge to stay with some family for a couple nights, after which I’ll fly to Rome to have one last hurrah with a few of my dear friends from the program. Afterwards, one friend and I are heading to an Italian ecovillage (www.torri-superiori.org) – she’ll stay for few nights, and I’ll stay and work for just under two weeks. I am so excited. (I apologize that this is a rather lackluster post – I’ve been packing and saying goodbye all day and am considerably exhausted). After that I’m heading back up to the UK to spend Christmas in London.
I have had a marvelous time here, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything – hopefully I’ll have more time to reflect as time goes on and the internet café becomes my only connection to the outside world. All I want for Christmas (and my birthday) is safe travels and to know my family and friends are enjoying these precious days with people who love them…
Hopefully I will post again soon (?)
EV

December 3rd - Thanksgiving Photos

I realize it's a little late, but who doesn't like to stretch holidays out?

This part of my journey is almost complete: I have three more days in the ecovillage with my classmates, after which I will be careening about Europe at breakneck speed... or more likely at this point, strolling through parts of Italy at as leisurely a pace as possible. I'd like to settle down a bit in one region, to really enjoy my surroundings on a deeper level, even if it's only for a couple weeks. I'll update you on my travel plans when they become more concrete.

Meanwhile, we had a lovely Thanksgiving - complete with turkey (gasp!), real boxed wine (a classic), and card games - the only thing missing was football on the telly, which was probably the only point of possible contention during the whole feast, and it was handled with grace - although I kinda missed the muffled cheers of crazed fans in the background.
Mom sent me a package of Thanksgiving decorations, and let me tell you, they were a hit. The paper turkey, scarecrow, maize, etc. made the little eco-house really feel American, and many warm thanks were extended to you that night, Mom. I know it made sound odd, but it really made quite a difference. I got a lot of really sweet comments about it.


Callie shows off her luscious stuffed tomato recipe. We had a blast preparing most everything using ingredients from the communal kitchen & shed - free food is always a bonus.


We encountered many a strange potato in the mashing.


And got extremely bored while the strange potatoes boiled.


Which brought us to another house full of feast-preparing students, including Mikaela and her pies. Some of the ingredients are still strewn about our kitchen, but the tart apple pie was well worth the mess.


Once we had completed the prep and arrived at our generous teacher's house, we all explained what we had made and why. And of course David (the professor some of us affectionately call "Papa Bear") made us all say something we were grateful for... talk about feeling at home :)


We all contributed one family tradition to the feast. I contributed cheese and crackers; my favorite part is the waiting (and I've already baked so much for this group they've taken to calling me 'mom').



Jake and Leaf heartily enjoyed the cheese and crackers (not to mention the wine).


I clean my plate and promote world peace at the same time - life is good. (I must have been dizzyingly full to have given the peace sign in that moment...)


We chose to replace the post-meal nap with post-meal massages. Not a bad swap, in my opinion.

I'm not sure where I'll be for Christmas, but if it's half as enjoyable as Thanksgiving was I'll have nothing to complain about. I'm going to deeply miss the makeshift, motley family we've formed here...

November 20 - Once Upon a Time...

This semester each of the students has been asked to “teach” the other students about something in their life that sustains them. The idea of sustainability we’ve been exploring applies not only to preserving the earth’s finite resources, but to preserving ourselves and our communities through actively seeking social, mental/emotional and in many cases spiritual enrichment in a healthy way. We’ve had students speak about political activism, time spent at a Buddhist monastery, social networking, apple crisp and guerrilla gardening.
I wanted to give my friends a taste of the evenings I’ve spent at home with my family. We would sit and read to each other - I would often read, because I love it, but we all take our turn – and dad would have his chips and salsa, and mom would have a little wine, Nathan his ice cream, perhaps. We would just sit and read, and then maybe play a game of cards… hearts, most likely. This made me so happy to be alive and filled me with good will for my family and for other people – it gave me energy to go out into the world. It made me so grateful for the privileges I have, and grateful that I could enjoy them without spending money, sitting in front of a TV or using any resources. Something about the simplicity of this time with people who are in a predetermined group but still choose to spend time together just to enjoy one another feels like magic to me.
I gathered my classmates, settled them in one of our rooms, poured them some wine and read a quirky short story I had found just a few days before. I was surprised at how willingly they sat through the story – so silent and attentive. In this age (and with this group of “creative” – i.e. fidgety - people) I would have guessed at least half would have been tittering softly or squirming about by the second page, but every one listened respectfully and lovingly until the end. The wine may have had something to do with it, but I think we’ve actually developed a really healthy level of respect and care for one another that shows especially when we’re all in the same room. It’s been incredible to me how cohesive and supportive the group has been in the last couple weeks. We’ve seen uglier sides of the group and of individuals, me included – seeing one another daily for hours on end and then going home to sleep in the same house at the end of the day will bring those things out – but when all is said and done, the group leaves me feeling pretty optimistic about the human potential to live in community. And it’s lovely to know that storytelling doesn’t have to be lost on my generation.

November 11 - Volatile Vegetarians

I picked up some vegan ice cream (rice cream, technically) from our little food shop today and read the ingredients with considerable interest. Apparently they’ve put something call vegetarian stabilizers in my chocolate treat. Do vegetarians need to be stabilized? If so, why is this not public knowledge? Why must these stabilizers be placed surreptitiously into innocent looking dessert containers? In addition, the company that puts out these stabilizer-infused sweets is called B’Nice... coincidence? I think not.