Tag Archives: Journey

Dare to Dream: Harmony Farm

25 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by in Growing, Nature

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We Had A Dream.

Over 35 years ago, we fell in love with 23 beautiful acres in Medfield, MA. A bubbling stream ran through the property. It fed a private pond and excited our imaginations. We dreamt of living there, in harmony with nature, and gave this dream a name – Harmony Farm.

Building the Dream

After purchasing the land, we began the process of manifesting our dream. Wanting to experience nature as much as possible from inside our home, we designed it with large expanses of glass facing south, which had the added benefit of passive solar energy gains. We built the house overlooking the pond. . A barn for some sheep and a donkey, then a coop for chickens came next.

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While erecting these buildings changed the land, we tried to do so in an earth-friendly manner. Most of the property remained as we found it, with trails meandering through untamed woods and open fields for a grazing and planting. And when planting and tending gardens, we did so organically, without sprays or chemicals.

 Living the Dream

We enjoyed living in harmony with the land. We drank pure water from our deep private well and ate many of our meals from the garden. Our huge vegetable garden grew various types of tomatoes, corn, carrots, peas, green beans, cabbage, potatoes – to name just a few. We also cultivated medicinal herbs and gathered others from the wild. The land generously produced wild fruits: blueberries, raspberries, elderberries, and more. Our breakfasts included eggs lain that morning by happy hens who spend time outside. Nothing can compare with the taste and nutritional value of truly fresh food.

Seasons were no longer marked by pages turned on a calendar. We lived them, experienced them in every cell of our bodies. We ate asparagus in the spring along with the power-filled herb, nettles. During winter we reaped the benefits of our labor in the gardens, eating stored food from our huge freezer and cold storage room.

trail-022No matter what the season, we spent time each day outside. Nature surrounded us during strolls down the winding driveway to pick up the mail, invigorating walks through vibrant woods, and meditative moments sitting by the pond. During spring, summer, and fall we often ate outside, listening to birdsong, inhaling the sights around us. We also swam in the pond – a delightful sensory experience.

Something important happened during the years that we’ve lived on this sacred land. It happened gradually, almost imperceptibly. We began feeling whole, more complete, more peaceful and serene. Harmony Farm had slowly, but surely, changed us. We attributed these changes to the healing benefits of our connection with the natural world.

Sharing the Dream

Full of gratitude for the abundance of our holistic haven, we expanded our hearts to further grow our dream. We decided to share our good fortune with others, give them the opportunity to experience Harmony Farm’s healing properties. We founded Harmony Center, a non-profit corporation, and built a separate building.

The new building provides the ideal setting for experiential workshops and classes. People gather inside an octagonal room with views of nature visible through large expanses of glass. Two bathrooms and another multipurpose room add to its versatility. Harmony Center offers programs that facilitate physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing in this remarkable setting.

Whether someone comes for two hours or the day, it feels like a mini retreat. Upon turning into our driveway, people leave the hustle and bustle of everyday life behind. Worry and stress release as people open to the tranquility of this place. They leave feeling refreshed and renewed – at peace with themselves, at one with the world.

Dreaming Anew

As we moved into our elder years, we recognized that it was time for us to move on, to release old dreams and make room for the new. While this was happening, Harmony Farm began dreaming of new owner(s) / caretaker(s).

A lovely young couple heard Harmony Farm’s call.  These like minded souls will now care for it, love it, help it to thrive.

They dare to dream!

Change

08 Thursday Sep 2016

Posted by in Nature, Whole

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We humans alter the Earth to suit our needs.  We impact our environment, often with little thought to long term consequences.

I’ve been blessed to live on 23 beautiful acres.  Harmony Farm’s pond, stream, woods, and fields have impacted every aspect of my being.  Admittedly, we changed the land by building a house, a barn and a studio, but we tried to do so in an earth-friendly manner.  When planting and tending gardens, we did so organically.

While living on this small slice of nature, I spent time each day outside.  My activity depended on the season.  I walked trails through the woods almost every day and when snow covered the ground I did so with snowshoes.  During spring summer and fall, I ate breakfast by the  pond listening to birdsong, inhaling the sights around me.  I also frequently swam in the pond – a delightful sensory experience.

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Something important happened during the 36 years that I’ve lived on this land.  I changed.  It happened gradually, almost imperceptibly.  By spending time outside each day, I began feeling whole, more complete.  More peaceful and serene.

The land changed me.

Circle of Stones

01 Thursday Nov 2012

Posted by in Spiritual

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Many years ago I read “A Circle of Stones” by Judith Duerk.  The repetitive “How might your life have been different if there had been a place for you, a place for you to go to be with…” evoked a sense of longing in me.  It spoke to the need for women to gather in community, to share their stories with each other, and to support each other’s journey to wholeness. 

“What if there was a place…”  “What if there was a place…”  This phrase rooted itself in my heart, silently waiting for the right time to echo forth.  On walks in the woods, I felt the land offering to be that place … a place where people could commune with nature, connect with each other, and help each other to grow.  “How might that happen?” I wondered to myself, as well as the land. 

Year after year, “How might that happen?” continued surfacing in my mind.  Then my parents died.  After my sadness abated, which took a couple of years, I realized that the money they left might just cover the expenses of erecting a building.  But in order for it to be built, a large and stately pine tree would need to be chopped down. 

My husband and I debated about Grandmother Pine.  She felt sacred.  We wanted her to stay.  Yet forced to choose between the building and the pine tree, we ultimately opted for the building – with one condition.  Grandmother Pine’s stump would need to stay.  I wanted Grandmother Pine to be remembered. 

While the building was under construction, a fluorescent yellow ribbon with the word “CAUTION” circled the stump, alerting all contractors to exercise care when navigating machinery in the area.  I removed the ribbon once Harmony Center came into being.  

I thought of the stump as an altar, and sometimes placed ceremonial objects either on her or around her.  For the most part, however, Grandmother Pine’s memorial remained undecorated.  This summer, when Foxglove surrounded her with loving energy, it felt as if they were honoring Grandmother Pine.

At this year’s Fall Equinox, I placed a sunflower at her base.  Then recently, I stood contemplating her flat top, asking how she might like to be honored, and suddenly thought, “A Circle of Stones!  Grandmother Pine gave her life so we could have that place, a place to gather in community.  A circle of stones would honor the sacrifice she made.”  And with this thought an image came to mind – a circle of stones around a rock cairn on top of the stump.   

I walked around, gathering stones from various places on the land.  As always, I checked in with each stone, making sure it wanted to be part of this altar.  Then I placed larger ones in the middle creating the cairn, and around the cairn a circle of stones. 

Completing my mission, I stood back to take a look.  I saw the cairn as a new being growing up from the center of the stump.  And around this being, a stone circle creating sacred space within which this being can grow. 

“What if there was a place…”  “What if there was a place….”

Thanks to Grandmother Pine, we now have that place, a place where people gather in community – Harmony Center.

Intentions

01 Sunday Jan 2012

Posted by in Growing

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People often begin the New Year with a resolution about something they intend to do, or intend to have happen.  Intentions direct psycho-spiritual energy in a specific direction.

Setting an intention is similar to entering an address into a GPS navigational system.  The system processes the address and determines how to get to that destination.  It may take you down circuitous routes, or make “corrections” along the way, but it guides you to where you want to go.

As a counseling psychologist and organic grower, I help people heal inner wounds and grow into whole human beings.  When I begin working with someone, it’s useful for us to set an intention, to decide together where they want their growing to take them.  Setting an intention helps us have a shared vision, a sense of where our journey together will take us.

On this New Year’s Day, I set my intention for this blog.  May it nourish the soil of your deeper self and help you grow into wholeness.

And as we begin this journey together, I invite you to set an intention for yourself.  Close your eyes, take a few slow, deep breaths, and ask: “Where do I want my growing to take me?”  Sit with this question quietly for a while, allowing the answer to come from deep within.  Then put that image into words using positive language.  Perhaps write the words down in a journal, or share them with the rest of us in a post.