One of the things that I’ve realized in doing the work of a land healer is how little support and information is available. When I wrote Land Healing, I decided to create a supportive community in addition to the book …
Land Healers Network Launch!
community
Reskilling, Rebuilding Community, and Exploring Folk Traditions at the John. C. Campbell Folk School
When we think about the building blocks of a new human society, a human society that doesn’t destroy the planetary biosphere, that nurtures and supports human beings and communities, that fosters our creativity and innovation—I think it starts in fostering …
Living for the Future at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage
As many of us seek to transition from our current destructive culture and create a powerful vision for the future, we need good models of what this kind of transition may look like. As we are moving forward, this often …
A 21st Century Wheel of the Year: Reskilling at Imbolc
In a traditional neopagan Wheel of the Year, Imbolc is the holiday that offers the first signs of spring. Most traditionally, this is when the ewes began to lactate, and the snowdrops appeared on the landscape in the British Isles. …
The Ancestors, the Descendants, and the Stones
What would our descendants say about this time period? How would we, as a people, be written into their histories? What stories would they tell of us? Perhaps our ancestors would say that this was a time of recklessness, willful …
Stones Rising: A Reflection on Raising a Standing Stone
We gather to the outstretched rope lines, ready to move the 22-foot-long stone weighing thousands of pounds by hand. Our goal is about a half a mile away, through hilly terrain. This stone is destined for the a place in …
Embracing the Bardic Arts: A History of Making Fine Things
One of the changes that humans have experienced with the rise of industrialization, and more recently, consumerism, is a shift away from creating our own lovingly crafted objects, objects created with precision, skill, high-quality materials, and care and into using …
Taking up the Path of the Bard, Part II
Creativity is the singing of the soul. When we create, we draw from the deepest parts of who we are and express ourselves to the world. The act of creation, drawing forth and connecting to our inner selves, is the …
A Celtic Galdr Ritual for Land Healing
The following is a land healing ritual that we did at the OBOD’s Mid-Atlantic (MAGUS) gathering last weekend (May 2017). (For a wonderful review of this gathering, please see Dean Easton’s A Druid’s Way Blog!) This ritual was done by …
Making a Difference
I had a long conversation with an older close relative of mine over the holidays. He had overheard my sister, brother-in-law, and I talking about herbalism, permaculture, cultural shifts. This conversation was framed in the context of the recent Paris …
Review of the 2015 Mother Earth News Fair in Seven Springs, PA
Last weekend, I attended the Mother Earth News Fair in Seven Springs, PA for the first time. I’ve been wanting to go for years, but I was always too far away until my recent relocation. I wanted to share with …
Taking Back Our Food: Establishing a Food Co-Op in the Community
I remember the first time I visited a food co-op. It was in Ann Arbor, Michigan, a wonderful, progressive town, and the co-op was incredible. From products made or grown locally in South-East Michigan (non-GMO and organic tortilla chips, fresh …
On Letting Go of Your Land and Leaving Your Homestead: Lamentations, Joys, and the Way Forward
I’m in the midst of a major life transition. After six years of living in South-East Michigan (with five of those here on my homestead), I have made a big life decision to take a new job at a new …
Alternative Housing: Tiny Houses, Campers, and the Road Less Traveled
For an increasing number of Americans, especially those under 30, the “American Dream” is an absolute joke. For those of us in our 30’s, like me, its still a joke, but a harsh one because lot of us got sucked …
Community and Connectedness: Extending our understanding of “tribe”
Sociologist Geert Hosfede* has a set of cultural dimensions (which you can look at here) that helps us understand broad differences in culture. These aren’t absolute by any means, but they do give us some baseline indications of how cultures …
The Process of Tapping Trees and Making Maple Syrup – A Blessing from the Maple Trees
This time of year, something magical happens to the maple trees. When the temperatures drop below freezing at night and then goes above freezing during the day, the maple sap runs. In South-East Michigan, this usually occurs in late February …