A recent fall Saturday decided to gift us with sunny skies, gentle winds, billowing clouds, and the first bite of winter cold in the air. We knew that is a gift to be appreciated and enjoyed. Yet our morning into early afternoon had “to do” list written all over it. Not to be dissuaded, we remembered a nearby trailhead that could be enjoyed for a few hours, even if we couldn’t arrive until almost 3 pm.
Upon arrival at the Paradise Conservation Area trailhead, we noticed an open gate, along with signature for Farmer Frog. Open to the public Saturdays 1 – 5 pm. The name Farmer Frog. An open gate. A gently rolling walk inviting us to a who-knows-what adventure. Let’s check it out.
And that is the moment when an ordinary day turned into an unexpected, uplifting, and extraordinary day.
Farmer Frog is a learning center and working farm, with working farm dogs – really big, cool, turns out kinda smelly, dogs. The dogs, who take care of the goats and the chickens, are natural protectors against those who would harm their charges, the most likely being coyotes or black bears. The older dog teaches the younger one all he needs to know.
Meanwhile beehives provide an opportunity for the bees to thrive, and as we learned from our wonderful tour guide, once the bees returned, there was an immediate flourishing of plant life.
And plant life is flourishing! There are many living gardens. Crops are rotated. All materials and soils are organic. There are 4 feet by 4 feet planting boxes, low to the ground, with purposeful size and spacing. A little one, with a short arm reach can participate in planting and harvesting. Four at a time can work together in the small planting boxes, that are constructed on top of discarded, now re=purposed wood pallets. The isles between boxes are spaced so that they are wheelchair accessible.
Meanwhile, growth is being encouraged via aquaphonic greenhouses, and energy is being supplied via emerging solar panel technology that was installed on the property via a partnership with UW engineering senior capstone projects. Science and technology are part of the relationship to the land and it’s inhabitants.
Everyone here works together. Intentionally. Everyone has a voice. Some voices are human, others are animal, others are plants. Yet the needs of each are looked after, the living beings always seeking to improve communication.
And just when it all seems like it couldn’t get better, it does. We learn that this protected farm space and the adjacent conservation area were the gathering place of Native tribes where peace was negotiated. Mother Cedar tree is still standing, which given the pace of development in King County was a fact that made my knees go weak.
Tribes are coming back to this land to meet again, after many long years. There is a teepee on the site. There are also spaces for live music, indoors and outdoors. There is a wonderful barn for gathering indoors that includes a few shy and gorgeous, rescued cats.
Somehow this sacred land has remained sacred, and open, and is filled with opportunities for children and adults to learn about relationships. From “Where does our food come from?” to “How do we co-exist?” …big questions are answered in a joyful and welcoming space.
While I obviously became a fan of this particular sacred space, and would encourage locals and visitors to check it out, I’m also reminded that each of us have our sacred spaces, and sacred places, and tribe. Finding these are the ultimate cure for the epidemic of loneliness that shows up everywhere from my office couch to Oprah Magazine.
Our technology and pace of life has brought us certain benefits, yet a cost/benefit analysis shows that these factors have also brought us to a loneliness epidemic, which shows up as depression and anxiety – two of the most detrimental and skyrocketing health conditions worldwide.
A return to sacred spaces and places is the best way to rise out of loneliness, sadness, and anxiety. Whether it is standing with your bare feet in the sand at the ocean, kicking leaves as you hike through a forest, sipping coffee in your favorite coffeeshop, busting a sweat at the gym or on the track or on a bike ride, or contemplating the spiritual grandeur that washes over you at your favorite place of worship or meditation. We need our sacred spaces and places to help us return to ourselves, and to again see the world through eyes of appreciation and wonder. (and sometimes, relief.)
A return to tribe is a return to home. A return to home is a return to the interconnected nature of all life. With our tribe, we are not alone. With our tribe, our loneliness is embraced, and in so being received, the heaviness of our lone world fades, and the light of our hearts and lightness of our spirits, returns to us.
Then we give that light/lightness to others. And, so the world changes for the better.