Memphis Democrat
October 10, 2002

Happy Land Day! We had a celebration in honor of owning our land for 5 years. We spent Friday evening telling stories about the last six years in Scotland County and the years before that in California. Saturday we had a party with a yummy potluck dinner, live music from many Rabbits and guests, and a bonfire late in the night.

Despite all the celebrating, there's been a somber note in the air. A woman named LeeAnn who was visiting Sandhill Farm to help with the sorghum harvest put her hand too close to the mill and got it caught. She's down at the hospital in Columbia recovering. We've heard that the prognosis is better than we feared, but she'll still lose some of her hand. We send our good wishes to LeeAnn and her family, and to the folks at Sandhill in their difficult time.

This time of year is usually the beginning of the fall shrinkage. Mark and Megan have been living with us for a year and a half. They left to have many adventures, including spending the summer in Hawaii and traveling next year in Europe working on organic farms. We hope in a year so after they've seen the world they'll swing back by northeast Missouri.

Tom loves to rock climb and he's been here for over a year and has had to make due with climbing Skyhouse. He went on a month long vacation out to Southern California to see friends and feed his addiction to being on sheer faces of rock.

Tamar's sister Sharon visited us this week from California. We enjoyed having her around, although we sometimes got confused when she wore Tamar's clothes. The two of them headed to Massachusetts to visit their parents and see the New England fall foliage while they are there.

People have been very busy trying to get their houses finished enough to live in this winter, as the cold weather reminds them that it is approaching. A big group went to Blue Heron Orchard in Canton to pick apples and plaster a strawbale apple storage shed in exchange for some apples. That kept the food processers busy making apple sauce. In preparation for the Open House, everyone put in a few hours cleaning things up around the farm to make things more neat and pretty for the tours.

Speaking of Open House, it's coming up on Saturday the 12th. We'll have tours starting every half hour from 1 to 4pm. We request that some of you visit the Dog and Gun, and eat lunch at Zimmerman's, and then come by our place at 2 or 3. The last two years we've been very pleased with the turnout, but we get a little overwhelmed when the crowds show up at the very beginning. But I encourage everyone to come and see the amazing progress we've made this last year.

Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is a nonprofit and a residential community that demonstrates ecological sustainability in Rutledge, MO.

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