The Frost Has Come: A Dancing Rabbit Update

The Frost Has Come: A Dancing Rabbit Update

All good things come to an end, I hear, and in my 15-plus years at Dancing Rabbit, it has so far held true that every warm season is sooner or later met with a first frost. I did see the forecast—patchy frost here the other morning—and I’ve seen the marginal impact on beans and sweet potatoes in the garden. The first definitive frost is expected tomorrow night. I anticipate climate change may shift our seasonal expectations over time and we may end up in zone 6a instead of 5b, but for this year we're seeing frost just a hair later…read more >
Cross-Pollination: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Cross-Pollination: A Dancing Rabbit Update

I have a sense of time marching on as the season shifts gears from late summer to fall. Liz here, checking in with the latest about Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage. This week we had several rain storms, including one loud thunderstorm that kept me up for hours. I am grateful after these storms that my little, straw bale house stays snug and dry in this weather. I haven't felt the need to fire up my wood stove, which is how I heat my house, but a nip in the air is telling me it won’t be long. The village feels quiet…read more >
Handprints in the Soil: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Handprints in the Soil: A Dancing Rabbit Update

It seems like every time I write this column, I end up writing about why the previous week wasn’t a “normal” week. And this last week was no exception. Many of my regular weekly events took place— “the WIP” (the week-in-preview), Ultimate Frisbee games, homeschool classes, there was a Tuesday night potluck—but I wasn’t available to participate at any of them. Instead, I spent the week observing worms eating food waste, activating bio-char, making “lasagna” with cardboard, straw, and compost, and listening to more fascinating presentations than I can count. Christina here, writing about the Permaculture Design Course which I…read more >
It’s Almost Soup Season: A Dancing Rabbit Update

It’s Almost Soup Season: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Howdy y'all. My name's Ben. I have a master's degree in duck husbandry and domestic thermodynamics and a minor in bull manure, which is probably how I ended up on the prestigious list of presenters and learning leaders for Dancing Rabbit's new, homegrown Permaculture Design Certification currently in progress. Now a person can read some of the several, thousand-page tomes on the subject of permaculture or attend a class such as the one being offered here at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, but don't be surprised to discover that there's a bunch of permaculturists around who don't even know that they're already…read more >
Cat Karma: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Cat Karma: A Dancing Rabbit Update

The other night, Highway MM from Rutledge to Memphis and back was two very different experiences. On my way, in the partial light and drizzle, it was a beautiful country drive: hills and curves and cows. I love these kinds of drives. I used to have to leave the city to take a country detour like this. Now, as a new resident at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, I get to enjoy these back roads in the natural course of my comings and goings.   While the drive to Memphis was enjoyable, the drive back to Dancing Rabbit later that night was a…read more >
Seven Plump Piglets and Bioluminescent Fungi: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Seven Plump Piglets and Bioluminescent Fungi: A Dancing Rabbit Update

September rolled in quietly last week while my attention was elsewhere. Now I find myself halfway through the remaining few weeks of summer, finally enjoying as many tomatoes and dropping peaches as I care to eat. I’m appreciating these cooler days and nights, as well, even though they portend the waning of the season when such delights will eventually come to an end for the year. Ted here, to bring you the latest from here. This week at Dancing Rabbit bridged one big event and another; from the Singing Rabbit event we hosted here on Labor Day weekend to our…read more >
Bringing the Festival to My Own Backyard: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Bringing the Festival to My Own Backyard: A Dancing Rabbit Update

I’m sure that plenty of exciting things happened here at Dancing Rabbit during the past week—not the least of which is that we finally got some much-needed rain! But I’m having a hard time remembering it all over the songs in my head. I’m not the first to say it, but one of the really great things about living here is how many awesome workshops and events happen in the village. I can learn and have fun and meet people and eat amazing food—and then go home to sleep in my own bed. Christina here, writing on the last day…read more >
Living As My Authentic Self: A Dancing Rabbit Update

Living As My Authentic Self: A Dancing Rabbit Update

What does it mean to live an authentic life? Liz here, observing the effects of passing the one year mark of living in alignment with my values, intentions, and purpose. What I remember of my former, urban life (as it fades into the mists of time), is that I experienced considerable tension when thinking about the state of the world and my opportunities to do anything active or meaningful to improve it. What I have noticed since moving to Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is that I have relaxed internally, with greater joy and happiness, now that these two things line up.…read more >