Hello out there, it’s Sam again with this edition of This Week at Dancing Rabbit, filling in for new writer Josi who’s been out of town visiting family.
What a topsy-turvy week it’s been for me! The public school kids are home for winter break, the Bobbie school kids had a week without Bobbie school, and Morgan’s home from college. The house is full of kids and full of cookies. I haven’t been doing our regular home-school routine this week, so my days are sort of drifting around without that routine to pin them down. It’s kind of upsetting. I’m looking forward to having things get back to normal in the new year.
Like many of y’all out there, we had some parties this week. There was a cookie feast at Thistledown (hence the fullness of cookies in my life) and a brunch potluck at the Mercantile. I look forward to both of those events each year because of their low-key and kid-friendly atmospheres. The cookie feast had plenty of vegan options, and the brunch had some, too. I labored lovingly over a batch of vegan pierogi to carry forward one of the traditions of my family of origin. They seemed to be a hit, for which I’m glad; it would be hard to justify making them every year if I was the only one who enjoyed them.
Some committees decided to take the week off, but others are chugging on with the work of organizing a village from scratch. The village council seem to be hitting their stride, and we’re working out a few of the kinks that have cropped up with overlapping or gapping job descriptions among committees and other bodies. There are so many tasks, chores, positions, jobs, and other roles involved in getting the work done around here! Keeping them organized is proving to be a real bear. We’re on it, though, and we take heart in the knowledge that other communities look to us to see how we organize ourselves to help them make choices about their own structure and governance.
With the shortest daylight hours of the year upon us, I’m noticing that some folks are taking positive action to help ward off seasonal depression. Vitamin D supplements, physical exercise, fresh air, and projects to work on are all things I’ve seen folks try, especially at this time of year. Many folks also make more of an effort to seek out people to spend time with, since we’re less likely to just bump into folks out and about when it’s less pleasant to be relaxing outdoors. Board games, puzzles, dinner swaps, and more have been going on around the village.
This week saw another revival of “Tea and Conversation”, a series of chats hosted on a rotating basis, with tea, and a topic of global scope and local manifestations. The topic was left open this week, and next week attendees will discuss “Leadership.”
Our littlest Rabbit, Dmitri, continues to grow up, as kids tend to do. He’s rolling over like a champ now, and lets us know vociferously who he’d prefer to be hanging out with. And he’s super cute. The big news is that a breast milk donor has been found, so now he can benefit from more naturally whole nutrition. Thank you to the donor; What a wonderful gift!
Soon it will be a new year and I look forward to finding out what adventures await us over the next twelve months. We’ll keep you posted. Thanks for reading, and making what we do here a part of your life, too. Happy New Year!
Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is an intentional community and educational nonprofit in northeast Missouri, focused on sustainable living. Regular tours will start again in April of 2014. In the meantime, check us out on our website or on Facebook.