Let’s sing it all together now!.. “Oh, what a beautiful mornin’, oh, what a beautiful day. I got a beautiful feelin’ ev’rything’s goin’ my way.” Yes folks, I may be a young gal of 30 but I certainly did start my mornin’ singin’ this song from the classic musical Oklahoma! Thanks, mom & pop, for raisin’ me up with the good ol’ Rodgers & Hammerstein!
Hey all, Katherine here singin’ along to another week in Rabbitville. While I would love to say that Spring has Sprung, I am aware that the last frost date is still over a month out for our area. What that means for us is that seeds are starting in our greenhouses and trees are being pruned around our land.
My friend Aurelia (age 8) was spotted picking up those very whips for what I suppose will become some sort of neat schooling project. Perhaps a basket? Knowing that she is a part of the goat co-op, they may very well have gone straight to the herd. That would be good eatin’ for our very pregnant nanny goats who are due mid-April.
The peepers are peeping, the peepers are peeping! Yes folks, these chorus frogs have emerged once again from their winter slumber to charm our village with their wonderful song. They can be heard night and day in the very early spring after the snow has melted and up to 2.5 miles away! This is quite a voice for a tiny being less than an inch big.
When I write these articles, I love to do a little research into some of my topics. Fun Fact about the spring peeper: other names for them, in Canada and New England, include “pink-winks”, “tinkletoes”, and my personal favorite, “pinkletinks”.
The song of the peeper is just another of our “firsts” for the year. I saw my first ant the other day, bee yesterday, and bat this evening! I was extremely excited each time and greeted every friend respectfully. Our lives in the village and those of the flora and fauna are quite interconnected, as we learn to share our land with all of the beings and live in harmony.
Building houses and digging ponds can be quite a game-changer for ecosystems and Rabbits are quite aware of having. As individuals, we choose to live with nature in our own personal ways; as a village, we have committees such as Land Management that monitor our impact and attempt to lessen the literal footprints that we are creating on our 280 acres.
Within the village proper, the sun has certainly had its effect on our folk as we emerge from our winter cocoons and begin work (outside) again. Kyle has been splitting away shingle after white oak shingle to make a roof for the 80 year old log cabin that he has been rebuilding since last season. Acquired from Larry Mitchell’s farm south of Edina, this awesome structure that was built by Mitchell’s father during the depression will soon be gracing the slopes of DR’s very own King’s Forest.
The King’s Forest is only a few years old, planted by the Critter Collective, and boasts of being a food forest. “What is a food forest?” you may ask. Well, let me tell you! A food forest, also known as forest gardening, is a low-maintenance food production method based on a woodland ecosystem. Making use of companion planting with fruit and nut trees, shrubs, herbs, vines and perennial vegetables, this edible ecosystem builds a woodland habitat that is delicious for all of the senses.
Speaking of delicious sun-kissed activities, this beautiful weather has allowed our meals to move back outside among the birds and bees, and remember what it is like to feel the wind in our rice. I was once again able to bake up some apples and raisins in our solar oven for a contribution to our tri-community potluck, held every Tuesday.
Meal times in the village can be very special when the work day is through and a great spread is waiting in yonder courtyard. Many folks have found that eating dinner at 6:30 still leaves enough sunlight afterwards to squeeze in a bit more work, or at least leisurely pick up our strewn-about tools. Whatever the event, in this weather, it is sure to be enjoyable.
And as we fade out this week, I would like to share gratitude for y’all wanting to hear our collective song (which some Rabbits are known to dance to). I am also encouraging an outdoor foray for yourself to experience the wondrous songs of nature and to tune into the collective harmony. In the words of some particularly famous rolling stones, “…you can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need.”
• • •
Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is an intentional community and nonprofit outside Rutledge, in northeast Missouri, focused on demonstrating sustainable living possibilities. Find out more about us by visiting our website, reading our blog, or emailing us.