I find it quite difficult to summarize the experience into any sort of coherent message. I can't even seem to recall which order the magic came in. Did the mud building lessons come in between the sunny weekend jam sessions? Which took precedent; the lectures on the global economy or midnight baking in the field kitchen? I know somewhere in there there were lessons on permaculture, sheet mulch gardening, compost building, soil testing, wetland construction, irrigation, rainwater harvesting, grey and black water purification, straw bale construction, passive heating and cooling, solar power, seed saving, transplanting, companion planting, community building, urban ecology, peak oil, genetic modification of plants, geodesic domes, and economic localization. Throw in fourteen amazing and hilarious people, salsa dance lessons, frolicking in the garden, and sunrise yoga, and I'm sure I got at least half of it.
In a nutshell, here are the few, yet extremely poignant lessons I learned through the GA:
- Trust the process
- Conflict is where two good ideas meet
- Fall in love-with people, ideas, and yourself
- Start small
- Just do it - experience is the best learning technique
- See the problems as the solutions
- Believe in miracles
- Every master started somewhere
- Change is exponential - once it starts, it picks up like wildfire
I've continued to grow and stretch everyday since leaving there, and know it will only continue. The next stops on my list are Adamama and Yesh Maein, two ecological farms practicing permaculture and sustainable living. I'm really looking forward to putting my newly acquired skills to practice at these places and to continue to develop the new eco-village curriculum for camp this summer. Stay tuned!
