May 18-24

This week, ‘this week’ offers a post by guest bloggers Macall & David. They have been at Indralaya on fellowship since late April. Macall was also here last summer and this year she brought David along. They will be leaving soon on a voyage of discovery along the west coast, with plans to get as far south as Big Sur before heading back home to Utah. You can keep up on their progress by following this link.

David, Rose, and Macall

We are David and Macall, two wandering kids from the Salt Lake area in Utah. We came to Indralaya to participate in the fellowship program. For the month we have been here, we have seen so many great people come through. It’s awesome to get to make so many friends from such a wide variety of backgrounds and ages. Not only have the people been rad, the programs have also provided new experiences and a chance to open up our minds and drink in some good knowledge. The food has been most excellent, and has given us a chance to try an all vegetarian diet with some vegan and gluten free meals thrown in occasionally. We’ve been able to try so many new things and discover some favorites. As fellowship members, we work in the garden or kitchen every day, both are full of learning and enjoyment. Kitchen duty is cool because we get to see the hard work that goes into the delicious food, while garden duty is nice because we get to see how the things we eat grow and need nourishment and care. When we aren’t working, though, there are multiple trails and beaches to explore.

         

David, Miriam, Leonie & Gale

During the first week, Lama Glenn Mullen came to teach about Tibetan healing meditation. He discussed a lot about compassion and equanimity, and how each of them can enrich our lives. We practiced breathing in the good, clean energy and letting it cleanse us of our bad energy as we breathed out. It was quite interesting to see a new side of meditation and to learn of some new cultures.

Barred Owl

The second week brought Jason Siff, a man who has formulated a meditative practice called recollective awareness. In this form, the goal is not to let go of all thoughts to find inner peace, but to let them flow and pass through freely without restraint. The practice is supposed to help with accepting thoughts and how they make you feel and realizing that everyone is human. One interesting thing about his program is that it was silent, which was a bit difficult for us simply because we are too talkative and staff requires a bit of discussion to be sure the food doesn’t turn out scary.

Qigong practitioners draw down the chi

Kim Ivy came third, and taught us all how to gather energy, called chi, with a slow motion martial art called qigong. It was a blast! Kim was very easy to learn with and the program participants really enjoyed gathering chi and learning a new “formless” practice that leaves you feeling well stretched and energetic. Qigong was our favorite program of the three we participated in.

worker bee

Over Memorial Day weekend a work party was running round the clock to get everything officially ready for the summer season. Cabins were repaired, garden beds were prepared, the dock was installed, and worms were sifted out of many wheel barrels full of compost. We got the opportunity to meet many of Indralaya’s oldest friends and a few new ones.

garden beds

We’ve had a wonderful time. Minor and Leonie are incredible and are such a huge part of the beautiful environment and community that Indralaya has become and continues to grow into. It was a joy to spend time with them and Carole, the kitchen manager, and become part of their small, but happy little piece of heaven. Have no doubt, we will return soon!