Winter Activities in Voditsa

Although we were not in the village for most of the winter it was fascinating to observe the preparations for this slow-down season when the weather very clearly dictates what can and can't be done.

The year-round sameness that we have grown accustomed to in our ordinary, other lives has alienated us from our connection to mother earth: we have become used to working in temperature-controlled conditions; to the constant availability of most food-stuffs quite unrelated to their natural seasonality; to always rushing around (and ironically feeling we have not achieved enough) instead of taking our cue from nature's patterns of light and dark, warmth and cold, to slow down...

The Bulgarian winter, for those who live in rural areas, dictates a rest from the intensive labor on the land; a diet of warm and comforting soups and stews; a time to spend indoors with friends and neighbors; a time to enjoy creativity. Amongst the many traditional crafts practised in the village during the winter months is the weaving of corn mats from the outer husks of the maize picked at the end of the summer. We were lucky enough to be invited to one of the villager's homes to see a demonstration of how this is done.

Where have we been ??*#@!!

People have been asking where we disappeared to these last few (six) months since our last post! Our 'living the alternatives' project took on a different character when we left Bulgaria in mid November to spend the winter months with family in UK. Our experiences there were more personal in nature and seemed at the time to be less relevant to the theme of this blog. In retrospect, we learnt a lot during our stay there and experienced many things worth sharing, so the plan is to do a little back-tracking and blitz-blogging to update and fill in some of the gaps over the coming weeks.

Other elements of our original plan changed a little too along the way, bringing us unexpectedly back to Israel recently for a family wedding. This has forced us to face prematurely some of the dilemmas and challenges that we knew would be waiting for us at the end of our year-long experience (making a living, education, where to live, how to combine all our goals and ideals with real life, etc). All this stuff, the good with the not so good, has been taken on board and is, as I write this, being processed.

The essence of this whole year so far has been about finding balance in our lives. We are learning that things happen and plans change. Sometimes unexpected changes are for the good and the new direction needs to be embraced; being flexible and knowing how to 'go with the flow' can be admirable traits. However, some changes can be confusing, distracting us from our original goals and a critical eye is needed to evaluate the new situation. Finding that balance between knowing that everything happens for a reason, and directing and taking responsibility for our own destiny has been a big central theme for me these last few months.

Anyhow, it's back to Bulgaria next week for the last few months of our year-long project and hopefully there'll be plenty to write home about! We kick-off with a 4-day permaculture gardening course with the Permaship folk of Shipka then it's back to the village of Voditsa to get our own garden looking ship-shape. We're looking forward to resuming regular arts & crafts sessions in our home with the local children; revamping the summer kitchen; mud-plastering walls; creating story-telling spaces and dens .... our resources of time, money and volunteer helpers will shape what actually ends up happening and it's all very exciting. If anyone reading this feels a connection to the spirit of our project and is interested in coming along for a few days or a week or two to help out - be sure to get in touch.