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.