Community of the Holy Spirit
May 2012
Connecting the Dots
Jiffy's Home
Note to Farm Volunteers
Gardens Everywhere!
Quick Links
Dear friends,

Summer is rushing toward us, and every day we are treated to stunning displays of nature at its most creative, both on the farm and in the city.

Our own "special day" (Pentecost) will be here soon, and this year the city sisters will travel to the farm for a joint celebration. We hope to receive a new Associate, to welcome new friends, and to enjoy a lovely country day together.

We know that many of our Associates were received on or near Pentecost, and we assure you of our prayers for you on this wonderful day of celebration. And for all our dear friends, associates, volunteers and supporters, we give thanks for your love and prayers!

Blessings in this richly abundant season!

The Community of the Holy Spirit
Connecting the DotsConnecting the (pea) dots

 

The environmental organization 350.org issued an invitation to all citizens of the planet to participate in a global event on May 5th. Their website described the purpose of the event: "Record-breaking heat waves in Russia, wildfires in Australia, floods in Thailand; every time we pick up the newspaper and read about another record-breaking natural disaster, it becomes increasingly clear that climate change is not a future problem -- it's happening right now. Connect the Dots is a project of 350.org and our partner organizations to shine a spotlight on the connections between extreme weather and climate change. We will use those connections to issue a wake-up call for our communities, the media, and our politicians. We'll kick off the project with Climate Impacts Day on 5/5/12, when thousands of communities around the world come together to take action to Connect the Dots and call for urgent action to stop the climate crisis." 

 

The invitation was to plan an event, an art project, a rally, any kind of creative action that demonstrates the connection between extreme weather and climate change. Further, we were invited to take a picture of the action or project and email to the website.

 

We participated in Connect the Dots by taking a picture of some of our peas beds, sadly bereft of peas because the weather warmed up too quickly in March and April, and the peas were not able to survive. We sent the picture to the 350.org website, where pictures from all around the world are ported, showing people from many countries participating in this unifying event. You can view a slideshow collage of global photos from around the world here, and a larger version of our photo here.

 


Jiffy's Home
 
I have had the most marvelous month getting to know our first dairy cow, Jiffy. I say first because Jiffy is pregnant and (we hope) she due to calve in August. If she has a little heifer (or two--Jiffy has had twins before!) we'll have the beginnings of a herd.  Jiffy arrived on April 10th and every day since I have milked her and oh, what a delight. My hands and forearms are becoming stronger every day and the whole milking procedure begins to feel routine and not take as long as when we first began. Jiffy is standing still more and more often and 
sometimes I am milking two teats at once -- a real accomplishment for me.
 
In the evening I go down to the pasture -- not to milk her (because, as she will dry off soon, we only milk once a day), but just to visit. I give her a brush, scratch her neck, and while she grazes I engage in some contemplation of the decidedly bucolic, pastoral type. We have put a few of our chickens in the pasture to keep Jiffy company and after they are safely locked up in their movable house (designed and built by Bill -- and it's a beauty), Jiffy walks me to the gate and we bid each other goodnight. She lows, I bow and that's that -- another day in paradise. 

 

Note to Farm Volunteers
A reminder that we are having Third Saturday Volunteer Days on the farm. The usual hours are 10:00 to 4:00. However, summer tends to give us days that are just too hot for working outside all day, so June, July and August volunteer days will look like this:

9:00 - 12:00  Outside work (during the 
coolest hours!)
12:00 - 1:00  Shared lunch (bring a sack 
lunch; we provide drinks and dessert)
1:00 - 3:00  Quiet work inside or in the 
shade outside
 
If you have any questions, or to let us know that you plan to join us for a Third Saturday on the Farm day, just e-mail us here. (And if the September day promises to be a warm one, we'll keep this schedule then as well.)
 
Join us!
 

Gardens everywhere
 

The city now has three garden areas. With the completion of the street-level plantings a few weeks ago, the city sisters are now enjoying blooms and greens and nature's beauty from ground to rooftop!