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News from Reevis Mountain School
May 2009
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A Division of the PAAK Foundation, an Arizona 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
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 On May 29, 1979, Peter Bigfoot and a group of students started a trek into the Superstition Wilderness from the Cross P Ranch (now the J-B). They had intended to start at the Campaign Trailhead, but the road was so washed out they couldn't drive in. So on the first day they hiked from the Cross P up to the Upper Horrell Ranch, stopping along the way to cool off in the creek.
When they reached the Upper Horrell, Bigfoot says he felt right away, "This is home." He had a strong sense of deja vu, and he could already feel what it could become, although he wasn't able to put it into words right away. Ever since he'd been a boy in New Jersey, Peter had felt drawn to Arizona and to the Superstitions in particular. When he saw the Upper Horrell Ranch, he felt this was where he was supposed to be.
The next day the group hiked up to Reavis Gap and then back to the Upper Horrell, where they camped again. Bigfoot was already starting to talk about the possibility of owning the land and what could be done there.
Back at the Cross P, he found out who owned the Upper Horrell, a rancher named Jim Tidwell. And by chance, Jim Tidwell, who also owned the Spring Creek Store, was at the store when Peter dropped by that day. Tidwell had received many proposals to sell the Upper Horrell but had never been interested in selling. The land had been in the family a long time. Peter asked him, "What are you going to do with it?" and Tidwell said, "What are you going to do with it?" Peter said, "I'd like to live there and put in an orchard and a garden and make it into a little Garden of Eden." Tidwell said, "That's the best idea I've heard yet. Give me a few days to talk to my wife."
The next thing Peter did was to go to his friend John Goodson. Goodson is an attorney and a close friend of Peter's. They taught land navigation classes together, and Goodson was the friend who had dropped Peter off at the start of his July 1975 trek. When Peter mentioned Tidwell's name, Goodson said, "I think I know that guy." It turned out that John Goodson and Jim Tidwell had been fraternity brothers at law school.
Bigfoot and Goodson visited Tidwell and eventually negotiated a sale. Goodson created the legal partnership called Ecological and Environmental Experiment for Everyone (EEEE) by which funds were raised to purchase the land. EEEE received title on December 15, 1979, and preparations were begun for living on the land. Peter and about eighteen others moved to the farm - now called Reevis Mountain School of Self-Sufficiency - on June 10, 1980.
It's been thirty years since Bigfoot first discovered the place that would become Reevis Mountain School of Self-Reliance, and conceived what could be done here. We are so grateful to John Goodson and the innumerable others who helped Reevis get started and get to where we are today.
Now we have all that Bigfoot originally envisioned, and more. Today, we're working on the Multi-Purpose Building that one day will house a new kitchen, healing room, library, office, common room, and dormitory. We hope to finish the stone part of the building during the Stone Masonry class this week. We have three awesome interns, Nate, Mindy, and Donald. We've had a wonderful spring full of classes and events, and we're looking forward to the fall, when we'll have more classes and holiday events. We're excited to meet all the students, visitors, and interns who will come to Reevis in the next year and beyond. For more information (and pictures!) about the farm, Peter Bigfoot's herbal remedies, and classes and events, please visit www.reevismountain.org. |
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We'd Like to Thank ...
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 ... our friend Jeremy, painter and kundalini yoga instructor, who spent a whole weekend here painting the exterior of both the common house and Boulder Cabin. We met Jeremy at a plants class last March and are so glad to have his friendship and help.
... Pat and Lyndal at M&S Marine in Roosevelt, who donated a substantial amount of roofing metal. We plan to use it for a shelter for the resource yard and for the Multi-Purpose Building.
... United Loose Leaf, binder manufacturer in Phoenix, for the donation of three-ring binders and card stock for our Useful Wild Western Plants book, the text for our plants classes. Brad at United Loose Leaf has supported Reevis for many years, and we appreciate it.
... Katie Stage and Pete Maynard, students at Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and Southwest Institute of Healing Arts (respectively), who organized student herb retreats at RMS this spring. They were big fun for us, and we hope these student-organized retreats become regular events.
... Pete and Lee Ann, for sharing their grapefruit with us - they're so delicious and cooling during the hot weather!
... Nate, who continues to do an amazing job with the orchard and garden, as well as feeding us and our students and visitors meals that we relish and remember.
... Mindy and Donald, our newest interns, for jumping in with enthusiasm and good cheer.
... and all of our friends and supporters for your help and energy.
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| Featured Remedy: Scorpion Sting Remedy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We featured this remedy a couple of months ago, when we were starting to think about summer. Now, as the weather gets warmer, we are seeing more scorpions around the farm, and you might be encountering them yourself at home and when you are out in nature. Peter has been stung 29 times in the past 29 years by the dreaded Centuroides scorpion. He has experimented with many natural remedies and found some that work very well. His favorite is Western Mugwort, used both externally and internally.
Western Mugwort keeps the toxin from spreading and decreases the localized symptoms of pain, tingling, and numbness almost immediately. You can carry the bottled tincture with you on camping and hiking trips and have it ready to use when you need it.
Scorpion Sting Remedy is a "3X" tincture, meaning we run each batch through fresh Mugwort leaves three times, making it triple-strong. To use it, soak a mass of cotton with the tincture and hold it on the sting. Also, take some of the tincture internally, diluted in water.
Get yours before you get stung!
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| What We're Growing, Harvesting, and Eating
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  We'd like to share with you what's going on in the garden, the orchard, and the kitchen - the vegetables we're planting, the bounty (fruit, veggies, livestock, and herbs!) we're harvesting, and how we turn our harvest into nourishing, delicious meals.
What We're Growing
We're planting now for the summer and fall: beets, collards, summer squash, cucumbers, watermelon, corn, onions, okra, sweet potatoes, beans, and carrots! Already in the garden we have arugula, onions, garlic, leeks, lettuce, and cabbage ... and out in the orchard, one apricot tree has ripened (#215, with a light crop that, between us and the birds, went fast!).
What We're Harvesting
From the garden, we are taking cabbage, leeks, garlic, baby arugula, and purslane. The past few weeks we've been harvesting milk thistle seeds (thanks to Mindy and Sara, one of our short-term interns, for braving the thistle patch to help with that!). Milk thistle seed tea is one of the best liver tonics there is.
What We're Eating
Every meal at RMS is built around greens, whole grains, and meat or eggs. After our friend Lyn shared some eggplant from her garden, Nate treated us to an amazing Middle Eastern supper of baba ganoush, hummus (with homemade tahini), felafel, and raita. On more usual days, we have some of the wild Alaskan salmon that Peter brings back from his annual fishing trips, turkey from our farm-raised birds, or beef (our beloved Cowpie) on the table, along with rice, quinoa, or hominy, and salad from the garden - lots of our crisp Romaine and Salad Bowl lettuce, plus beet and turnip greens, onion and leek tops, shredded cabbage and carrots, herbs, and wild greens like purslane. |
| Coming Events
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ RMS's Fall Class & Event Schedule will appear in the June newsletter (end of June).
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How to Purchase RMS Remedies
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Peter Bigfoot's herbal tinctures and salves are available to order by email (orders@reevismountain.org), phone (928) 467-2675, on our website (click on Country Store), by mail (7448 S. J-B Ranch Rd., Roosevelt, AZ 85545), or at retailers in Phoenix (Healthy Habit, 6029 N. 7th St., and Total Body Awakening Legacy, 3747 W. Montebello Ave.), Scottsdale (The Natural Medicinary at Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine, 8010 E. MacDowell Rd.), Mesa (Preparing Wisely, 144 S. Mesa Dr.), Tempe (SWIHA's bookstore, 1100 E. Apache Blvd.), Flagstaff (New Frontiers Market and Village Healing Center), Sedona (New Frontiers Market), Cottonwood (Mt. Hope Foods), Camp Verde (Healthy Thymes), and Globe (Back to Basics, corner of Broad and Cedar).
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"My uncle was having sinus problems and a persistent bloody nose. The Magic Stuff cleared it up!" - JP
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| Wilderness Retreats at RMS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  RMS is a sanctuary free of most modern-day distractions and pollutants (including television!), a place to reconnect with Earth and Spirit, while enjoying the school's organic/whole foods cuisine and wilderness surroundings. Yurpys and cabins are available for overnight, weekend, or longer retreats, for individuals, couples, or groups. We provide meals, shuttle from Roosevelt, a meditation lesson, and suggestions for local hiking. Please visit www.reevismountain.org or email us for more information. |
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Quick Links...
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We Welcome Donations
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ RMS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization; donations may be tax deductible. We're currently wishing for the donation of a commercial-grade riding lawnmower, a second solar water pump to replace the gasoline pump, and two or three sheep. We also appreciate prayers for rain! Cash donations are always welcomed with deep gratitude and will help us with the costs of feeding our work-exchange residents, who are not required to pay for their room and board.
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"You are not on this planet to produce anything with your body. You are on this planet to produce something with your soul. Your body is simply and merely the tool of your soul. Your mind is the power that makes the body go. So what you have here is a power tool, used in the creation of the soul's desire."
"What is the soul's desire?"
"Indeed, what is it?"
"I don't know. I'm asking you."
"I don't know. I'm asking you."
"This could go on forever."
"It has."
- Neale Donald Walsch, Conversations with God
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