Wintertime blues

Wintertime at Twin Oaks can be dark and cold. We live outside a great deal of the time, and some of our buildings are drafty. I feel fortunate to live in a warm building with plenty of hot water and a kitchen, but this is not true for the courtyard buildings, especially. The community clothes area works hard to provide warm bedding and clothing for all of us, but the budget's not big enough to provide new things for everyone, and how would you do that, with turnover, anyway? Somehow, everyone manages to keep warm anyway. And there's plenty of food, even in the wintertime, thanks to all the work done in August to put away food, and the hard work that goes into slaughtering and butchering a steer. I enjoy a simple lifestyle, but in the winter, it's more of a challenge.

The commune empties out for Christmas, and then there's the return and more. Soon we'll have many many guests, as the curious and the loved come for New Year's. Keenan and I are responsible for making sure all these people have a place to sleep, as the "Room Assigners," and I hope that we've done an adequate job finding spaces and communicating with hosts. I hope there'll not be any collisions. We don't have any more rooms. We're full to bursting.

I like people, but I must admit to some trepidation. Well-meaning crowds are still crowds, and I get overwhelmed. Fortunately I have my own room, as all Oakers do, and I can escape there. In the winter, when we're all together, I especially grateful for my own room.

I'm glad that Spring's coming, in a few months, and that the winter is generally full of goodwill and love. I can tell that Oakers make a special effort to bring joy to the farm during this time. Last night, for instance, we had a gathering of about 30 in TCLR, with a fire and cookies and eggnog, and we read Dylan Thomas's "A Child's Christmas in Wales." A cosy good time was had by all.
Okey dokey artichokey, much love and light and warmth!
Kelpie