i was dropped off in savannah at the home of dickie, who i found through a craigslist add asking for help with his composting efforts. he has a facebook page and a blog called planet of the dreamers. this very enthusiatic young man received me with grace as another couchsurfer was just about to depart. this other traveler's name is tasha bowens, and i discovered that she is working on a project called color of food, which is closely related to my project! how exciting to come accross this kindred spirit who is doing such good, encouraging work. i would have liked to visit more with her but she had to be off.
i helped dickie during my stay with the compost at his home and also the pile at the starfish community garden, where dickie has been given a plot and plant starts for free in exchange for being their compost manager.
after staying with dickie for two nights i sought out the twelve tribes community of savannah. these are the folks who's boat, the peacemaker, i stayed on a couple nights in pensacola! the reason i sought them out is that dickie's housemate does not like hosting couchsurfers and the woman who has said she would host me had not responded to my massages... it was either seek their hospitality or find a place to camp this third night in savannah. the guy who i rode into savannah with had mentioned the twelve tribes folks and how i could probably stay with them if i needed to. like a prophecy. when i went to the address on the website someone informed me that they no longer live there, and my heart sank for a moment, then she proceeded to tell me where they now live, which was just a block away! i went there and was welcomed in and served dinner right away! what an amazing feeling of deep joy and relief i felt! like returning home to family.
these folks are trying to start a 'yellow deli' in savannah and will have an organic farm in the future. i was given the top of a bunk bed out at a property they are renting which they jokingly call 'the farm'. there is a medium-sized vegetable garden that is doing quite well despite being more shaded than is optimal. my first morning with them i joined the group welcoming the peacemaker into port. it was a joyful event and it was good to see the people i had met a few weeks before in pensacola. they were hardly surprised to see me with their tribe in savannah.
i helped out a couple of days at one of the job sites downtown and enjoyed working with these men. they run a construction business called commonwealth construction, and that is where most of their income is made. i was pleased to have a lunch packed for me every day by the women, in an insulated lunch bag with my name on it. one day i joined a crew that went to help a friend move a little shed to his new home, where he is establishing a large vegetable garden, building infrastructure, and envisioning a little eco-community in the future. possibly a hostel like hostel in the forest i was told! the place he had been living previously, where we picked the shed up from, is called green bridge farm. now i have been to green string (petaluma), green gate(austin), and green bridge, which is near the small town of guyton, about 29 miles NW of savannah. i found michael and his wife to be very pleasant-spirited people. they believe in the economy of generosity, though michael told me he had never used those exact words. the small farm was producing a lot of food, and a lot of it was ready for harvest. i asked about the chard specifically and he said we could harvest as much as we wanted! i spent about an hour picking the big, beautiful rainbow mix and preparing them for transport. at the last minute i was also able to grab some beautiful leeks! this felt like a great gift to me to be given the honor of harvesting this blessing for the community from the creator through our mother earth. the farm is currently looking for someone to take care of the vegetable production. it was tempting, but i am determined to keep moving and finish this hoop tour!
there is one nice the natural food store in savannah that i shopped at while here. i didn't need to while with the tribe because all the meals are shared and i was included. i really cherish this kind of daily sharing. before every breakfast and dinner there is prayer and sometimes singing and dancing! to be part of these circles had felt really great!
one of the most special days was on monday, when i joined everyone, including many members of the savannah tribe and some other guests, on the peacemaker for a celebratory parade and 'race' with all the other tall ships who were in savannah for this event over the weekend. there was a big downpour for at least a half hour early in the day. it had cleared up before we reached the open ocean. this was my first time on the open ocean or seeing the atlantic. i felt a little sick, but did not throw up. i spent a lot of the time sitting in the galley sewing and visiting with other guests. i made my third teabasket out of reused materials. the first of those i made at sleeping frog farm, near tucson, and then i made another recently while in tallahassee to send to my friend jana in chicago. hope to get a picture of one soon.
something that was very challenging for me while with the tribe is that they throw all their food scraps in the garbage instead of composting. nobody has taken time, made it a priority, in these households. i asked if i could help by starting a pile, but was told it that they were not sure they could maintain it after i left. then i suggested they could donate the materials to the community garden, which is two blocks from their 'yellow house' in savannah. this was also met with resistance. so i just did my best to collect the materials, asking permission when i was around during meal prep, and then depositing the materials myself at the community garden. this felt really good, and i hope that it will inspire some responsible action in the community so that the materials can continue to be composted after i leave.
at the community garden one day i got to build a little raised bed and transplant a rosemary bush. really fun building that little bed with big cement chunks laying around! haven't done rock work in a while. another day i hauled several yardwaste bags of mixed woodchips and leaves over from up the alley. i spread some around fruit trees for extra benefits and left some to be used as the coordinator sees fit. so much material is sent out of these neighborhoods that could be used for building soil! they could all be deposited on the vacant lots, in thick layers, where vegetable gardens or orchards could be established in the deep soil some day!
i didn't know i would stay so long in savannah, but i am really glad i did. when a rideshare had still not come along by wedneday, the 8th, i decided to get out there on the road and try to hitch. gotta keep moving, on to other wonderful, hospitable communities and opportunities to spread love and good will.
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