|
Everything is done by volunteers and by ‘consensus’; whether it be a minor issue that comes up within a small group, or more major ones such as where
to hold the next national gathering..
Everything
that was needed was there but no money was needed. ~ I’ve heard about this Rainbow Gathering for several years but unfortunately never realized there were ‘local’ gatherings in addition to the national. ~ When a friend said she was going, and in fact helping to set it up, I couldn’t pass up going. ~ I read and learned more about it then, from a web site, that all I needed was my own tent and sleeping bag, something to eat with, and a bellybutton. ~ That last was to prove I was a member of the Rainbow Family. ~ A dish, a bowl, a cup and a fork and spoon. ~ I couldn’t believe it was that simple so I carried in a lot of stuff for the four days I planned to stay. ~ Cook stove, fuel, cooking pots, etc. and of course, the food too... ~ Wrong!
The fact that everything
was run on the willingness of people to help make it happen, with no overseeing or direction at all, came through loudest of all. ~ All of life should work like that. ~ I volunteered too... ~ Putting my time in with many others at the ‘Nerf’ kitchen for 3 days. ~ That’s where they made the food for dinner at the main circle each evening. ~ The frying pan alone was the width of a doorway and it had a 4 ft handle. ~ Filled almost to overflowing with a spatula that was like a small shovel. :-) ~ The coffee was made by dumping the grounds into boiling water and letting them settle. ~ The coffee pot was 2 ft tall... ~ Food was available at the kitchen basically all day long. ~ Early morning breakfast blended into lunch and everyone came with their pots, plates and spoons to the kitchen to eat, whenever they were hungry. ~ For supper, the food was all carried to the main circle. ~ No matter what time of day, the food was some of the best I've ever eaten. ~ Oatmeal with apples, walnuts, cinnamon, and whatever else appropriate and available was mixed in. ~ Same with the pancakes and other things... ~ We prepared, cooked and served up monstrous amounts of food to hundreds and hundreds of people. ~ It was all excellent.
The fire circle at night was beautiful... ~ The drums, guitars, exotic horns from Africa and other type of musical instruments that they all carried in to play for us... ~ And there were dancers; wild men
and women. ~ Then the 'acts'...; twirlers, the amazing hoola hoop girl, the fire juggler and dancer with the flaming tridents.., then and of course the ‘devil sticks’... ~ I’ve gotten my own since then. ~ All played a part in rainbow. ~ Water haulers, the 'medical' or 'calm' area people, and many others including those who dug the latrines and maintained them while usable, then buried
them when they were filled. ~ They say you haven’t been to a gathering until you’ve dug a latrene... :->
Then there were those who gave the seminars, healing circles, sweats, and such to provide the quiet and peaceful side. ~ There was even a wedding...; the couple dressed in flowers and body paint.
After the gathering, many stayed on to clean up the forest. The rule was ‘what you brought in, you took out’ but
the forest still needed to be put back the way it was before we came.
I was down on Wednesday when I got there. ~ Couldn’t find the person I knew. ~
Had a hard time finding the place at all. ~ Thought it would’t be a problem but man, this group sure knows how to get off the beaten track. ~ It was in a National Forest
and I drove around those dirt roads on the bike for a hour searching for some sign of them... ~ I finally found a Park Ranger coming out of the woods by his jeep. ~ He
showed me a map and explained I was about a mile away by foot but I had to ride the bike over the roads about three miles around. ~ He also showed me where there was
some swimming going on close by... ~ A crossing from the gathering to the pond was just up the road.. ~ So I went swimming with them before I found the gathering itself.
~ There were about 50 people strung along the bank, mostly nude so I did that too. ~ The pond was very warm. ~ The sun was hot but on it’s way down, so that only lasted
an hour or so before I decided to pack it in and took the bike the rest of the way...
Vehicles are not able to be taken into where the tents and the gathering is actually
held, so by the time I carried everything from the parking area, approximately three quarters of a mile, and set it all up, it was getting late. ~ I did meet a guy while
parking and unpacking so he and I took some pokes right away. ~ Then we pulled everything we could carry and walked in together. ~ I felt a little better having
company. ~ Someone to talk to and learn from. ~ I had no dreadlocks, torn clothes or beard. :-) ~ Just my kaki tie-string pants and sandals and clean shaven. ~ I felt
better having someone with me who looked the part. <g> ~ When I got settled in, I looked around a little to find where thing were and how they worked. ~ In the process
I picked up on a few more puffs. ~ But I gave up early. ~ Tired from the long motorcycle ride, carting everything, and just wanting to enjoy the buzz.. ~ I ate some peanuts or something and went to bed.
Found out lots more Thursday. ~ Got my breakfast at the Nerf kitchen right away and learned how they worked.. ~ Never did need my cooker and food I carried in. ~ That was a wasted effort. Live and learn.
The closest I can come to in describing the overall picture was that it was much more than I had expected. ~ I was ready for something like a rock concert without the
music maybe? ~ This was so much more. ~ An entire village laid out in the forest. ~ There were streets (paths), and living quarters (tents), and restaurants (kitchens),
an entertainment district (the main fire circle), religious communities (jewish, hari-krishna, etc.), public toilets (enclosed dugout latrines), medical facilities (calm),
musicians (drums, guitars, horns but I can’t remember their name), entertainers (dancers, jugglers, twirlers), a coffee shop (java junkies), and probably not last and
certainly not least, nude swimming and sunning (Phillips Pond).
The kitchens were the most amazing. ~ Made from the forest itself. ~ There were no trees cut or other damage done, but low branches were used to build work tables and
shelves and whatever else was needed. ~ There was an area where dishes and hands were washed... ~ Five gallon buckets with soapy water, rinse water, disinfectent
water with bleach added and then too, some disinfectant wash water for the hands... ~ Everyone who was to work with food had to wash before touching anything. ~ The
servers scooped from the pot and dumped the food into the bowls held out for it. ~ The bowls were not placed over the pot nor did the ladel touch the bowls... ~
Everything was done with sanitation, and no ‘feed back’ being the prime concern.
All the food came from contributions of local farmers, the ‘not quite good enough to
sell’ stuff from local stores, people who brought in bags of potatos, coffee, etc. from home as contributions and there was the ‘Magic Hat’ for buying what else was needed.
Everyone was peaceful and respectful of others. ~ The only ‘arguments’ came during meetings at the main circle about how things should be done or needed to be
changed. ~ A thousand people sitting in concentric circles waiting for the servers to come along. ~ They had gathered for the entertainment and so the food was brought
to them... ~ It was also the time when global issues were discussed and the best way to bring everyone together for that purpose.
It was an awesome sight... ~ After dinner, the fire was started and they danced and
played drums til dawn... ~ Wild looking top-free women dancing in firelight. ~ There is no nicer or natural sight to be seen in the entire world. :o)
|
