what’s been fermenting, long & short whiles
This is all about things I've been fermenting. Some on my own, some with other people. Some things ferment in under 2 weeks, but others take years.
(And, as usual, a listing of local events at the bottom.)
First – the first round of Sacred Fermentation happened a couple weeks ago. Pictured – one of the beets, that turns the ferment magenta:
The meaningful stats:
~ 40+ lbs of vegetables, which cost about $60
~ 4 people chopping & mixing veggies for about 3 hrs
~ ferment donations to 2 households
The less exciting stats, but for the sake of transparency:
~ about 6 hrs of work by me (organizing, grocery shopping, cleaning, etc)
~ jar donations from 2 people
What matters to me is the evidence of co-created abundance. What we created was much more than the sum of the ingredients.
Four people chopped 42 lbs of vegetables, that sat in a crock for 10 days, and the yield has fed 5 households. Every household got about 2 lbs of ferment. Donations went to 2 households, both single mothers, with 3 children total.
Because I really, genuinely believe that what we create together is magical and healing.
If you're local and want to know more about Sacred Fermentation, the info page has details + a link to register. Go here.
Meanwhile, I still have a grief practice. I'm still playing music. The next Sacred Grief Circleis September 28th; the next soundbath is August 20th.
Back to fermentation, this time the much longer version. Six years ago, I started working on an oracle deck. A few months after I started the project, I got Covid and...we all lived through the next few years.
I haven't finished this deck. But I have written and published a book that has excellent reviews. I've recorded and released an album.
Meanwhile, the deck has been fermenting, in its own way. Ideas and refinements have come through the whole time. I've had long stretches where the deck has been sitting in its own energetic cauldron, not unlike the vegetables that ferment in my crock.
It's worth mentioning that when I started my deck, I thought I'd be done in 2 years, at most 3 years. Even without completing this project, I've learned so much about perspective. About expectations, About trusting the process.
But I'm at the point, in this very long ferment, where I'm in need of expert guidance. I made a list, and it's...quite a mix of things:
~ mathematics (theoretical, abstract, etc)
~ thermodynamics & classical physics
~ classical Greek & related etymology in English
Are you a resource for any of these things? Do you know anyone who is? I made a dedicated page for it, if you want to share with anyone. Thanks in advance for helping me fact-check my philosophical metaphors about math and science. And yes, Greek. Seriously.
I'm sharing these things because I think it's important to see what can happen quickly and what needs a long damn time. What, for you, can transform quickly? What needs not to be rushed, that needs a much longer perspective?
Savoring the ferment,
S.
she/they
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Upcoming events:
~ Soundbath at StorieBrook on August 20th
~ Sacred Grief Circle on September 28th
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