Cheshire, Oregon.
We've landed here for a 10 day stint of house sitting for a couple in the greater BZC sangha.
A beautiful home on 5 acres of Pacific Northwest woodland forest. Chickens, Chloe the dog, Tigger the cat, all under our care. The chickens have names, but I don't know them yet. The owners left before I could ply them with questions, so I'm not even sure of the breeds. We get about 4 eggs a day, I know that.
I'm already into a schedule. Rise before 7, zazen in the upstairs Zendo, feed the animals, feed the Crowes.
I feel like a guest at my own B & B. Cooking BIG breakfasts every morning, compliments of said eggs, toasted Teff bread (a souvenir from Rise Up Artisan Bakery near Ashland), and steel cut oats. I was hard up for some hot cereal since I left Tassajara. This morning I made gingery some pears from a recent harvest.
Today is do nothing day. I've been puttering on the computer and getting this blog set up. I haven't moved from this chair much more than the Tassajara Tangaryo students who are at this moment halfway into their DAY 5. It's some needed respite after a whirlwind tour of farms and zens in the Bay Area.
Yesterday we visited Horton Road Organics, a bio-intensive production farm on 15 acres, complete with Zendo and apprenticeship program. The two are not as closely linked as the Zen growing apprenticeships at Green Gulch farm, but not mutually exclusive, either. Debra Seido Martin describes the farming as a practice in and of itself. If people want to come sit Zazen, they can, but it's not required. Boundaries are maintained so that there's time for work and time for play. The feeling among the apprentices and owners is warm, down to earth, and friendly.![]()
The
Empty Field Zendo is pretty and amazing. It's got a square footage
about the size of the Tassajara compost shed, and some beautiful
homemade altars. Kuan-yin is the centerpiece of the main altar, a
welcoming homage to the divine feminine. The surrounding field includes
an open air kitchen and space for tenting, which must be an awesome way
to do a Sesshin. The surrounding field floods in the winter, so the
Zendo closes up during the rainy season and practice moves to the
upstairs zendo in the home we're staying. They have a sitting on
Wednesday nights which I'm looking forward to.
Yesterday we visited Horton Road Organics, a bio-intensive production farm on 15 acres, complete with Zendo and apprenticeship program. The two are not as closely linked as the Zen growing apprenticeships at Green Gulch farm, but not mutually exclusive, either. Debra Seido Martin describes the farming as a practice in and of itself. If people want to come sit Zazen, they can, but it's not required. Boundaries are maintained so that there's time for work and time for play. The feeling among the apprentices and owners is warm, down to earth, and friendly.The
Empty Field Zendo is pretty and amazing. It's got a square footage
about the size of the Tassajara compost shed, and some beautiful
homemade altars. Kuan-yin is the centerpiece of the main altar, a
welcoming homage to the divine feminine. The surrounding field includes
an open air kitchen and space for tenting, which must be an awesome way
to do a Sesshin. The surrounding field floods in the winter, so the
Zendo closes up during the rainy season and practice moves to the
upstairs zendo in the home we're staying. They have a sitting on
Wednesday nights which I'm looking forward to.
B
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