| Imagine waking up in the morning to the sound of the wind blowing through the trees. Just the wind in the trees. You are completely refreshed from a relaxing slumber. there are no worries on your mind. You stretch a little, then spring lightly from the bed, looking forward to the new day. You step out from under the shade of the huge tree that shelters your little teepee. You bask in the sunlight. As you head down a twisting garden pathway you pick a tomato and enjoy it. You are just finishing the tomato when you pass through a bamboo archway and enter a quiet, shaded grove of trees. In the center of the grove is a small pond filled with water lillies. You ruunn and JUMP headlong into the cool water and a glorious new day at the best place you have ever lived ... Today is a little busy. Not nearly as busy as any day back in the old miserable life you left behind. But busy for the Big Island Ecovillage. Today is market day. You meander along the flower fragrant path that connects your private dwelling area with the center of your "neighborhood". After walking about 500 feet, you step out from the woods into a clearing surrounded on 3 sides by very large banyan trees. The 4th side of the clearing faces out into a valley, offering a peaceful view of rolling hills leading down into the bluest sky you have ever seen. But wait, its not the sky. Its the ocean that sparkles bright blue and seems to go on forever. This is just another amazing sight in Hawaii, where all the elements of nature are vibrant, pure, and just seem to go on for ever. As you step into the clearing, your friend Joshua comes rolling along carrying coconuts in a wheelbarrow. "We gotta get 5 loads down to the shops by noon" he says. "sorry to stress you out but I need a little help here." So you spend 20 minutes grabbing a wheelbarrow from the neighborhood shed and load coconuts onto it. This is the kind of "stress" you can handle. You roll the wheelbarrow back through the neighborhood clearing and enter a path on the north side. It winds past a few small cabins: the neighborhood kitchen, gathering room, and music room. You continue on and pass a few more fellow residents who are also gathering foods, woven baskets, paintings, and other things to take to market. You continue on pass the buildings. After a few minutes you are walking through "Water Park", a collection of 20 or so naturally landscaped ponds that adorn the hillside to your left. You feel an urge to climb the path leading to the swing above the large pond at the top for a quick plunge. But you resist. These coconuts should be taken to the ecovillage shops. You continue on. You push the wheelbarrow on for about a quarter of a mile through the lush rainforest. Your muscles begin to feel pleasantly exercised and you notice that you have really become a lot stronger since adopting this more hands on lifestyle. You come to a junction with three paths leading off into the forest. Which is the right way? Oh! You spot a fallen over signpost in the bushes. You prop it up against a tree trunk, with the arrow reading "Green Ponds neighborhood" pointing towards the path behind you. Now the other arrows point correctly and you can tell that the path on your right leads to the "town square". You take out your notebook and make a note to remind yourself to tell the shared paths caretaker to fix the fallen over signpost. The caretaker also goes by the name of Dawn and has several other duties here at Big Island Ecovillage, but you write: tell the path person anyhow because the "path person" can change on a monthly basis. Some people here like to switch jobs quite often. And paths caretaker is one of the least favorite just because it tends to be quite sweaty work and involves little mental stimulation. But other positions, like social activities coordinator and artistic enhancement can be very popular. Many people stick out the entire 3 month limit on these positions because they are so fun. And usually straws have to be drawn to determine what lucky person gets the next term. The sweet melody of a flute drifts pleasantly into your ears as you continue into the forest. You near an opening in the foliage ahead that allows streaming sunlight to bathe your tanned skin. The flute can be heard clearly now and a quiet bass drum begins to weave a beat. You step completely out into the sunlight. You are standing at the top of a gently sloping field which ends at a cluster of buildings. From several paths on the left and right sides of the field people are heading towards and away from the buildings. Many of them are carrying large baskets, wheelbarrows, carts, and bicycles filled with goods of various types. You spot many fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds. Clay pottery, bamboo poles, wooden bowls, paintings, drums, knitted shirts, handmade rugs, and many other goods are being brought toward the structures. To be continued . . . |
| The Vision |