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In 1998, I filed the paperwork to give birth to Hummingbird Farm. At the same time, my best friend, George, was in the process of leaving his body. Fifteen years earlier, when I went into my vet's office, there on the counter sat a little cage with a "please adopt me" sign on it. Inside was a gangly brown tabby kitten with white paws. It was love at first sight, and George and I were inseparable from that moment on. It was George who asked me to make a commitment in my life-something I had never done before. It was George who asked me to open my heart, and it was George who supported me and gently guided me on this path of working with animals and humans that fills my life with more love than I ever thought possible.
When I was first formulating the dream of Hummingbird Farm, I was encouraged by a few very special human friends and by a whole hoard of animals to set up the nonprofit corporation and let it begin unfolding. I was unsure, feeling I needed to wait until I could afford to buy a lot of land, get it set up with all the accouterments, populate it with twenty or thirty fabulous animal teachers and then I'd be ready to go.
George pointed out to me that Hummingbird Farm was not a place, that it was a dream about a way of living with all beings realizing their connection to each other and holding a reverence for all of life. He said that the nonprofit corporation would be a vehicle through which information could be passed, people could learn, and a network could be built to create this dream all over the world.
I have been living this dream of regarding all life as sacred for many years and in many places. It actually began in Los Angeles and moved with me to New York City, to Michigan, back to New York, and then to North Carolina. In every place I have lived for the past twenty years, I have created the dream of Hummingbird Farm in my own special sacred space. I have talked about it, written about it, prayed for it. At the time when George was encouraging me to start the nonprofit, I was fortunate to live on some beautiful land in a hand built log cabin. I had woods and pasture and a sturdy barn. The land was alive and present and full of animals that shared their space with me. And yet, all that I had there, I had when I lived in a studio apartment in New York City.
I realized that George was correct, I didn't need to wait until I had many acres of land and 20 teacher animals. Hummingbird Farm was ready to be born to share the vision of a world where all life is honored and to encourage others to create their own sacred world of reverence in their own homes.
George left his body on August 17th of 1998, the twelve-year anniversary of the Harmonic Convergence. In October of that year, two llamas came to live with me and to join my two cats as Hummingbird Farm's first teacher animals. Many wild animals that lived on this land also agreed to be teachers. In December of 1998, Hummingbird Farm was approved as a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit corporation.
Now, in 2003, there are eight Directors on the Board of Hummingbird Farm, each with a focused vision of creating a world of balance and harmony with all of life. In our daily lives we continually interact with nature and learn more and more about how to consciously participate with all the plants, animals, rocks, soil, and trees as partners. As Hummingbird Farm, we are continually looking for ways to bring this dream alive for others, knowing that the more people who focus on it, the closer the reality of this way of life will be for all of us. If each of us lives our own lives with a reverence for all beings, we will create a network of light, a vision of wholeness, and a role model for a peaceful world.
Hummingbird Farm now has five llama teachers - our new baby llama, Shanti, was a total surprise to us. Her mother came to us already pregnant and no one knew! We also have two cat teachers, Maia and Tuli Bear, Max, a dog teacher, fish teachers known as Merlin and the Beauties, and a myriad of wild animals who love to participate in the workshops (deer, squirrels, birds, snakes, insects, etc.).
After several years of living and teaching on the 10 acres of leased land, Hummingbird Farm recently purchased 49 acres to be our permanent home. The land is beautiful with rolling hills of fenced pastures, woods with walking trails, and the Rocky River. This land will be preserved so that after those of us creating Hummingbird Farm are gone it will remain an alive and natural place where animals, people and nature can thrive. Some day we will build a center on this land. Though not open to the public on a daily basis, I hold workshops here so that participants can be in this beautiful natural setting as they are learning to communicate with animals and connect with nature. The Hummingbird Farm animal teachers are active participants in the workshops and the land is our great teacher. The dream is becoming reality.
Hummingbird Farm sponsors a meditation on the Solstices and Equinoxes to focus on the vision of living in a world of peace where all beings acknowledge their connection to each other and work together with mutual respect and harmony. This meditation takes place from 8-8:30 pm Eastern Time, 5-5:30 pm Pacific Time on the day of the Solstice of Equinox. We now have people from all over the world participating in this meditation.
We offer a free quarterly newsletter that prints stories and ideas to keep people connected to this dream and to support all of us walking this path.
We are creating new workshops and community events to help bring people into the awareness of the healing potential of partnership between humans and animals.
The vision of what we want to create for the Hummingbird Farm Center is grand - twenty to thirty animal teachers, a large space to hold classes, an information library, a network of people, a place that can be open to the public, a place where animals and humans can interact and heal and re-establish their connection to All That Is. This center will be a place to experience working and playing in partnership with all life and to learn the tools to support that lifestyle wherever we each may live. We will have this center some day on this beautiful land, and it will be a cooperative effort, built step-by-step by all of us, humans and animals, who believe in this dream. We need your help to build this center on our new and beautiful land. We welcome your ideas, suggestions, wild dreams, experiences, and your financial contributions.
George, my love, is no longer here in his body, but he is present in every part of Hummingbird Farm. I feel him in every blade of grass, I see his face in every flower. I feel him watching me, encouraging me, and laughing with me as I learn how to work and play with this dream. He is with me as I mow the grass or mend the fence, as I meditate, dream, and teach classes. And as I write this letter for Hummingbird Farm and George, who are not separate from each other, I feel them as one great love in my heart, so close, so dear, the very best part of me.
If you have a dial-up connection, click on LR for a larger, but lower resolution version of the pictures. If you have a high speed connection, click HR for a high resolution, larger version of the picture. Then hit the 'BACK' button on your browser. Enjoy!
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If you would like to make a tax deductible donation to Hummingbird Farm download our donation form, print it out and mail it in. Thank you!