St Ives Community Orchard Wassail 2020

Unfortunately due to Corona and instructions to have no organised gatherings we’ve had to cancel our Wassail. You’re still welcome to pop up to the orchard any time & toast the trees yourself & wish them ‘Waes heal’ (Good Health). Take this time to enjoy the sound of the birds and watching the budding of the first flowers of spring on our trees. Go sit in our apiary & watch the bees buzzing around and then head for a walk in the Nature Reserve, there are lots of new paths to explore. We know that this will be a period of worry and money troubles but hope you stay strong and well and enjoy this period of rest. We are continuing with our weekly work parties and we also we are offering free food for anyone to collect, a few days a week from the Palemon Best Park carpark- read more about this on www.stivesorchard.co.uk/food
Try enjoy this enforced break. Love these words by Kitty O’Meara……
“And the people stayed home. And read books, and listened, and rested, and exercised, and made art, and played games, and learned new ways of being, and were still. And listened more deeply. Some meditated, some prayed, some danced. Some met their shadows. And the people began to think differently.
And the people healed. And, in the absence of people living in ignorant, dangerous, mindless, and heartless ways, the earth began to heal.
And when the danger passed, and the people joined together again, they grieved their losses, and made new choices, and dreamed new images, and created new ways to live and heal the earth fully, as they had been healed.”

And have to share this, written by Richard Hendrick (Brother Richard) in Ireland March 13th 2020

“Lockdown”

Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open so that those who are alone
may hear the sounds of family around them.
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.
Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
So that the elders may have someone to call on.
Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples
are preparing to welcome
and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary
All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting
All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up to a new reality
To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have.
To what really matters.
To Love.
So we pray and we remember that
Yes there is fear.
But there does not have to be hate.
Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness.
Yes there is panic buying.
But there does not have to be meanness.
Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul
Yes there is even death.
But there can always be a rebirth of love.
Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.
Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic
The birds are singing again
The sky is clearing,
Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,
Sing.”

More suggestions of things to do while you stay at home:

😊 Eat healthy to strengthen your immune system
😊 Go for a walk in nature
😊 Have a long indulgent bath with candles and music
😊 Guided meditations from YouTube
😊 Get fit at home – there are some great online workouts or make up your own routine
😊 Talk to a friend / family member on Skype, Whatsapp, FaceTime or Zoom
😊 Join an online social group
😊 Gardening
😊 Outdoor sports
😊 Learn a new crafting hobby
😊 Read a good book
😊 Do an online course to learn new skills
😊 Connect with family members
😊 Play Board Games or Cards
😊 Keeps heart strong

And for those with young children here are some suggestions of things you can do with them at
home from one of our members Sarah aka DJ Fairycake
😊 YouTube dance tutorials, exercise classes, yoga for children, juggling tutorials and anything else they might enjoy.
😊 Physical Wii games.
😊 Building dens out of tables covered with blankets.
😊 Musical statues, learn the Macarena and other popular dances.
😊 If you have a garden, invest in a swing ball, basket ball hoop, skipping rope, football, trampoline
😊 buy some giant chalks, teach them to play hopscotch.
😊 get an old table and pots, so your children can play ‘chef’ and cook mud, stick and leaf cuisine.
😊 Buy some small water pistols and a pot of bubbles. Blow the bubbles into the air, and get the children to try and shoot them.
😊 Play ‘What time is it Mr Wolf’ outside.
😊 Practice throwing a ball in a basket.
😊 Cooking. Get your children to break the eggs, beat the batter, and put mixtures into tins and cases. It only takes 15-20 mins in the oven, and this is like magic for children. They have no idea how a few boring ingredients create the most incredible food known to man! And because they helped, they will happily take ALL the credit
😊 Disco. Crank the music up really high and watch them boogie all their energy away  This moves up the fun scale if you join in, going from a 5 to a 10. Put on your favourite music, and throw down some shapes, the sillier the better. We’re talking superman, Madonna vogue, over exaggerated YMCA disco craziness…in your front room. Try it…YOU may even enjoy it
Anything that you can think of, that involves high amounts of energy from them, that they can do on their own in a small amount of space, is a winner. Outdoors is great, as fresh air naturally tires children out. If your doing these activities indoors, open all the windows, so your children still get the benefit of fresh air.
Loadsa Love DJ Fairycake 15.3.2020 Cornwall