My three cockerels are growing fast. Since there is lots of room to roam, we haven't had a problem yet, and they are separated from the main flock and their papa Sparky at night.
It’s mid morning and I’m watching the tendrils of mist roll away as the sun appears to rise higher in our sky. I’m hoping for a warm clear day, as I have books to bind for Pegana Press today. It helps, because I must bind the books with the window open to ventilate the fumes from the new glue we ordered. It is supposedly the same glue we used to get, but it sure doesn’t smell the same!
Pegana Press is our on site family run press, where we create handmade letterpress books for book collectors. It takes up almost all of Mike’s time, and at times, much of mine when there are books to be bound.
I heard Geoff Lawton mention, in one of his recorded talks, about how we often have 5 careers running consecutively in our lives. I am currently involved in at least 5 careers and have been trying to navigate that without going crazy and without feeling overwhelmed and over worked.
It has definitely been a bone of contention between my husband and myself, as we wrestle over which “career” should dominate my time. In order to create a more balance perception for myself, I wanted to be able to step away from the drama of my conflicting feelings as I tried to get all of my work done each day. I remembered one of the first lessons in my Permaculture Design Certification course last year, talked about doing an energy audit.
Yes, that seemed like a better way to think about documenting all of my activities during the day. And it has been a good way to look at how I use my time, if I can use it as a diagnostic tool to help me organize my time/energy better.
Having looked at it in this more distanced, clinical way, I have decided to prioritize these careers in this way:
1. Meals
2. Permaculture Design
3. Pegana Press
4. Other sources of income
5. Writing
I think Mike wants Pegana Press to be at least number two on the list, but here is my rationale for prioritizing my activities as I have.
The first is obvious. We have to eat...everyday...multiple times throughout the day. Need I say more? Providing meals is my job. It has to take first priority in my daily schedule.
The reason that Permaculture is number two on the list and Pegana Press is number three is because while Pegana Press is our main source of income currently, it simply cannot provide for all of our needs. I feel very strongly that Permaculture has the potential to provide for nearly all of our needs, and perhaps all of them eventually. This requires a good design, and some time to implement that design. Therefore, it requires a serious investment of my time, if I am to reach my goals with it.
Secondly, in the grand scheme of things anything that can be of service to my community and the planet, has to take precedence in the use of my time and energy over something that doesn’t serve the greater good. I have always felt that way.
We do have other sources of income, but they are very limited. Never the less, I value them tremendously. For instance, I am certified in a holistic healing modality known as the BodyTalk System. I feel privileged and humbled to work with my clients spiritually and energetically on their healing. It has also been a valuable tool for my own healing and that of my family when needed. It’s good to know that I can facilitate my own healing more quickly when I’m injured or sick, and I can help family members, and even my animals.
Other sources of income also include trading skills, knowledge, and manual labor for goods or services. I love engaging in that type of commerce, and value it very highly.
Finally, number 5 on the list is writing. I love writing and am a natural born story noticer. However, in order to make that a paying proposition that actually provides for my needs, I would need to invest nearly all of my time and energy into that one thing. I already know from my own experience that that is what it takes. And again, being engaged in that pastime does not allow me to serve the greater good in the same way engaging my efforts in Permaculture Design would.
So that’s where I’m at. And now since it’s nearly mid day, and warming up, I’m off to go bind some books.
:) In the coming weeks I will be documenting some of my experiences on the homestead for the coming seasons and some of the ways I implement Permaculture Design into my homestead landscape.
Kale is an amazing crop which overwinters very well. It was my first time growing it successfully, and when almost everything else was frost killed, this kept us fed during those frozen months.
