Feeding Community
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“Pray for the dead, and fight like hell for the living.”
— Mary “Mother” Harris Jones
Hello friends, It’s a rainy day in Portland, Oregon. Outside my window, cars shush by on slick dark streets. Autumn leaves catch the moisture from the sky as fluffy squirrels dart about, preparing for the coming cold. Last night, we made dinner, setting out a plate for the ancestors. We lit up a giant Jack O’Lantern on the porch, to beckon any spirits wandering by, ready to appease them with treats, should they knock upon the door. Unlike the last few years, we got quite a lot of costumed wanderers, and happily gave out fists full of candy, spider rings, and small notebooks decorated with pumpkins and ghosts. While in years past, I’ve had to leave a mostly full bowl out near the sidewalk, for anyone wandering by, this year, there was hardly anything left in the bowl when we called it a night. It felt good to feed both the living and the dead. Handing out cheap candy to happy children and teens lifted my heart. Yesterday, we also made a lot of extra donations to local cafés and grassroots groups who will be feeding people this month. That would have happened anyway, but it all felt like part of the same process. Community knits itself together in the sharing of food and other resources. We all make offerings to one another. We honor the dead and fight for the living. As the seasons change, and time cycles, I wish you a warm, soft place to be. I wish you enough food to share. And I wish us all some measure of joy, and peace. Best wishes — Thorn
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T. Thorn Coyle
Hello friends, On a walk in the soft rain of the atmospheric river that just arrived to the Pacific Northwest, I saw two small maple trees whose leaves had already turned orange-red. Some of the maples in the neighborhood are still green, or just turning yellow, but these two were in full autumnal celebration mode. So, of course I walked across the street to get a closer look. When I looked up, I was delighted at the display. The leaves looked like ethereal dancers, turning this way and that,...
Hello friends, I was at a magical event with old friends and new last weekend, in the woods of Northern California. In some parts of space were big hearts made of slate slabs. The thing I liked about these hearts were that: Being made of slate, the hearts could support weight. Someone had taken the time and effort to carve the shapes. The hearts had clearly been nestled in the earth for years, greeting everyone who walked by. All of this was a reminder to me that a little inspiration and...
Hello friends, I’m in the woods right now, with a group of friends, both old and new. There are deer here, small, gentle ones with large ears. The deer keep their distance, but not so far that I cannot read the glint in their eyes, or catch the curious fan of those ears. These deer are not tame. They just live in a world where the potential for harm is slim. For deer to live so unafraid means this is a sheltered place. A place they have learned to be slightly wary of the lumbering, two legged...