Being The Change

I'm just a wandering on the face of this earth Meeting so many people Who are trying to be free And while I'm traveling I hear so many words Language barriers broken Now we've found the key And if you want the wind of change To blow about you And you're the only other person to know...
~ Moody Blues

Bit by bit, becoming that which I admire...

Ahhhh.... mmmm.....
I'm all Rainbowed up....


We've spent the last five days in the Rainbow Gathering here in Ocala Florida having our souls and dreams shined up.
Connecting with all the other nomadic families and just plain being inspired by being witness to human community at its finest. No lines of wealth and poverty, no distance between the haves and the have-nots...
Brotherly and sisterly love in action, moment by moment. A 12x6 foot pile of clothes for anyone who needs... offering of blankets, food, water, hugs, prayers, songs...
Shared meals, and a community effort at creating a balance of shared resources.
Nights around the fire pit with drums, strings and and a heartfelt blend of voices.
Swapping of books and knowledge, human resources, phone numbers and homes to those on the road.

It was beautiful, and I feel more beautiful for it.


I feel stronger in my beliefs about the world. I feel less like a dreamer and more like a realist. I feel strengthened by meeting those who are building communities, running ministries, pounding the pavement, moving the people and just plain living for some greater purpose... often for a purpose which is rumored to happen only in dreams.
Thousands and thousands devoting their lives to being the change... fully... wholly... giving their all... no fear and no want for all their giving they are full up on everything they need.
Like us they must scale their obstacles, but like us... they are.


Like any community, this one draws those in deeper states of need, both physical and in their hearts and minds. Sometimes you can feel the disproportion of the haves and the have-nots, but in the same moment you realize that the haves are in such a full act of giving that there is no need that cannot be met by this community. New windshields, new homes, new jobs, love, connection, healing, shoes... whatever it is... when a whole community focuses on the same goal there is not a thing which cannot be achieved. When hundreds or thousands of people come together with the same intent... for all to be in a place of peaceful happiness... it cannot help but happen. The doing is part of the living is part of the joy of the whole experience.
Problems are quickly and almost effortlessly absorbed by the peace of the community... dissolved in the greater, deeper vibe.

No member is cast out. The Christians pray with the Krishnas, the hippies drum with the punk band, the homeless camp with the land owners, and the children are truly raised up by the whole village. This is not an agreement to co-inhabit, but rather an agreement to meet on common ground. It is a community, sprung up from the intent of it's members. It reflects the purpose of it's intenders and supports it more fully with each new member.

Should anyone need help they need only call Shanti Seena and everyone is Shanti Seena. All memebers of the community with equal voice and equal ability to assist in solving any and every problem by surrounding it with their attention and intent to bring it back to balance with the underlying peace of the gathering. We are all kept safe under the witness of those around us.

And this time, even the Law Enforcement was respectful of the peace, doing their job to quietly support it when the community needed that support.

It is a beautiful thing and it is happening all over the world.

There are many more regional gatherings happening throughout the country all year long and we will stop at many of them, thankful for the reminder of brotherhood, there for all who gather their strength and blaze out into the world, carrying as much of it as they can to share.

This year the National gathering will happen in New Mexico and it is rumored that the scouts are near Taos. If you recall my love letter to Taos and New Mexico last year you might guess how thrilled I am. Beautiful place, beautiful people, Oh Happy Day!