New Compost Moon

Let me tell you about Westacre. I have liked the place every since I first came to visit, over 20 years ago. I came on the ferry from Belgium to visit my boyfriend Alex and his parents for the first time. I was greeted at the front door with a motherly hug from Molly Tingle. I'll never forget the warmth of that welcome. It instantly put me at ease and made me feel at home.

I liked the house, and its huge living room. I liked the garden with its apple trees. And even though it was late December, I instantly loved the huge oak tree in the lane that dominates the view from the dining room. It was all so very English, and therefore somewhat exotic to me.

Of course, I kept visiting. Alex became my husband, Molly and Roger my in-laws. As time went by, and Molly passed away, moving to Westacre became a real possibility for us. By then, making our monthly visits, we began to see a possible future in that house. Alex is a computer programmer, and could do his work anywhere. And I saw the potential of that big living room as a space where spiritual seekers could come together to connect and support each other.

It all came together one afternoon in my mum's house in Belgium, when Alex was doodling some plans about what he would do to Westacre if he could have his way with it. He was showing me where he would move the bathroom, how the hall would be opened up again, and then he said: “This is the snug. And here we'd put the wood burner.”

I don't know why exactly, but the idea of a wood burner in what is now the dining room just suddenly made it click for me. For the first time I thought, yes, I could live there. That wood burner will be another warm welcome for me at Westacre.

A few years have passed since then. Alex has been using his IT skills to earn the money to finance the renovation project. I have been dreaming up a life and a business at Westacre. We made the decision to definitely go for this new adventure and bought the house nearly a year ago now.

In the last six months, as we have been spending a lot of time at Westacre, I have begun to meditate in the garden and make ritual there on a regular basis. I have begun to get a feel for the place and its spirits. These relationships are already changing and evolving.

A few weeks ago, I called these spirits of the place and told them about our plans for Westacre. I told them about the renovation of the house and the transformation of the garden. I let them know that we were planning to do what we could to live more lightly on the earth, and that I needed their help. I could feel their blessing and approval.

In order for this new life to work, I need to become a part of that community of spirits at Westacre. I need to root deeply into its soil and let it feed me. I need these spirits to become part of my reality, of my greater identity as a soul inextricably connected with other souls. I hope that, with daily work on my relationship with the spirits of the place, I will one day be able to feel Westacre, to know what it needs, and to share its blessing with visitors, family and tribe.

Westacre has always been a warm welcome to me. I hope that Alex and I will be able to sustain and extend that spirit of welcome and make you feel at home.

---

Soon, you will be able to visit Westacre and feel its warm welcome for yourself. For now, you can follow our adventures on the web site. If you see anything you like, it would really help if you could comment on the blog posts and link to them directly.