so the bridge is underway, i can hear them using the skill saw outside, and we leave tomorrow for north carolina. hopefully i can let you see pictures from the working sometime later today, because it's amazing just how fast this bridge has come together.
so first we go to boone, and stay for a few days, hiking around and staying with wonderful people. then to asheville to hopefully hear some good music. then down to savannah, then maybe shoot down to gainesville where meira lives to check out her town. then after that, we'll probably come back to G! and see the completed bridge. if there's time left, we'll go to wisconsin to my house and then finally part ways for thanksgiving.
i'll write yall later once i'm on the road, hopefully with some better stories.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
gesundheit work
dear Friends,
i have been at the gesundheit! institute for a couple days now, wiht the ever-intermitant internet sputtering along. so this might appear to You in several days, sadly, instead of maintaining fresh information. so i give You the date today, so You may not be confused.
november 9 2009
the drive up here was really nice and relaxing. i got to listen to books and music, and stopped over in lafayette at my grandparents house. quite nice. this hill country astounds me every day.
Meira and i have been helping two other guys build a new bridge on the land, because the old one is falling apart after many years of love and use. it is really rewarding to work on something that will be around for a long time after, and see it come together day by day.
but it hasn't been all work and no play. the first night, we went bowling in lewisburg around 11 at night, till 1, wearing tie-dye pants and clown noses, speaking with the local color at the greenbriar alley.
and we have been discussing our trip, which will be kind of short now that we want to stay to possibly pour the concrete in the bridge. that's the issue with enjoying a place, if you have other places you want to see, it's hard to leave because you don't want to rush away. this is a magnet.
but we should start soon, and i'll write all about it. love you
caleb
i have been at the gesundheit! institute for a couple days now, wiht the ever-intermitant internet sputtering along. so this might appear to You in several days, sadly, instead of maintaining fresh information. so i give You the date today, so You may not be confused.
november 9 2009
the drive up here was really nice and relaxing. i got to listen to books and music, and stopped over in lafayette at my grandparents house. quite nice. this hill country astounds me every day.
Meira and i have been helping two other guys build a new bridge on the land, because the old one is falling apart after many years of love and use. it is really rewarding to work on something that will be around for a long time after, and see it come together day by day.
but it hasn't been all work and no play. the first night, we went bowling in lewisburg around 11 at night, till 1, wearing tie-dye pants and clown noses, speaking with the local color at the greenbriar alley.
and we have been discussing our trip, which will be kind of short now that we want to stay to possibly pour the concrete in the bridge. that's the issue with enjoying a place, if you have other places you want to see, it's hard to leave because you don't want to rush away. this is a magnet.
but we should start soon, and i'll write all about it. love you
caleb
Friday, November 6, 2009
update/mashup
well friends, time has happened.
and now, i come back to writing these words, from a different place/time, from indiana. the house of the parents of my parent. are they me in part, or me less diluted?
anyway, enough of questions i don't need to ask. i have left gesundheit! for a time, but i hope to go back. that hope will be fulfilled tomorrow. while there in october, i talked with Meira about a possible road trip to anywhere, and so, here i am, about to begin it.
(by the way, gesundheit! was incredible and there are pictures on facebook as well as flickr, for anyone who seeks them. email me if You want more stories of the time, and more stories than i have given You here.)
we wanted to take a trip to see beautiful places and talk with beautiful people, and november is a free month for us. so we are going.
first i'll return to gesundheit! to pick Meira up, and stay for a couple days to help work on the new and much-needed bridge or any other projects (i'm not sure). and then She and i will go down to boone nc to visit the school there, and then to asheville and after that we have slighter notions. maybe ga, fl, wi, anywhere we have the money and the time to go. thanksgiving comes soon, so that marks the sortof end to our trip. maybe we will pick it up later on sometime, 5 months or 5 years from now who knows.
so
,
that
is that
internets will be infrequent maybes for a while at least for november. so don't get mad at me if i don't write back to Your wall post on facebook or somethng banal like that. You can write me patient waiting letters too if You like.
Loves,
-caleb-
i'd like to end this time we've had together, albeit delayed and electronic, with some lyrics from John Denver/James Taylor that seem appropriate for the occasion:
take country roads, lend me the highway home.
your name, the place i belong--
your west virginia, my mountain mama, and the
way home.
the country roads seem to be the same
mountain mama, don't. understand, it's been
a fool way, natural, i can feel it.
where i've been,
i reckon, all you good girls and feet
know where you want to go.
the heavenly band pass that way.
the heavenly band pass that way again.
why or when, it's bound to be
one and the same.
and now, i come back to writing these words, from a different place/time, from indiana. the house of the parents of my parent. are they me in part, or me less diluted?
anyway, enough of questions i don't need to ask. i have left gesundheit! for a time, but i hope to go back. that hope will be fulfilled tomorrow. while there in october, i talked with Meira about a possible road trip to anywhere, and so, here i am, about to begin it.
(by the way, gesundheit! was incredible and there are pictures on facebook as well as flickr, for anyone who seeks them. email me if You want more stories of the time, and more stories than i have given You here.)
we wanted to take a trip to see beautiful places and talk with beautiful people, and november is a free month for us. so we are going.
first i'll return to gesundheit! to pick Meira up, and stay for a couple days to help work on the new and much-needed bridge or any other projects (i'm not sure). and then She and i will go down to boone nc to visit the school there, and then to asheville and after that we have slighter notions. maybe ga, fl, wi, anywhere we have the money and the time to go. thanksgiving comes soon, so that marks the sortof end to our trip. maybe we will pick it up later on sometime, 5 months or 5 years from now who knows.
so
,
that
is that
internets will be infrequent maybes for a while at least for november. so don't get mad at me if i don't write back to Your wall post on facebook or somethng banal like that. You can write me patient waiting letters too if You like.
Loves,
-caleb-
i'd like to end this time we've had together, albeit delayed and electronic, with some lyrics from John Denver/James Taylor that seem appropriate for the occasion:
take country roads, lend me the highway home.
your name, the place i belong--
your west virginia, my mountain mama, and the
way home.
the country roads seem to be the same
mountain mama, don't. understand, it's been
a fool way, natural, i can feel it.
where i've been,
i reckon, all you good girls and feet
know where you want to go.
the heavenly band pass that way.
the heavenly band pass that way again.
why or when, it's bound to be
one and the same.
Monday, October 19, 2009
frost outside, love inside.
Farmhouse, October 19, 2009
Patch arrived yesterday, and the place becomes charged with energy. At the same time, what he says makes me feel like I haven't done anything since I've been here. He acts, and nothing else. Everything is intention, is purpose, is sincerity--even the humor. His presence urges me to live intentionally, and talk through the night with the people I love and the people I don't know.
---
frost has come to have his way with the Earth. these are the latter days of the year, the death-throes of beauty. i can feel the ground beginning to seize up beneath me, like a lover whose heart has burst from love-making and is now clenching and twitching either in ecstasy or death. but who can tell the difference?
the leaves are finishing their falling. the air is thinner, and so there seems to be more of it passing through my lungs and mouth. leaves again - it's the same sound as a soft rain, larger branches hitting the canvas of the yurt like larger drops from the trees. and the sun chooses to come out, on the coldest day yet.
here, there are no days, nor hours, nor any other made-up divisions of time. time is present, but it moves unpredictably, in a new dance. this is Time: when the smoke from a chimney brings comfort, when i can't tell the difference between the fire-smoke and the mist still hovering, when shadows are a welcome sign of sunlight and yet bringers of cold. This is the when i live in. This is the when i want to be in, more than any other, more than yesterday And tomorrow! No, i don't want to talk! i want to catch a leaf and make a wish.
and i know it is Time when the cold seeps through my jacket, and i head for the smoke.
Patch arrived yesterday, and the place becomes charged with energy. At the same time, what he says makes me feel like I haven't done anything since I've been here. He acts, and nothing else. Everything is intention, is purpose, is sincerity--even the humor. His presence urges me to live intentionally, and talk through the night with the people I love and the people I don't know.
---
frost has come to have his way with the Earth. these are the latter days of the year, the death-throes of beauty. i can feel the ground beginning to seize up beneath me, like a lover whose heart has burst from love-making and is now clenching and twitching either in ecstasy or death. but who can tell the difference?
the leaves are finishing their falling. the air is thinner, and so there seems to be more of it passing through my lungs and mouth. leaves again - it's the same sound as a soft rain, larger branches hitting the canvas of the yurt like larger drops from the trees. and the sun chooses to come out, on the coldest day yet.
here, there are no days, nor hours, nor any other made-up divisions of time. time is present, but it moves unpredictably, in a new dance. this is Time: when the smoke from a chimney brings comfort, when i can't tell the difference between the fire-smoke and the mist still hovering, when shadows are a welcome sign of sunlight and yet bringers of cold. This is the when i live in. This is the when i want to be in, more than any other, more than yesterday And tomorrow! No, i don't want to talk! i want to catch a leaf and make a wish.
and i know it is Time when the cold seeps through my jacket, and i head for the smoke.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Delaydlaydlaydlydyy
Farmhouse, October 16, 2009
Internet make slow my words.
Apology.
Reiterate until recipient feel plus guilty than sender.
Marvel at this.
NEWS: It has been raining most of the week. I have been rained on. I have been the misser of many people, notwithstanding beautiful Verena in Deutschland. Being back here for so long lets me swap places with her, to stay for a month and see the changes in people and get attached to all these people that will leave eventually, to get to know Meira and Wildman so well, and then leave in the middle. This is difficult. I start long-distance relationships with all of them after, to keep our love breathing that we have birthed here.
But at the same time in my head as these thoughts, I feel and think about how I am becoming a part of this place, a limb on the Gesundheit! tree. Being able to paint anywhere, to leave trace after trace--this is a great freedom given to us here.
In other aspects of news-related items, we made our own juggling balls yesterday and I learned how to juggle. A few days ago we had a tie-dye workshop, also wonderful. Last week there was a talent show, where Meira, Erin, Laurel and I did the body percussion and singing to "Bring Me Little Water, Silvy," among face-painting, children's stories, animal noises, and the Hot Shit Fart Orchestra performance. Today, we visited the Marlinton hospital as clowns, and got a chance to entertain and have fun with the people there, staff and patient alike.
For people who asked, there will be pictures of all this on Facebook at the end, once I have better internets. Limited stuff on Flickr because of posting limits. For now, enjoy the slow steady stream of words and photo, as long as I remember to write.
Entering the last week with everyone is hard. I feel I have not talked to people here enough, and that the time has blurred together. It's hard to believe we've been here this long. But the time is not over yet, and friendships don't end with a loss a proximity. At least they don't have to.
Love,
-Caleb-
Internet make slow my words.
Apology.
Reiterate until recipient feel plus guilty than sender.
Marvel at this.
NEWS: It has been raining most of the week. I have been rained on. I have been the misser of many people, notwithstanding beautiful Verena in Deutschland. Being back here for so long lets me swap places with her, to stay for a month and see the changes in people and get attached to all these people that will leave eventually, to get to know Meira and Wildman so well, and then leave in the middle. This is difficult. I start long-distance relationships with all of them after, to keep our love breathing that we have birthed here.
But at the same time in my head as these thoughts, I feel and think about how I am becoming a part of this place, a limb on the Gesundheit! tree. Being able to paint anywhere, to leave trace after trace--this is a great freedom given to us here.
In other aspects of news-related items, we made our own juggling balls yesterday and I learned how to juggle. A few days ago we had a tie-dye workshop, also wonderful. Last week there was a talent show, where Meira, Erin, Laurel and I did the body percussion and singing to "Bring Me Little Water, Silvy," among face-painting, children's stories, animal noises, and the Hot Shit Fart Orchestra performance. Today, we visited the Marlinton hospital as clowns, and got a chance to entertain and have fun with the people there, staff and patient alike.
For people who asked, there will be pictures of all this on Facebook at the end, once I have better internets. Limited stuff on Flickr because of posting limits. For now, enjoy the slow steady stream of words and photo, as long as I remember to write.
Entering the last week with everyone is hard. I feel I have not talked to people here enough, and that the time has blurred together. It's hard to believe we've been here this long. But the time is not over yet, and friendships don't end with a loss a proximity. At least they don't have to.
Love,
-Caleb-
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
the group at joel's place
Going to joel's across the river. He runs a private animal sanctuary, and we helped him build a shelter.
Also, this is almost our complete group. Gives you a sense of the bonds that we hope to keep after our time here...
Also, this is almost our complete group. Gives you a sense of the bonds that we hope to keep after our time here...
Thursday, October 1, 2009
I'll Repeat: Excellent.
Farmhouse, October 1, 2009
Today was excellent. The sun cam out near the end of the morning, and the blue skies stayed out all day long. We took the dogs out for another romp today on the grass, and played fetch. We set up the volleyball net and played around a little. Matt and I got far too excited about our plans for the Just Desserts Dinner, where dinner would be an array of delicious and beautifully crafted desserts—and nothing else! And we baked pumpkin bars with an extreme amount of homemade caramel on top, and tried to build sugar sculptures with a blowtorch.
= Excellent day.
By the way, here are some links to Patch Adams’ book “Gesundheit!”, the Gesundheit! Institute wiki page, and my Flickr page, where you can see many more pictures from the time here. Also there are pictures there from this summer as well—the first time I came here.
Gesundheit! Institute wikipedia
Love,
-Caleb-
my room
This is where I sleep and dream. And that door only comes up to the middle of my chest...tiny! It's a wonderful place to fall asleep.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
First Week back in NeverNeverland
Dacha, September 30, 2009
Friends,
It's been almost a week since I've been here at the Gesundheit! Institute, and what a whirlwind of a week! Where should I even begin?
How about this, my address?
Caleb Warner
c/o Gesundheit! Institute
H C 64 Box 167
Hillsboro, WV 24946
If you like, you can send mail here, until I’m gone on October 28. I would love to hear from any and all of you if you can find the time to sit down and write a letter, and what you have been up to lately. And I will write back!
So, I got here last Friday, and I was the first volunteer to arrive. I stayed the only one for two days because of some mixups with rides and trains and things. But it was a great chance to get to know the land manager and his beautiful family.
Wildman (yes, that’s his name, I didn’t make it up) is a great guy, full of wonderful ideas and philosophy about how to live in peace with nature. His wife Elisa is originally from Italy, and is sweet and funny too. Their daughter Annamaria, however, contains the most energy and silliness and craziness I ever thought a four-year-old could have in them. She latched onto me right when I walked in the door, and told me promptly that I would be doing her princess puzzle with her. The family dynamic works so well with them, and they have been generous beyond measure to me. I am so grateful that they are here and not some mean-spirited person.
So, what did we do? Waiting for the other volunteers to show up was hard, because we would all get excited whenever the phone rang or a car went by on the road, and then get let down. But we did a lot of hard work to pass the time. Saturday we cleaned out the entire Workshop, a big three-story building with a clown room, woodworking supplies, and art stuff.
Sunday, more people started showing up, like students and teachers for the class, and Meira, our wonderful volunteer and helping hand! So far, she and I are the only volunteers here, even though another comes tonight, and the last on October 6. So we have been doing a ton of cooking in the kitchen for 25 people.
Monday, we picked up Anna from school wearing clown costumes, and goofed off all day waiting for more people to arrive. I tried to use the stilts, but I think I’ll need several more tries to start walking. Also, the dogs came back! They were away being quarantined because they attacked a rabid raccoon the other day. But now they’re here, Black Dog and Sway (I’m not sure how to spell it).
Did I mention that Annamaria is bilingual? Her mother speaks Italian to her, and both parents speak English, so Anna will save Italian as a secret language with her mom, complete with a good accent and everything. So I’ve been learning some Italian vocab, like the word for fart and poop and butt, all the words essential to a four-year-old :o).
There are chances to hike around, and perhaps explore one of the caves behind the waterfall. We’re already busy planning the meals for the week, and other fun things like Love Day or Song Day or Crazy No-Talent Show. I love it here, and I feel like a part of Wildman’s family. If I ever come back here (which I would love to again and again), it will be nice to return to a familiar face.
All in all, I’m in NeverNeverland.
Love,
-Caleb-
Friday, September 25, 2009
Translation: Life-Journey: Thoughts and Prayers
(Verena, you can correct me if my Deutsch is bad on the title or anywhere else! :o)
Train to West Virginia, September 24, 2009
Well, friends, the time has come for me to travel and see what I can discover out in this old world. Some of you might be wondering why I am not in school this year, and it’s really a long and drawn-out story that better told in a personal setting. Regardless, I am not attending school this year in order to learn how to live with my words. I have talked too long about my desire—and yes, the Christian command—to live for the purpose of serving others. It’s time to DO something.
The Doing comes in several parts, some planned, some totally unknown. The first leg of my journey (arm? finger? other body part?) leads me to the area of Hillsboro, West Virginia, to experience a month of volunteer work at the Gesundheit! Institute. This dream-child of Patch Adams’ has grown from a mere vision in the late 60’s, to a free clinic, to (currently) a campus of buildings in the mountains—a place where classes of medical students and life-lovers can come to learn. Exactly what they learn can include anything from new perspectives on music and social activism, to the humanism of medicine that focuses on joy and love instead of emotional distance. I went to the weeklong music workshop (composition ± activism?) in July, and the medical “humanism” class comes while I am a volunteer there this October.
The other parts of my Lebenreise (life-journey) include a month in November wandering around Madison and Chicago, with no other aim other than to talk with people and hear their stories. (You can tell this is the one I know nothing about, right?) And finally, from January to May, I go to Georgia to live and work with the Jubilee community. You’ll hear more about these things, as they get closer.
Right now, I sit on the Train, somewhere in Indiana (Ma, should I comment on the vast stretches of nothingness out here? I’ll let Dad tease you about Indiana; he’s better at it than me :o), settling in for the night ride to Gesundheit! Hope you all are well, having your own adventures wherever you are.
Love,
-Caleb-
PS - and now i'm here in WV, able to write and send this to you all. I'll write more later about my first half-day here. Ciao and goodnight!
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