Dear Spanky, Zambi, Lucy, Morgan, Biscuit…and friends and family!
This past week we broke up into two groups to work on two different conservation projects. I was apart of the Erye Pennisula group which was led by Skyeler. This group also included Brian, Zack, Molly, Anna, and Morgan. Before the groups split we watched ” The Story of Stuff,” an informational youtube clip that talked about how we are harming our environment and depleting the worlds’ resources. Some of the facts were learned were: 80% of the earths original forests are gone, that we would need five planets if every country consumed at Americas rate, Americans throw away 2.5 millon plastic bottles every hour, and 80 % of what Americans throw away is recyclable. For those who had not seen this clip, this information came much of a shock to most and set the tone for the week to come.
The drive to Erye Pennisula took a total of eight and a half hours. We arrived at the Wool Shed, which was the hostel which stayed at. In the back of the hostel was a sheering museum which included rusty sheering tools, weapons, barbed wire, and other random appliances. The hostel part was an old stable where we slept in stall-like bunk rooms. That afternoon most people slept, Morgan and I took a scenic run down by the beach and desert, and our run quickly became an obstacle course which included dodging lethal washed up lethal jelly fish and kangaroos.
Day 1:
Today we got rid of Aloe Vera plants and green suculant roses that were growing by the ocean. With our axes and pitch forks, we got rid of the plants in no time and began weeding on the other side of the road. About 10 minutes into weeding, we heard Morgan scream ” HOLY SHIT” and saw a brown snake slither a foot in front of her. Morgan, who is petrified of snakes, quickly lost color in her face, and quickly evacuated the area. Later we learned that the brown snake is one of the top most deadly snakes in Australia. Due to the snake we changed locations and were introduced loopers ( huge garden clippers) and to the elipo pine tree, a tree that we became very familar with by the end of the week. That night we played telephone pictionary and shared alot of laughter.
Day 2:
Today removed elipo pine trees all day. The highlight for most of us was watching Brian try to hop a barbed wire fence. That afternoon skyeler lead a meditation where we imagined our mind as a garden where we must trim and remove all the evasive species in order to protect the native species ( a metaphor for the conservation work we were doing). We talked about how bad thoughts ( invasive species) can alot of times consume our mind, hindering us from cultivating the beautiful native species of our mind. That night Grant, our CVA leader for the week, took us out to dinner where most of us experiences our first snitzel. We concluded the night by reading Mutant Message Downunder- a book which describes a woman’s experience doing a “walkabout” journey with the Abiriginis throught the outback.
a quote skyeler read during meditation:
“Around us life bursts with miracles- a glass of water, a ray of sunshine, a leaf, a catepillar, a flower, laughter, and raindrops.
If you live in awareness, it is easy to see miracles everywhere. Each human being is a multiplicity of miracles.
Eyes that see thousands of colors, shapes, and forms; ears that hear a bee flying or a thunderclap; a brain that ponders a speck of dust as easily as the entire cosmos; a heart that beats in rhythm with the heartbeat of all beings
when we are tired and feel discouraged by lifes daily struggles, we may not notice these miracles, by they are always there.”
Day 3:
Today we spent a half day removing more elipo pine trees. We spent our afternoon in the national park, exploring the beach. That afternoon we played the Tradgety of the Commons Game, where we used M&Ms to demonstrate how we were depleting the worlds resources. We watched the sunset on the jetty where a fisherman accidently hit me with an Octapus as he was reeling it in. For dinner, Grant made us Aussie burgers which included an absurd amount of toppings which included pineapple and beets.
Day 4:
Today we moved from the wool shed to a hostel in Port Lincoln. That day we worked with a group of older women and we did more elipo pine weeding as well as getting rid of a plant which we called the cyclops. Some of the women worked at the site with us while others baked us yummy pastries and lunch. Our tea time included a huge assortment of scones, brownies, cookies, and pastries. For lunch we had homemade fish and chips. That afternoon we did fencing, got rid of an afternoons worth of work in 15 minutes. That afternoon Skyeler led another meditation where we explored the fundamental idea of Buddhism—-loving-kindness.
Day 5:
Today we removed more elipo pines and cyclops, we got alot of work done and had the afternoon free. We spent most of the afternoon exploring Port Lincoln and driving through the marina. That night we played ultimate ping pong- a game Skyeler taught us where we all line up around the pool table and alternate hitting the ball while we are running around in circles. That night we read an intriguing chapter about healing in the Mutant Message.
We are all looking forward to spending the next week in the outback!