The Art of Place

"What is a soul? It's like elecricity- we don't know really what it is, but it's a force that can light a room"- Ray Charles, musician{/b}

    Glowing oil lanterns illuminated the interior of our cabin. Candlelight flickered and dancing shadows leapt across the walls. Bundles of dried herbs hung from the rafters. Tiny brown bottles of homemade medicines and jars of salves lined the shelves. We had no electricity but our shack sure had soul.
    My husband, myself and our two sons lived in a 12'x12' plywood cabin in the woods of Lake Creek, Oregon for six years. Besides not having electricity ,we also had no plumbing or other "conveniences". We enjoyed simple pleasures like hiking in the woods, planting gardens and swimming in the creek.
    Four years ago my husband and I split up. I moved to town with our children. We now had electricity. Living in the woods when my youngest son, Robin was three, he was asking me what the names and uses of plants were. Living in town when Robin was six, he was asking me what the names and uses of appliances were. We still had no TV.
    No TV to brainwash us. No electronic intruder in our home to tell my children they had to have the latest toy. Living in the country, our only intruders were cougars or bears. Those we could understand. Advertisers were a totally different animal.
    A friend bought us a TV. Soon we had video games and a grand collection of movies. My children began to say things like " There's nothing to do outside". "Let's go rent a movie or game". Occasionally they would humor me and we'd all go for a hike around our subdivision.
    Living in town, we also had a bathroom. When Robin first ran through our new house, he ran straight to the bathroom and said "Wow! What a big living room"! I had to explain that it was our bathroom and that the living room was the bigger room he's just flown through. After four of us living in a tiny cabin, I could understand his confusion.
    In the country we had a bath house. We used a bucket when nature called. No worries of plumbing problems. Toilet paper, a seemingly innocent item, turned out not to be so innocent. Well, when one has grown up using moss and a bucket, one doesn't quite grasp the concept of using too much toilet paper. In town we experienced lots of overflowing toilets.
    Food was another thing. Living in the woods we had free access to nature's supermarket. Fiddleheads, wild raspberries and thimbleberries served as snacks. We used the large leaves of the thimbleberries as plates while hiking. Miners lettuce, chickweed and wild violets made a delicate, wild salad. Seasonal mushrooms such as morels in the Spring and shaggy manes in the Fall, added to our feeling of wealth.
    Acorns made a wonderful flour and the squirrels didn't mind sharing. For Easter dinner one year, I served dandelions fixed three different ways; steamed, frittered and for dessert- dandelions sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon.
    Moving to town we didn't have easy access to nature's bounty. We got caught up in going to stores where morels were $50 a pound. We didn't buy any. We resorted to frozen berries. We were thrilled  to find we could actually purchase dandelion roots. Still, it just wasn't the same.
    In the woods we lived next to a creek. The creek had a large swimming hole. Summer evenings would find us splashing about while fish tickled our feet and bats would zoom in just above our heads. Stellar jays, finches and wrens would sing us nightly lullabies. There was one spot where the water would rush around in circles; a natural jacuzzi.
    In town we had a hot tub. Summer evenings found us soaking in the hot, bubbling water which we had scented with lavender. Thick towels warm and fresh from the electric dryer were awaiting us when we were done. We no longer had fish, bats or birdsong. We had the sound of the freeway. Still, my children and I had enchanting conversations about spirituality, writing, math and whatever topics we were inspired by at the time. The intimacy of a small space is womb-like and conducive to sharing. Sort of like our tiny cabin. It's a simple pleasure.
    I'm very grateful our family had the opportunity to live free and off the grid. We had a chance to explore the real world together. My children value and appreciate what they do have. They rarely ask me to buy them things. They tell me plastic toys contribute to the pollution of our planet. They have even told me they don't want to contribute to the greed of the advertisers! I guess TV does have its place. Our favorite pastimes are reading, writing and going for walks. Hmm. Isn't that kind of like the things we used to do in the woods?