Tuesday, July 4, 3 – 10 p.m., Orcasong Farm – 280 Dolphin Bay Rd.
— from Ben Browner for Orcasong Farm —
We’ve had fireworks for decades upon decades. We’ve had beer, brats, celebration, and parades along with it. We’ve had communal time, family time, and even some sad alone times as those big booms went off in the sky. So much has happened in America on this day of the year, but have we engaged in much reflection about what the holiday really means in these times?
Of course, it’s a celebration of our independence from Great Britain, originally declared back in 1776. I would imagine that for many decades the celebrations on that fateful day were genuine, and based on a solid foundation of gratitude for a newfound freedom from oppression. But today’s world is different than the world of 225 years ago.
Today we find ourselves much wiser about how “independence” at all costs manifests: between races, between religions, and between nations. Simply stated, the world population is getting way too large for continued celebration of independence. In our current state of globalization, it’s much more appropriate to recognize the “Inter-dependence” of our species, of our ecosystems, and of our nationalities.
No longer can we hold sovereign independence, without fear of our encroaching neighbors, without inevitable war over resources, without “othering” those who don’t fit into our race, religion, or nation state. This “Story of Separation” as author Charles Eisenstein calls it, leads to nothing but further separation and strife.
What’s called for, and what we are promoting at our upcoming “Inter-dependence Day” celebration at Orcasong Farm, is awareness and action toward increasing the already-inherent relational connections at every level of society. From the family, to the neighborhood, to the island, to the county, state, nation, world, and other-than-human world, we are being called forth in these times to relish and appreciate our differences, to band together in honor of the gifts each one of us carries, to garner trust through relationship, and to act united for the betterment of all.
Please join us for a 3-6 p.m. workshop about exactly this. Bay Area’s Lydia Violet (lead facilitator of Joanna Macy’s “Work That ReConnects”) will be leading us in activities and songs to bring us into our grief and enthusiasm for the state of the world. We’ll connect and celebrate together, then break bread together in potluck, Stone-Soup style, from 6-8 p.m. with lightly-facilitated dialogue, and a dinner jazz set by Bellingham’s Living Arrows Trio. Once we’re all cleaned up, the Living Arrows will launch into an Earth-inspired set, followed by the evenings main event: A lively and interactive “Protest-Folk-Gospel” style concert of the all-woman Lydia Violet Quartet! (standup bass, fiddle, banjo, guitar, percussion, and four-part vocal harmonies).
Take a moment to ponder before coming: Why we’re here at this time on planet Earth, what we can do to alter our national rituals (which are one of the biggest sources of culture creation), and how we can further our participation in this grand and beautiful Web of Life that is so much more real than any independent nation state on Earth.
We look forward to seeing you and celebrating with you on July 4th from 3-10pm. Bring your family for all or some of this non-profit event with cob-oven pizza and camping available. $10-$40 suggested donation, nobody turned away for lack of funds, except pets which aren’t allowed on the farm at events, sorry.
Looking forward to Revival and celebrating Inter-Dependence Day. We are stronger together. Thanks for bring this tour to life, Ben.