Farm Fresh, April 2025

In this Issue:

Nature as a Teacher and Healer
And Then God Winked - a new book
Swan Trust's Snaketail 50
Market Day May 10!

Dear friends,

The question I keep returning to is, "How do we find peace and sanity in an insane world?"

And the world is about as crazy as I’ve ever seen it in my lifetime.

My heart goes out to the individuals and families who have been directly affected. I feel for those who have lost their job and have been punished for doing good work. Thousands will suffer at the hands of those who’s lust for power has replaced their conscience. Where compassion has been replaced by cruelty. And we pray that the depths of these actions does not carry our country and the world into a deeper abyss.

In times like these, I feel it’s important to keep things in perspective. To be aware that our individual part in this ongoing movie is but for a very short amount of time. Do not get swept away in a tidal wave of despair.

One of my favorite teachings from The Farm’s founder, Stephen Gaskin, is to recognize that our role is to live as surfers on the crest of this wave, using every bit of skill we can muster to avoid crashing, to maintain our balance.

On this journey that is the path of life, it is possible to ride this out until you reach a smooth landing on that distant shore.

Nature as a Healer

Throughout my life, I’ve turned to nature as a healer, as a teacher, as a refuge that helps me remember there is beauty all around me in things big and small.

That I can stand next to a tree that is older than I am or ever will be. That the stone in the bluffs where I stand on the edge have been holding their presence for millions of years and that I’m just a speck of sand.

I urge you to make an effort to spend some time away from the both artificial and very real chaos and immerse yourself in the reality that is the silence of the natural world.

Find a trail that takes you 1 mile, 3 miles, 5 miles away from all the noise that humankind is putting in your head.

Let your body, your spirit, your whole being, absorb that stillness.

Listen to the voice that comes from within, and reflect on the things that are most important to you, the love you have for family and friends. Pledge to build on those relationships.

Because this love is ours to have and to hold. Pull back from the panic and tune in to the beauty that is around you in the present moment. Reach out to those family and friends and support each other, because this is what we need to make it throuh the rough waves that are headed our way.

Thanks!
Douglas

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And Then God Winked, a Glimpse beyond the Veil
a memoir by David Purviance

Former Farm member David Purviance has a new book, "And Then God Winked... a glimpse behind the veil."

This is an incredible story of a spiritual journey, with selfless service as a foundation. David's work is truly inspiring.
 
During the early 60s David was active in the civil rights movement, from a lunch counter sit-in to on the ground in Selma, Alabama, 3 days after Bloody Sunday on the Pettus Bridge. David then went to work for a time in the office of Dr. Martin Luther King. He was a member of the S.D.S. and helped orchestrate the occupation of an administration building on his college campus.

He traveled to California in time to sail high on the music of the Grateful Dead and experience the Summer of Love.
 

 
David and his young family joined The Farm Community in the mid-70s. Soon they felt called to Bangladesh, one of the most impoverished places in the world, as volunteers with The Farm's newly formed relief and development nonprofit, Plenty International. David, his wife, and another Farm couple ran a 55-bed hospital for the destitute and dying in the spirit of Mother Teresa.

And after The Farm? David continued a life of service that is a testament that one person can make a difference.

David's e-book will be available for FREE from Amazon, Monday, April 14 through Friday, April 18
Also in Paperwork
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Swan Conservation Trust and the Snaketail Marathon

center: Swan Trust President James Moore, one of The Farm's second generation.
To his right, Swan Trust Board member, Dr. Nathan Lafferty

The Second Annual Snaketail Marathon, organized by Swan Conservation Trust, takes runners (and walkers) through the beautiful forests of The Farm Community and the adjoining Big Swan Headquarters Preserve, as a way to call attention to Swan Trust’s work to care for and protect the delicate ecosystem of Tennessee’s Western Highland Rim.
 

Participants could choose distances based on their endurance level, from 3K to 5K, a 26-mile marathon, or a double loop to run the full Snaketail 50.
 
Swan Trust has monthly hikes and other activities on The Farm and in the Preserve, as well as at special places in the surrounding area. Check their event calendar here.

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Thank you for your time and attention! Come visit us to see more!

Douglas Stevenson
Douglas@villagemedia.com
www.douglasstevenson.com
Village Media
www.villagemedia.com

My books:

Out to Change the World and The Farm Then and Now

Out to Change the World! $12 plus shipping

The Farm Then and Now $19.95 plus shipping

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Watch my TEDx Talk: Out to Change the World - Living the Hippie Dream

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Douglas Stevenson
Douglas@villagemedia.com
www.douglasstevenson.com
Village Media
www.villagemedia.com